First-Time Home Buyer? Use These Tips To Succeed In Buying Your Dream Home

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If surveyed, most first-time homeowners would likely admit to dealing with some level of fear or anxiety during the process of buying their home. Part of the reason for this type of stress usually involves the fact that buying a home typically involves taking on up to thirty years of mortgage payments, as well as the responsibility of maintaining the home and making any repairs and updates that may be needed along the way. Sometimes, however, first-time home buyers also face fears and anxiety that could have been prevented with a better preparation strategy. If you are a first-time home buyer, or are about to become one, these three steps can help you enjoy a more confident, stress-free buying transaction. 

Put your best financial foot forward 

The first step to enjoying a less stressful home buying process is to ensure that your finances are in order and you have assembled documentation to support this. This means making sure that you: 

• meet income, employment, and debt-to-income ratio requirements necessary for loan approval,
• have amassed the amount of cash needed for both a down payment and closing expenses,
• have verified your credit report to ensure there are no issues that would prevent you from qualifying for a loan,
• and have copies of the last two months of bank statements and the last two years of income tax records.

Having this information on hand when you apply for the mortgage will help to streamline the process and rule out any unpleasant surprises that could throw your purchase off track. 

Choose to purchase a home you can afford on your current income

Buying too much house is a common problem that first-time home buyers run into while trying to buy a home. Many make the mistake of planning to purchase at the top of the price range approved by their lender, instead of buying a home priced much lower. While incomes do usually go up over time, home buyers who are forced to struggle to meet the recurring monthly costs of owning a home can be financially devastated by one unexpected repair or a sudden job loss. This is why it is always prudent to choose to purchase a more modest, affordable home for the first purchase and wait until your income improves to sell it and purchase a larger, more expensive one. 

Insist on working with a caring professional

First-time home buyers will always need good advice and support to succeed in having a great buying experience, no matter how carefully they have prepared and researched. Making it a priority to select a caring, success-driven real estate professional to assist them is the best way to minimize stress and maximize success in any first home purchase transaction. 

9 March 2018