Many first time home buyers report that they are both nervous and excited at the same time. This is normal because there are mixed feelings of being nervous and being excited are all rolled into the same exerience. There are no secrets to the process that you need to go through to get a home. {Even though it is unfamiliar to you, there are really no secrets to the process of buying a home}. It is a big deal, and no one will blame you if you are nervous but try to focus on being excited.
Get Pre-Approved: Get Qualified
First, you will want to get a copy of your credit report – even if you have to pay for it. The first thing you want to be sure of is that your credit report contains no incorrect information or other errors. Here are the things that you will need to get pre-qualified or pre-approved:
- Gather your financial information – 30 days of pay stubs, 2 months of bank statements, last quarterly IRA and 401K statements, last year’s W2′s.
- Research Loan Programs, FHA Mortgages, First Time Home Buyer Programs
- Find a Mortgage Company or Lender to work with – list of questions to ask Loan Officer
- Meet with your lender to find out what your price range is.
- Determine your monthly payment comfort level.
Shopping For A Home With A Real Estate Agent
The first thing you will want to do is find a real estate agent and you can easily find one online or through friends.
The most common ways to search for a home are by price range and location. The agent should set you up on some sort of automated email system that will send you new listings every day. Also, check out PropertyNut.com.
Once you have picked out all of the homes that you would like to visit, it is then time to go and take a tour of each one. Take notes about each home you visit. Trust us on this; you won’t remember the specifics otherwise once you visited more than about 5 homes.
Characteristics to consider in a home.
Once you get it down to the house that you like the best out of all of them, then it is time to write an offer with your agent’s help.
If your offer is accepted, your agent can help you make sure that appropriate inspections are scheduled and completed.
Getting Approved For A Mortgage From Your Mortgage Company
Now is the time to make sure that you are pre-approved with your lender and not just pre-qualified. If you haven’t already, provide your loan officer with 30 days worth of pay stubs, your last two months of bank statements, your last quarterly statements from your IRA/401K’s if applicable, W2′s, maybe your tax returns, and any other information your loan officer might ask for.
Homeowners Insurance For Your New Home
After working with the lender, now it is time to work with the insurance company to get homeowners insurance. The date of effectiveness on your policy should be the day that you close on your new home and you then own it. Make sure that you get a couple of quotes as there are going to be differences in what you are charged.
Closing On Your New Home
Talk to your Loan Officer and Real Estate Agent to make sure everything is on track to close on time about 1 week in advance. Just before it comes time to sign the final paperwork you need to do a walk through.
If you follow these steps as a guide, you should not come across too many mysteries or surprises in your home buying experience.
