If you’re like most, you’ll need a mortgage loan to purchase a home. The amount of money that a lender is willing to loan you will depend on several factors, including:
• Your current income
• The amount of down payment that you’re bringing to the table
• Your credit
You might or might not have a lot of influence over your current income, and you might or might not have wiggle room to save up for a down payment, but one thing that you can almost always work on is your credit. Get copies of your credit report to ensure that everything on it is accurate; fix any errors, and consider talking to a credit expert who can tell you which payments to prioritize and how to improve your score.
An agent can show you current active listings and is also a good resource to tap when you have other financial questions about homeowners’ insurance or other costs of homeownership, like common maintenance costs in the area.
Consider all the costs
• Property taxes
• Homeowners’ insurance premiums on the house
• Flood insurance, and often supplementary earthquake policies are worth considering (depending on the location)
You will likely need to pay closing costs, and you probably have furniture and items to move, so you’ll have to cover those expenses. And then there’s the wear and tear on the home and the cost to repair it, and the costs of utilities from month to month; a good local real estate agent can help you figure out what to expect.
Get to know your dealbreakers
Almost as important as knowing what you want in a home is knowing what you definitely don’t want. But don’t confuse a “dislike” with a true and genuine dealbreaker - a feature of the home that you can’t realistically fix.
If you haven’t tapped into the expertise of a real estate agent yet, now would be the time. An agent can help you understand what’s fixable and what’s not in the house you’re just not sure is a good fit.
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