House?
- Thread starter |Chaz|
- Start date
- Replies 64
- Views 4K
We may earn a small commission from affiliate links and paid advertisements. Terms
start by going to a few banks and shopping the rates/payments etc. getting the credit ran to make sure the scores are where they need to be or what what needs to be done to get them there.
find a mortgage guy/girl that you like and a realtor that you are comfortable with. give them your monthly budget and they'll give you a dollar amount.
then you begin the terrible hunt. it sucks. its fun at first, but that shit gets old. which is why you have to really like your realtor, you will be seeing a lot of them.
find a mortgage guy/girl that you like and a realtor that you are comfortable with. give them your monthly budget and they'll give you a dollar amount.
then you begin the terrible hunt. it sucks. its fun at first, but that shit gets old. which is why you have to really like your realtor, you will be seeing a lot of them.
Yup first start with a bank, maybe a mortgage lender, or what I had the best luck with a credit union. Banks are the strictest. They will tell you what you can afford, but if they say you can afford more but you aren't comfortable ask them how much of a house you can afford for what you want to spend.
Check the local credit unions first. Think BECU or WSECU. figure out how much you can afford and how much of a down payment you can handle. Also, buy close to where you are going to work. You might be ok with the commute now, but after a couple years, you'll be hating life.
different banks will have different programs. my mortgage is through Pinnacle. they were by far the best part of our home buying experience. they had their own 1st time buyers program that was fully theirs and not controlled by FHA or the state level housing auth. so, they could bend the rules as they saw necessary.
looked at credit unions and other big banks, but ultimately, and sadly, a lot of our decision came down to this: they actually answered the phone, or called back immediately. we worked with a couple different mortgage guys, from brokers (multiple banks) to other banks (even the one I have banked at for years) and the biggest hassle, that caused us to miss out on a couple of houses, was these people would never respond. calls went unanswered. Pinnacle, however, we always got a response, usually same day if not same hour.
but, on the realtor side, we had a shit time. she was useless.
looked at credit unions and other big banks, but ultimately, and sadly, a lot of our decision came down to this: they actually answered the phone, or called back immediately. we worked with a couple different mortgage guys, from brokers (multiple banks) to other banks (even the one I have banked at for years) and the biggest hassle, that caused us to miss out on a couple of houses, was these people would never respond. calls went unanswered. Pinnacle, however, we always got a response, usually same day if not same hour.
but, on the realtor side, we had a shit time. she was useless.
def start looking at different banks then. the loan we have through pinnacle is a first time buyers with 0 down. luckily, we bought a foreclosure that was way below market and avoided the pmi. as i said, different lenders will have dif programs and you may find one that works with 0 down.
downside to buying though: you still dont get to choose your neighbors. they still may be retarded. but, when buying, you'll be stuck with them for longer stretches of time....
downside to buying though: you still dont get to choose your neighbors. they still may be retarded. but, when buying, you'll be stuck with them for longer stretches of time....
I purchased 7 months ago and min down payments were 3.5. The thing is other than having the down payment you will need money for closing costs, inspections, taxes, insurance, etc. You also need to keep some cash in reserves. Things will come up, shit will break. An example the brandnew looking glasstop stove that came with the house cracked the first time we used it. A new top was more than half the price of the replacement price of the stove, so we bought a new one.
Has your wife had steady employment? I know you just changed careers so it may be an issue, especially if you don't have a large deposit. My wife wasn't at her job for 2 years so we got rejected by a bank.
Has your wife had steady employment? I know you just changed careers so it may be an issue, especially if you don't have a large deposit. My wife wasn't at her job for 2 years so we got rejected by a bank.
If you can't afford a down payment, should you really be looking into a house right now? You would be better off getting a dirt cheap apartment for awhile and banking some cash for a down payment. You should have a good chunk of change for that, and an emergency fund. Because with a house, you will need it at some point in time.
I woke up one morning to a leaking hot water tank. I put it in myself for $300. But what if you can't do it yourself, that's an easy $1000. And you can't live without one. Think about the roof, furnace and appliances. And then there is upkeep, driveway, windows, paint.
You're better off waiting. Making sure your debt is low and your savings is high.
