Get A Houston Home Loan - Prepare For Home Ownership With These 10 Steps
Buying a home is both exciting and terrifying (not to mention finding the right Houston home mortgage). However, with home prices the lowest they have been in years, mortgage rates at historic lows, in addition to an $8,000 tax credit that is available to first time home buyers, now is a great time to buy a home. Below you will find 10 steps to guide you towards home ownership:
1. Start by knowing what you can afford in a Houston mortgage. Generally, you can afford a home equal in value to between two and three times your gross income.
2. Create your home wish list. Once you have everything you want, prioritize them.
3. Decide on where you want to live. Compile a list of three or four neighborhoods you’d like to live in, and don’t forget to take into account items such as schools, parks, proximity to shopping (or whatever is important to you), and of course, safety.
4. It’s never too early to start saving. Do you have enough money saved to qualify for a Houston home loan and cover your down payment? Ideally, it is good to have 20% of the purchase price saved as a down payment on the house. And do not forget to factor closing costs into the expenses. Closing costs - including taxes, attorney’s fee, and transfer fees ? usually average somewhere around two to seven percent of the cost of the home.
5. Get your credit in order. Get a copy of your credit report and look it over carefully to make sure it is accurate. If there are any errors, make sure they get correct right away. Your credit report plays a huge role in getting a loan as it shows how you handled credit in the past including all your bad debts and late payments, if you have any.
6. Establish your mortgage qualifications. How big of a mortgage are you able to qualify for? Be sure to look at different loan options too ? such as 30-year or 15-year fixed or ARMs ? and decide which is better for you.
7. Get a pre-approval. Get all the documents a Houston mortgage lender will need to give you a pre-approval on your loan. Some items you’ll probably need include W-2s, your last couple of pay-stubs, bank statements for the past two months as well as your account numbers.
8. Look to see if there are some other sources that might help you with your down-payment. For example, you might qualify for certain special mortgage programs or down-payment assistance programs. It would be worthwhile to check with your local government and/or state agencies to see about these kinds of programs. Another option, if you have an IRA account, could be to use that money you’ve saved to buy your first home and you won’t need to pay a penalty for early withdrawal.
9. Figure out the total cost of Houston homeownership. This should include property taxes, insurance, maintenance and utilities, and association fees, if applicable.
10. Get yourself a good Houston Realtor. Some first time buyers opt to try to do the deal alone rather than getting an agent. Why even bother? An agent is there to represent you and make sure you get a fair deal. And don’t forget, as a buyer you’re not going to have to pay to have that agent work with you.
