Many of our readers have not applied for a mortgage in many years. Others have never gone through the process. Here are few hints on how to prepare and make the process a little easier. After all, your energies should be more focused on finding your new home. Not on financing it yet.
You’ll need to make some sort of a down payment, unless you qualified for Veterans Administration financing. Do you need 20% cash down? Not necessarily. Many buyers put down less than 20%, some as little as 3.5%. But don’t forget that you will also need closing costs. Closing costs can easily run to $8000, or more. If you are selling a home, you should (hopefully) be using equity in the home for your down payment funds. If this is your first home, I hope you have either been saving, or plan on contacting the First National Bank of Dad.
Speak with a mortgage professional to get Pre-Approved. The mortgage professional will run your credit, ask questions about your employment, income and debt. The process takes 10 – 15 minutes and there is no charge for this service. At the end, you will know whether or not you can qualify for a mortgage, and for how much.
At some point in the process of purchasing the home, the bank will order an appraisal from a third party appraisal company. This will insure that the home you are buying is worth the amount the lender is loaning. This is for their protection, and you pay for it. But at least you’ll know if you are paying a fair price.
So, to get started, check your credit score. This is available from many places online. Gather the necessary documents. You’ll need to supply tax returns, pay stubs, bank statements, proof of income, statements from investment accounts and possibly more.
Speak with a mortgage professional.
Then speak with your Realtor. Us. Bunny and Art Reiman. Then call us at 732-616-6226.