We currently living in a apt. and we have been wanting to buy a house, but not sure what the 1st steps are. We've been told to get a Loan Officer, others say a Real Estate Person....help we don't know where to start. Any info. will help. Thank you!

By Happynerdmom on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 - 06:35 pm:

I would start with a loan officer. They will be able to pre-approve you for a loan, then you will know how much you can spend. IMO, you really don't even need a real-estate person anymore.

By Emdee on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 - 06:40 pm:

We already knew a rough idea of what we would want to spend on house payments monthly--you should be able to figure out your monthly budget for that. Then find a site on the internet (alot of real estate sites have it) that will figure your monthly payment (with insurance, etc figured in) based on the price of the house and current interest rates. We played around with this on our own to find a range to look in. Then we looked for a house. Then when we found a few houses we liked we got pre-approved for the loan. It worked great for us (we didn't have any credit issues so no problems there), but we may have done it different than others would have. Good luck--it will feel great to be out of an apt!!

By Karen~moderator on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 - 06:48 pm:

You first need to figure out how much you can afford for a monthly house note COMFORTABLY. There are supposedly advantages to getting pre-qualified for a loan - for beginners, start with your bank. We attempted a re-fi online to get the best interest rate, and ended up with our own bank anyway, so my opinion would be to start with your local bank.

*IF* you get a real estate agent, get one with experience, someone who does this full time, not just as a sideline. Check with your friends, maybe one of them can give you a referral.

There are a lot of websites such as bankrate.com or money.com for interest rate quotes and other information.

There are several members of this board who have been in the process of buying or selling their homes recently, so they should have some suggestions and advice for you.

As I mentioned above, don't get more house than you can comfortably afford. If you get a *fixer-upper*, be aware that it takes MONEY and TIME to fix it up.

I don't know what area of the country you live in, but that might have a bearing on what you'd need to look for in a house, IMO.

Research the areas you will be looking for homes in - are they prone to flooding, etc. Also, keep in mind your homeowners and/or flood insurance will add to your monthly house note. And *if* you buy in a flood zone, or if your zone is not considered a flood zone, but is pretty much surrounded by flood zones, you really SHOULD have flood insurance. Otherwise you could lose everything.

If you buy a house that is not new, you should insist on an inspection, even if you have to pay for it. And if you buy a *not new* house, see if a warranty is offered.

There are SO many things to consider. You need to:

Decide how much you can afford - also, how much of a down payment do you have?
Decide *where* you want to live
Decide what you want in a house
Consider the schools in the area you are considering buying - you can probably check that online too
Decide if this will be a *starter* home that you will only live in for a few years or if this will be a place you intend to stay
If you find you can't afford as much house as you'd ultimately like, is there a possibility of adding on later? Check into zoning requirements if so.
Do you want to live near shopping, doctors, etc., or do you prefer to live *out of the way*?

You'll probably have a choice of several types of mortgages - check into the advantages and disadvantages of each one. I'd HIGHLY discourage one with a balloon payment due in say, 3 or 5 years! Also, I'd recommend getting a fixed mortgage from experience - UNLESS you only plan to be there for a couple of years or so. IF you plan on selling and rebuying a home in 3 to 5 years, a 3 yr. ARM or 5 yr. ARM MAY be to your advantage, HOWEVER, that's taking a risk because you have no idea what the economy will be then.

The MOST important thing to remember, IMO, is not to get in over your head in debt for a house note. If you can't afford to pay more for a house note than you are paying in rent, don't even LOOK at houses that are out of your price range.

HTH!

By Jilly on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 - 08:19 pm:

We bought our first house when we moved here to VA. It may sound silly, but we bought "The Idiots' Guide to Buying and Selling a House." It was a lifesaver - and a quick read. It defined a lot the terms and just helped us figure out a number of things that we would have been completely lost on.

If you live anywhere near Hampton Roads, VA I have a great agent for you! He got us a great deal.

Good luck! Go buy the book!

By Katherine on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 - 10:00 pm:

This is my area of expertise....

Go to this website and click on all the links. It will take a little while to read it all, but there is great information on there. It is legitimate info because it is from government.

Go to the right hand site of the page and click on all the links under "Resources for Homebuyers"
Very very helpful info!

http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/nhmonth/nhmonth.cfm

Also, please feel free to ask me any questions. You may email me privately or post on the board. I am always glad to help!