I'll be a first time home buyer. Are there any programs that will help me save money on a mortgage? Advice?

Question

I'm prepping to buy my first home but have not found a mortgage agent yet. Is there any advice on government programs for first time buyers? I'm looking for the best advice to save money on a mortgage. Does anyone have any advice on how to buy smart when dealing with real estate agents? Any tricks on how to deal with them. I really want to avoid getting taken of advantage of. Your advice is really appreciated! Thanks!

Answer 1

A great place to start is www.hud.gov. This is the official website for the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. They offer a good walk-through of how to go about buying a home. There are also links available to programs for first-time homebuyers, which may offer assistance in lower rates, down payment assistance, or even both.

You also mentioned some worries about being taken by a real estate agent. What you might want to consider is using what is called a buyer's agent. Basically, it puts a real estate agent in your corner too. They will end up splitting the commission with the seller's agent, so they do have some incentive to get you into a home that fits what you want and need.

In the meantime, make sure you are a great candidate for getting approval. A good place to start here is annualcreditreport.com, the official government website to receive a free credit history from all three major bureaus. You'll want to check for public records, ie judgments, bankruptcies, and collections. If there are any, you'll want to get those resolved, or be sure you have the documents you need to show they are taken care of. Beyond that, if you have balances on your credit cards, keep working at whittling those away. Be aware of what "assets" you have, things like checking or savings accounts, 401K, IRA, anything you can use to show you have the money to move ahead with this pruchase. Having all this information easily available to you will make the process go much more smoothly.

Answer 2

You might want to use a lawyer. Depending on your state, that may actually be required if you don't pay cash, or it may save you money over using a standard title company. One thing is for certain, there's nobody else that is 100 percent on your side when buying a home.

The real estate agent works off of commission. The seller pays that, but that means that the more you pay, the more they get. I'm not saying they are all crooks, I'm saying that you need to consider that when weighing their advice. You want to talk to them a while before shopping houses, you're better off with one you feel comfortable driving around to strange places with, and who knows your tastes and budget and home needs.

The mortgage broker works for a lending company, and is selling a product. There are some really good people out there doing it, but there are some that think it's just easy money. You want to shop around for one you can trust, and I suggest talking to at least three. It'll take that much just to get used to the terminology. Don't waste more than ten minutes with one if they aren't asking you questions; there are more different programs than you can imagine, and to find out which one suits you, they need to be asking a lot of questions.

In case you don't get an attorney, here's two key points to make sure are in the offer you submit. 1) it has to be contingent on a home inspection. It's one thing if they won't FIX any problems, but there are some problems you don't want to buy, or at least not be surprised by after closing 2) contingent on you getting financing; deals fall through at the last minute because of financing, you want to be able to get your money back.

Here's one more thing to bear in mind that your realtor doesn't want you to know, so don't tell them you do know it:

If they accept your first offer, you offered too much.

Answer 3

Real Estate Agent?
Ouch...
If you're looking to buy a home you need to buy them wholesale and you can't get those from realtors. You need an education on buying properties visit www.platinumreic.com fill out the form and they'll get back with you. Also first time buyer you need a HUD loan as they give you tons of protection conventional loans don't. They can see if you qualify for that as well.

Real Estate Zen

Answer 4

fha requires 2.25% down payment.
most 1st time home owners use this program....rates are pretty good for hardly putting any money down.

mycommunity /homepossible is zero down with a slightly higher rate of around 7% for 30yr fixed

these 3 are all first time home buyer programs

Answer 5

Check out first time homebuyer programs in you state.

Arizona just got 400 million dollars to offer first time homebuyer's in this state.

5% GRANT never has to be paid back.

Can be used for down payment, pre-paids, closing costs.

Here is the info for Arizona.

http://www.welcome2arizona.com/home/first_time_homebuyer/first_time_homebuyer.php

Terry S.

http://www.Welcome2Arizona.com

Answer 6

I found this web site with VERY interesting advice and proposals. Good luck! http://real-estate-note-buyers.blogspot.com/2007/09/real-estate-note-buyers.html

Answer 7

i think the best thing for you to do is refer to your bank.their you can rely sto them such transactions.Bankers can also also advise wha to do so...also try to read first, the book; David Bach's Smart Women Finish Rich or Robert Kiyosaki's Retire Young, Retire Rich...much better you can read this either of this book before your final decision. They are alslo very good financial educators...i think you're familiar to them...