So you’ve decided that you want to buy a new home – but are you ready to do so? This article will give you the steps towards helping you decide, so that you can either begin preparing yourself for a home purchase later on, or kick start an easy house hunting experience!
1. Before all else, define your current financial status. This includes your current monthly net income, current monthly expenses and any other resources you may have in savings. By figuring out what you have to work with each month, you’ll be able to budget how much you’ll be able to afford for a monthly mortgage payment.
2. In addition, make sure to check your credit score before you do any big steps towards finding a new home. An old item you may have forgotten about or even a mistake you didn’t realize was on there could be hurting your score and potentially your future home loan. By checking it ahead of time, you’ll be able to identify any problems ahead of time and correct them before moving forward with Life’s Biggest Purchase.
Hint: Get your report from three main credit reporting agencies to make sure your report is correct.
3. From the above two steps, decide how much you can afford when it comes to a mortgage payment. If you want some additional help, call me and I can go over various options with you.
4. Once you’ve figured out how much you can afford and still are deciding to move forward in your preparation towards becoming a home owner, you should sit down and decide what you want in a home.
Are you looking for a specific size? Does the home need to have a certain amount of rooms? Are you hoping to have special amenities such as a garage, general design or type of lot?
Most importantly, what location are you considering to live in?
All your home qualities should be addressed and in the back of your mind for the remainder of your home buying experience.
5. Now it’s time to get in touch with a real estate agent! A real estate agent can help you prioritize the list you came up with in step four and among other things. I can recommend several realtors if you are not already working with someone.
6. No matter how prepared you are at this point, you should make sure you get a mortgage pre-approval (not a pre-qualification, there is a difference). A pre-approval will not only allow you to discuss what mortgage options may be best for you once you find your home, but will help you appear more serious to the sellers you come across. Call me to get started on your pre-approval.
7. And of course the last step is to enjoy the house hunting experience! Make sure you check out several houses before making a decision, even if you find your dream home right away. It’s one of the most common mistakes made by emotional homebuyers – something you definitely do not want to be.
Jeff Kincaid 