You’ve decided you’re ready to buy a house, but you have no idea where to start, in this section of Buying A Home, you will learn the steps to help make you a home owner! First and foremost, you will need the financial capability to make a purchase, unless you already won the Lotto. Please keep in mind that this information is offered as a general overview and should not be considered legal or financial advise, speak with a qualified loan officer for more detail. If you would like receive a list of loan officers that are trusted and have worked with my previous clients, use the contact form on the right and ask for my proffered lenders. You can work with any lender of your choice when purchasing a home.
Financing:
Most of us have a good idea what our credit score or FICO is, if you don’t you it’s time to understand how this affects your ability to purchase a home. Lending institutions use your FICO score as a gauge to determine your ability and willingness to pay for your financial obligations including: rent, general bills, credit cards and any previous loans. The more bills you pay on time, the higher your score goes. Should you miss even one payment, the Interest rate offered to you when trying to buy a home could be directly affected with a higher Interest rate. Should you miss a few payments or default on a loan or credit card, you could be denied a home loan altogether!
Aside from payment history a number of other factors are considered. There are services that will give you a rough idea of your credit score, alternatively you can request them for free, once a year from the various credit bureaus such as; Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.
In the past, credit scores as low as 580 have successfully been used to finance a home loan, usually at a higher Interest rate. Different lending institutions have different requirements as well as programs to help most people buy a home, so long as you have decent credit and a solid work history. To find out more about the various programs and any grants currently available, use the contact form on the right. To learn more about the different types of financing most transactions will use, visit our Buying a home section and review the Financing page.