I woke up one morning to a leaking hot water tank. I put it in myself for $300. But what if you can't do it yourself, that's an easy $1000. And you can't live without one. Think about the roof, furnace and appliances. And then there is upkeep, driveway, windows, paint.
You're better off waiting. Making sure your debt is low and your savings is high.
First step is to get pre-qualified, a realtor will not talk to you without that.
Second step is to get your funds up.
You may only need 3.5% down payment for certain gov't backed mortgage products, but then you are stuck paying PMI.
Private mortgage insurance, which protects the bank if you default, it doesnt do shit for you.
you will need to pay that until you have 20% equity in the house, and it will run you in excess of 100 and up a month.
that will add a huge surcharge onto your mortgage payment.
put some money together and wait on the house hunt for a couple years.
also, make sure you are going to make it in this new career, in the same area before you get yourself up to your eyeballs in debt.
everything in life can change in a couple years time.
Second step is to get your funds up.
You may only need 3.5% down payment for certain gov't backed mortgage products, but then you are stuck paying PMI.
Private mortgage insurance, which protects the bank if you default, it doesnt do shit for you.
you will need to pay that until you have 20% equity in the house, and it will run you in excess of 100 and up a month.
that will add a huge surcharge onto your mortgage payment.
put some money together and wait on the house hunt for a couple years.
also, make sure you are going to make it in this new career, in the same area before you get yourself up to your eyeballs in debt.
everything in life can change in a couple years time.
If you don't have a down payment there are zero down options like guaranteed rural but it's going to cost you a few points to go those routes. Typical down like said above for an fha loan will be 3.5%. Like everyone else said getting pre qualified is huge. Since you recently changed jobs make sure you have paystubs from your old job handy. You might be surprised what they'll loan you. The wife and I are getting ready to list our house right now and got pre qualified for $517k but there's no way I could make that payment and do anything but sit in my new empty house lol. Debt to income ratio is big and having good credit which is obvious
Where you moving to? Don't tell me your stomping grounds, north bend.
If you're not sure where you are credit wise take a look into credit karma. Its a great tool to see where you stand currently and offers options to help increase your score/worthiness. I took cues from it over the past 18 months and have increased my score from low 700's to well into the 800's.
As others have suggested, if you have nothing to put down you're going to start your marriage off on the wrong note. Save money, as much as you can before jumping into a 30 year financial commitment. If the smallest downpayment you can afford is 3.5% I highly suggest trying to save approximately 15% before signing the note. Fear the unexpected but plan for it. Also consider your monthly utilities and other expenses you don't have when you rent, such as;
City/State property taxes
Heating/Cooling Expenses
Water/Sewer bills, if applicable
Maintenance
Remodeling
It all adds up and if you're scraping by currently, it isn't in your or your wife's best interest to jump into more financial stress. That will directly impact your relationship and before you know it you'll be paying a lawyer too. If memory serves, you're pretty young -- you've got plenty of time to build up your financial well being. Don't tax it too early.
As others have suggested, if you have nothing to put down you're going to start your marriage off on the wrong note. Save money, as much as you can before jumping into a 30 year financial commitment. If the smallest downpayment you can afford is 3.5% I highly suggest trying to save approximately 15% before signing the note. Fear the unexpected but plan for it. Also consider your monthly utilities and other expenses you don't have when you rent, such as;
City/State property taxes
Heating/Cooling Expenses
Water/Sewer bills, if applicable
Maintenance
Remodeling
It all adds up and if you're scraping by currently, it isn't in your or your wife's best interest to jump into more financial stress. That will directly impact your relationship and before you know it you'll be paying a lawyer too. If memory serves, you're pretty young -- you've got plenty of time to build up your financial well being. Don't tax it too early.
We're trying to buy my great aunts house in Snoqualmie. If that doesn't work out we're staying in maple valley but getting out of a neighborhood
Lol
I'm glad I don't live in the rich bitch portions of the country like you guys do. It must suck to have to make 70k a year to be considered middle class.
My mortgage is a little over a third of his budgeted amount and my house is 2700 sq ft and my garage is 1000 Sq ft.
Last edited: