Talk to me about buying a first time home.

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[bania]

Getting mortgage pre-approval is where I would start. Then maybe find a realtor who specializes with new home buyers.

goaskalice would have better advice im sure

[rosiedozie]

Since you're so far out, I would start by making sure that your credit is in great shape and by saving as much as you can for a downpayment and potential renovations if needed.

You can also start going to open houses just to window shop - they were a great help for us in narrowing down sq footage, layout and neighborhood preferences before we really started shopping. It also help to set up realistic expectations for what we could get with our budget.

[underwaterrhymes]

We are in the process of buying our first.

Pre approval was our first step. We used redfin as our agent and have been very pleased.

Our offer was just accepted and we are now moving forward with inspection.

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[RoxMonster]

I agree with shopping around a few mortgage lenders and getting pre-approved. We also worked with a realtor that specialized in first-time buyers.

[rosiedozie]

It depends on what kind of financing you want to do - we used an FHA loan which was 3.5% down. Most traditional mortgages want 20% down.

[rosiedozie]

Pre-qualifications and pre-approvals are only good for a set period of time, so I wouldn't recommend getting to that step until you're closer to actually shopping.

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[rosiedozie]

Also, if you don't already have a set budget I would get one created and then use that to come up with what you want your max mortgage payment to be. That's how we started to figure out what we wanted to spend on a house.

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[goaskalice]

Thanks for the tag bania I love to talk about houses

It's great you're thinking ahead, that will really help you in the long run. Don't get pre-qualified because a lot can change in 2 years, but I would recommend talking with a mortgage broker because they can help you plan out the next few years. They can give you an idea of what kind of loan will work best for you, and that will give you a target number to work towards for a down payment.

Depending on customs in your area, sellers may pay closing costs - normally around 3% of the total loan. If that's not common practice you'll need to save up for that too. There are also some out of pocket expenses before closing the loan - inspections, appraisal, etc. I find them to run almost $1000 depending on house size and what kind of inspections you do.

With the changed to FHA in the last month I highly highly recommend shooting for a conventional loan. You can get one with 5% down, but you'll pay private mortgage insurance on anything under 20%.

I'm happy to help if you have any other more specific questions. Sorry if there are typos I'm on my phone.

[LauraMoser]

I would also recommend, since you're two years out, to work on getting your credit in tip top shape if its not already. Better credit score=better loan rates!

When you're looking, check out the neighbors of any house you are considering offering on. Spare yourself years of troublesome neighbors!

[Deleted]

My H was/is fantastic and has taken care of all of the logistics as far as buying both of our homes have gone. The only advice that I can offer is to have more than one inspector, even if the one you hire has a stellar reputation.

[pantsparty]

Get pre-approved.

Make sure your credit is in tip-top shape.

Save as much as you can - it depends on the house, but I don't think a lot of first time buyers put 20% down. But you'll still need money to close (there are all kinds of random fees), as well as things you might need for the house. Furniture, window treatments, and renovations all add up.

I agree with pp that a lot can change in 2 years. I might start to take a look at some preferred markets / neighborhoods, but overall I'd just save money and keep an eye on my credit.

[underwaterrhymes]

Jun 23, 2013 23:34:35 GMT -5 tators said:

Jun 23, 2013 21:08:01 GMT -5 underwaterrhymes said:

We are in the process of buying our first.

Pre approval was our first step. We used redfin as our agent and have been very pleased.

Our offer was just accepted and we are now moving forward with inspection.

Sometimes our lives are so parallel it is insane.

I know, right!

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