A look a Home Buying & Selling

Buying or selling your home can be challenging, but its well worth the effort. A home can also be an important way for you to grow financially. As well as tax advantages to owning a home, owning a home also builds Equity and can contribute to your financial security.

What are your housing needs?

Before you begin looking at homes, make a list of your priorities. Consider the items that are most important to you like: What size home do I need? Where is the ideal location? Should I choose a location close to my job or schools? Questions like these will help you to determine what your minimum requirements are or what things a house must have for you to consider it. Then make a separate list of items that contains things that you’d like to have in your new house but are not essential. This will help you establish what amenities are really important to you.

How much can I afford?

You can get a preliminary idea by using the mortgage calculators provided. These tools will help you determine approximately how much you can afford monthly and what kind of estimated payment range you may be categorized or have a preference toward.

Get Your Finances in Order

Your credit reports are an ongoing look at how you manage your finances. You will need to know what your credit report says in order to apply for a mortgage. The credit report plays an important role in the mortgage approval process and in determining the interest rate and other loan terms that may be available to you.

Get Familiar with the Housing Market

Start looking for two types of real estate: houses that seem to match the one you would like to buy and house that are similar to your current home. How do they compare in price?

Get Pre-Approved for a Home Loan

Before you decide to sell or purchase a new home get pre-approved by a lender. This will allow you to have a better idea exactly how much you can afford and will establish if you need to be concerned with any limitations. Consider this scenario. A home seller receives two close offers. One offer is accompanied by confirmation that the potential buyer is pre-approved for a loan and the other is not. Which offer do you think the seller will consider first?