Home Buying On Your Mind?

Have you been waiting to buy that first home? Are you ready to move up because your family is growing but don't think you can sell your current home?

Why?

Some reasons I've been hearing are:

"Interest rates aren't changing enough for us to afford a house."
"I don't have much of a down payment."
"The timing isn't right."
"Not a good time to try and sell our house to be able to move up"

Well.....

Interest rates are falling, yesterday (Jan. 13, 2008) there were rates in the Dayton area for as low as 4.50% for a 30 year fixed and even lower for 15 year loans. www.interest.com

FHA loans often require less of a down payment, as low as 3% of the loan amount. The federal government is offering first time home buyers up to a $7500 tax credit to be paid back over a period of 15 years, interest free! Sellers are sometimes willing to pay closing costs and or help with the down payment.

The time to buy a new house, first or move up, couldn't be better. There are still plenty of homes on the market and interest rates are approaching historic lows.

Yes, you might take a loss on the sale of your home but the savings you'll get on another could offset that loss. Remember, there are going to be more people looking.

Check with your local lender for more details on different types of loans and current rates. I can provide some resources and as always I'd love to assist you in finding that home of your dreams.

Give me a call (937-423-3316) or email (trfinch@gmail.com) or leave me a question or a comment. I'd love to hear what you have to say or answer your questions.

First-Time Homebuyer - Part Three

Once you've selected an agent who you're comfortable with and talked to a loan officer to determine what you can afford it's time to sit down and get together a list of what you want in a first home.


What Are Your Basic Needs?

1. How many bedrooms are essential?
2. One, One and a half, or two bathrooms?
3. Living room, family room, or both?
4. Eat in kitchen or separate dining room?
5. Office space?
6. Storage space?
7. Garage - attached or detached? Size one, two, or more cars?
8. School district?
9. Close to town or outside and how far?


What Additional Items Would You Like?

1. Laundry room?
2. Built on a slab, crawl space, or basement?
3. Outside entertainment area? Deck, patio, backyard?
4. Type of heating?
5. Overall condition of the house - appliances, roof, mechanicals, foundation,
etc.
6. Attached master bathroom?
7. First floor master bedroom?

Add others to match your desires.


Make sure your basic needs list are met first for each place before going on to the additional items. By answering these basic questions and any others you choose to add you will be able to start assembling a list that will greatly aid your agent in finding homes for you on the MLS (multiple listing service) and then setting up showings.

Any questions or comments? I'd love to hear them.

First-Time Homebuyer - Part One

You're ready to buy a house!


A home can be one of your best investments if you do your research and don't rush into it. In the next series of posts I will try to answer a lot of questions a first-time home buyer might have and prepare you for that most important step. If you have any questions, feel free to leave them in the comments section and I'll respond as quickly as possible.


What are the advantages of owning your own home?

• It's yours and you can do what you want with it (in most cases)
• When filing taxes, you can deduct your mortgage interest (if you itemize)
• You can deduct the points paid for your loan (with some exceptions)
• You can deduct your property taxes
• There are other closing costs that may be deducted
  
• It will increase in value (appreciate)
• You gain equity with every payment you make (you can't do that with rent $)
  
• You may eventually borrow against your equity

The process of buying a home can and should be a long one. Make sure you ask many questions of your real estate agent and your loan officer. The reward for your diligence and patience will be a higher degree of satisfaction and confidence in your decision.

Free Credit Report

Is it important to know your credit score? Do lenders really pay attention to your credit score? The higher the better? The answers are yes, yes, and yes.

FICO (Fair Isaac COrporation) is most commonly used scoring for your credit. If you break the scoring down, 35% relates to paying your bills on time, 30% to the amount of debt you owe, 15% to the length of your credit history, 10% to credit accounts that you've recently opened, and 10%to the various types of credit used. (You can learn more about FICO by going to www.myfico.com. ) Technically you have three different FICO scores from the three major credit reporting groups: Experian, Equifax, and Transunion.

The higher your score, the better the interest rate you may get or bargain for, which could save you thousands of dollars over the life of a loan. You can check your own credit reports by using the free credit report available to all at "annualcreditreport.com". Checking these reports will show you your credit information but in most cases you'll have to enroll to get your credit score number. You may get a report from each of the three credit reporting agencies mentioned above each year for free. It is simple to do and well worth your time.

There are other credit reports online, but most require a fee and some are just scams, so stick with the above mentioned reporting groups.

By All Means Choose a Realtor

So you’ve decided that the time is right to become a new homeowner. You know that the first step is to decide how much you can afford and then search the Internet. That's a good start, but do you really know how much you can afford and how to search for that perfect home?

By connecting with a Realtor you will have taken a step that will save you a lot of headaches in your home search, and he or she will be your guide throughout the entire process.

A Realtor can:

• Help you determine what you can afford
• Connect you with a home mortgage expert
• Provide more home search possibilities
• Narrow your search to help you find what you really want
  
• Save you time by not looking at houses that don’t meet your requirements
• Help determine home values
• Set up showings
• Provide you with valuable information before making an offer
• Guide you through the offer procedures
• Help in the negotiating process
• Connect you with people to help with inspections
• Guide you through the closing process

A Realtor should:

• Communicate with you by the means that fits you best, whether it's by email, phone, or fax
• Pay attention to your needs and desires when performing home searches
• Provide data for you when determining what to offer
• Not disclose your private information
  

By all means use a Realtor.

Todd Finch

Leis Realty Co.

Greenville, OH 45331

email: trfinch@gmail.com website: www.darkecountyproperties.com cell: 937-423-3316