The Process of Shopping for a House

You can’t help but feel overwhelmingly excited when you begin thinking of buying a home. Looking for a house can be time consuming. Finding your soulmate home makes you realize that hard work truly pays off.

So, how long does it take to buy a house? It depends. On average, looking for a home normally takes up to three months. Here’s a glimpse of the steps that can shape your home buying process.

Mortgage Pre-Approval

Mortgage pre-approval is an estimation by a lender that determines if you would qualify and be creditworthy for a home loan.

The first step to get pre-approved for a home loan is to find a mortgage lender to work with. This paperwork will summon up basic information based on your credit score, income, debts, and employment history. This will expedite your home buying process. Also, pre-approval gives you a value range for the home purchased based on the current circumstances.

You will receive a written statement from your lender stating this information.

Searching for a Home

Once you are pre-approved, the journey for your sweet home can begin. Finding your dream home may take a while until you find the perfect fit.

Negotiating Agreement

Once you have picked the right house to buy, your real estate agent will help you fill out the paperwork to put an offer on the home. Once an offer is made, it usually takes up to three days to get an answer back from them.

          If approved, the next step will be handling inspections and appraisals.

          If rejected or countered, the negotiation process will take up to couple days.  

The inspections and the appraisal usually take up to two weeks to complete.

The Closing Process

Once the inspection and appraisal are completed, then your lender will start the closing process.

Closing occurs when you sign the paperwork that officially makes you the house owner. It may seem like the closing process is a lot of work, but it’s worth it. While waiting for the process to be finished, find something to keep yourself busy and enjoy your time while you wait!

The Expectation of Buying a Home

People normally have two choices when it comes to where they live and ultimately call home sweet home. There are numerus factors that can affect a person’s decision to rent or buy a home. The most influential factor is usually financial. So, is homeownership still a cornerstone of the American Dream?

According to the Survey of Consumer Expectation (SCE), one of the many questions asked in the housing section of the survey was: Assuming you had the financial resources to do so, would you like to own instead of rent your primary residence?

Surprisingly, 76.7% of those under the age of 50 said they would prefer to own their home, rather than rent. 52% of those over 50 would prefer to own. See the chart below:

This just shows how homeownership is part of the American Dream for the majority of the Millennials. In many ways, owning a home has become the norm for Americans. That dream is still alive!

At the end, perhaps the most important person to ask is yourself. Why miss out on the opportunity of looking for your dream home?

Once it’s time to look for a dream home give us a call or send us an email! We look forward to hearing from you!

What type of home will you buy?

It's a tough call between choosing a condo, townhouse, or single-family home when it comes to first-time buyers. When deciding between each potential home market, the type of house you purchase will also impact your down payment plans.  Managing lifestyles and budgets contribute to the buyer's pros and cons. Here are the key questions to ask when deciding which type of home, you should purchase.

Does the area suit your lifestyle?

Newlywed couples and young professionals are one of the foremost potential first-time buyers. Young professionals are looking for a place to live that is fulfilling on several levels. The Generation of young Millennials don’t plan on having children anytime soon therefore no need for extra bedrooms or even a yard. Condos tend to be a good fit for young professionals, because they are usually walking distance to coffee shops, restaurants, train stations, and shops; meeting their Millennial standards. 

On the other hand, Newlywed couples mostly hope to find a bigger size home because they are welcoming a new baby to the family. Expanding or building a family requires having a nice backyard for future children to enjoy, making a house a better option than a condo.

On the contrary, owning a house can be costly, staying in a townhouse would be more suitable where the Homeowners associations hire contractors to take care of the maintenance.

Are association fees worth it?

Have you heard of Homeowner’s association (HOA)? It’s an organization for the residents that makes and enforces rules that require owner’s to pay dues. You should understand how HOA works before signing the contract.

Condo or townhouse owners bear the rules that some people find too restrictive; however, maintenance and repairs are covered by the HOA. Which takes out the hard work for owners not wanting the responsibility of sustaining the maintenance work.

House owners handle all the home repairs. If renovations need to be made, you are left to hire the right contractor and pay the bill. If you need to renovate the kitchen, for instance, it’s up to you to look for the right contractor and pay the bill. All the maintenance and renovations in the long run can add up to a fairly large amount of money. 

So, what do you think?

In the end, I believe it really comes down to personal preference. Once you have your down payment saved up, you will be ready to go and know exactly what you’re looking for. Owning a home is the best thing that can happen.  What is the right choice, for you?

Additionally, why not learn all about mortgage loans for first time buyers while saving for your house? If you want a full team of experts, we’re happy to help you make the best decision.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us for more details: 770-552-1000. We look forward to hearing from you!

When's the Right time to buy a home?

Considering when to buy a home is always a train of thought. Many questions come to surface such as, “Are you ready to buy a house? What can I afford? What area will the house be located in?" Suddenly we find ourselves with so many questions, but not enough answers. And that's where we experts come in...

Here’s a list of components that will help determine your next home purchase:

          Planning to Settle in

Buying a home is not a compromise.  Keep in mind that you can change a lot of things about a home but you can’t change its location. You should know you’re going to stay for a minimum of five to seven years when buying a home. Choose wisely, which ever place you decide to call "home sweet home." The longer you stay, the better because this will help you to build long-lasting relationships within the community.

Steady Career

Money is obviously an important factor. Having the money to make the purchase is great, but remaining at a steady career gives lenders confidence that you can repay a home loan. Remember, buying a home is a lot more than having a down payment and paying the mortgage; such as utilities, home insurance, and general maintenance. Simply give yourself a little more time to get ready financially to buy your home.  

House Affordability

One way to do this is to answer the question “Is it cheaper to rent than to buy?” If buying is the best option then the next step is for you to contact a mortgage professional and make sure you’re preapproved. Pre-approval is free, and you can figure out exactly how much house you can afford.

You don’t want to miss out finding the right house to call your home sweet home!

If you want a full team of experts at your disposal to help you make the best buying decisions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We look forward to hearing from you!

Mortgage Planning

Living the Dream? For most that means buying a house and paying off all debt as quickly as possible. That’s a great dream yet here’s a few reasons why keeping your mortgage will work to your benefit.

Did you know there are many scenarios where it may not be in your best interest to pay off your loan? Below is a list of the most common areas in which people should considered before making decisions:

 You’ll lose out on that interest deduction

Paying all that mortgage interest has a benefit, and it comes in the form of a possibly sizable tax deduction. If you are in a high tax bracket and have a relatively high mortgage, you may want to keep the mortgage rather than paying it off. A tax payer in a 20% tax bracket who has spent $24,000 in mortgage interest per year gets a $6000 reimbursement. You’d be throwing that away by paying off your mortgage.

You have other debts

It doesn’t make sense to pay off on a low interest rate mortgage first when you have high interest rate credit cards, student loans and even car loans.

You haven’t saved for your kids’ college education

Have you saved enough for your children’s college education? Rather than paying extra payments on a low interest rate mortgage, start saving for your children’s college fund. It does you no good to pay off your mortgage then sadly realizing you are paying a much higher interest rate for college.

For the most part, be careful not to sell yourself or your financial goals short to pay your home off sooner.

If you want a full team of experts, we’re happy to help you make the best decision. Taking action now is the wisest way to achieve your goals for tomorrow. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us, we look forward to hearing from you!