Seven Steps to Successfully Purchase a Home
Every home buyer has numerous questions regarding types of
mortgages,
how to select a realtor, and what is the difference between
being pre-qualified and being pre-approved?
I suggest that you read this entire report before you go
house hunting. You’ll learn how to separate whims from true needs. You’ll
discover how to prepare a game plan for your real estate venture, how to
research effectively, choose wisely, finance appropriately and complete the whole
process in a relatively short period of time.
Seven Steps For Success :
1) Establish
your needs and wants.
2) Determine
how much you can afford.
3) Get
pre-qualified or pre-approved by a lender.
4) Find
a good real estate agent to help you.
5) Find
a home that meets your needs.
6) Make
an offer to buy a home.
7) Save
as much as you can on the purchase.
By the time you’ve read my report and followed my
suggestions you will have an excellent overview of how to find and
purchase your dream home. And you’ll have plenty of
confidence to back up your decision to purchase that special home, too.
Begin your search for a perfect home by making a careful
assessment of the kind of a home you need and want. I recommend that you do
this in writing. So take time, right now, to be as specific as you can about
your particular requirements.
Set up a budget for yourself. Decide how much you can
really afford to invest monthly for your house payment. Be realistic here.
Most lenders want your payment to be no more than 28% of your total monthly
income.
You can save yourself a lot of time and heartache by meeting
with a lender before you start your search for a home.
A lender can let you know what specific loan program would
be best for you. They can also help you understand what it takes to qualify
for the loan that you want.
By taking a look at your financial situation and looking at
your credit history, a lender can usually give you a good idea if you can
qualify for the loan that you want. Many lenders call this “Pre-qualifying A
Buyer”.
If you would like to be certain that you can be approved
for a loan, you may want to ask to be pre-approved. In the approval process,
all of your documentation is completed and submitted to an underwriter.
The pre-approval that you will get back is an actual loan
commitment from a lender. This means that you definitely have a loan. Talk
to your lender about the costs involved, as they are different for each lender.
The next step is the most important one in the actual search
for a home. That is to find a real estate agent that is willing to answer all
of your questions.
You can learn a lot about an agent by just letting them talk
to you about how they help buyers. Within a few minutes, you will probably be
able to determine if their style is compatible with yours.
Questions for agents:
1. Are
you knowledgeable about the area of town and price range that we are interested
in? (Some agents specialize in only one area or one price range.)
2. Do
you have the time to work with us? (This is especially important if you are on
a tight deadline.) What procedure will the agent follow in working with you?
How often will they update you with new property listings?
3. Can
you represent me as my buyer’s broker?
Ask as many questions as you can up front. By finding a
good agent, you will save yourself huge amounts of time, effort and money.
Five Tips for Successful House Hunting:
1. Keep
an organized record of all your research data. Write down comments about the
homes that you see. Keep track of your likes and dislikes.
2. Make
sure that your agent is aware of your time schedule and expectations. Do you
like to look at one or two homes in a session? Four? Eight? Discuss this with
your agent.
3. Tell
your agent about any homes you see that interest you and that you’d like to
know more about. This includes homes you’ve “discovered” as you’ve explored
the area yourself, or those advertised in the newspaper.
4. If
you want to spend time driving around by yourself looking at homes, ask your
agent for a list of drive-bys – homes to consider first from the outside. Your
agent can make appointments later to show you the interior of those that appeal
to you.
5. Express
your likes and dislikes to your agent after you look at a home. Honesty &
communication are essential. Many buyers are shy and afraid to tell an agent
what they really think of a house. They think the agent might take it
personally. Remember, the homes don’t belong to the agent! You must be
straight forward about your likes and dislikes in order for the agent to do the
best job for you.
Your real estate agent can help you make an offer to buy the
home that you want. It is important to know beforehand who your agent
represents.
Some agents work only for the seller. In this case the
agent may not be able to advise you what is a fair offer.
By looking at what homes are selling for in the area and how
long they are taking to sell, you should be able to get a good idea of value.
There are only two major investments to consider when buying
a home. These are the initial investment, which includes down payment and
closing costs and the monthly payment, which includes principal, interest,
taxes, and insurance.
Here are six ways to save on your initial investment:
1) Choose
a low down payment loan. You do not necessarily have to put 20% or even 10%
down. You can put 5% or even 3% on some loans. With good credit, you may even
get a loan with no money down.
2) Have
someone give you money to pay closing costs. A blood relative, church or
nonprofit organization (like the City or County) can give you money for closing
costs.
3) Ask
the seller to pay some of your closing costs as part of your offer. Sellers
are usually allowed to contribute to a buyer’s closing costs or pre-paid
expenses.
4) Do
not pay too much insurance at closing. Some lenders want 14 months hazard
insurance paid at closing. Others ask for more. What happens to that extra
money? It sits in your escrow account until you sell the house. It is safe
here, but it often gains no interest for you.
5) Shop
around for your home insurance. A little shopping can save you money.
6) You
can deduct money paid for discount points from your gross income before
computing your tax. Check with your CPA.
Here are three ways to keep your monthly payments low:
1. Get
a loan that doesn’t have monthly mortgage insurance premiums. You may be able
to reduce or eliminate them by paying a little more at closing. By putting 20%
or more down, you can eliminate them entirely.
2. Remember
that interest payments on a primary residential mortgage are fully deductible
in most circumstances. Your property taxes may also be deductible. Tax rates
definitely favor home owners.
3. Choose
an Adjustable Rate Mortgage. ARMs can be up to 3% lower than fixed rates.
However, an
ARM is subject to having periodic
increases of the interest rate.
Now that you have finished this report, it is time
to go out and find the home of your dreams.
Make sure that you cover all the steps in this report in the
proper order.
See a good lender (or get a recommendation from your real
estate agent). They will help you decide how much of a loan that you will
qualify for.
Second , find a real estate agent to work with. If you
don’t have one yet, feel free to contact Tod Franklin at (214) 207-0210.
Courtesy Of :
Tod G. Franklin
Real Estate Broker
DFWCityhomes
(214-207-0210)
tod@dfwcityhomes.com