Trying to be a first time homeowner - any advice before I sign?

I'm not there yet, but I plan to be ready in March of 08 to buy my first house. I've taken 15 hours of credit classes, I have $5k saved up, and I'm trying to get down payment assistance. Does anyone have any additional advice like unexpected costs (besides closing costs) and surprises that maybe happened to you when you bought your first house? I know to stay in my budget and not buy something I really can't afford. But for instance, do I find a lender first and then a house, or is it vice versa? And after I find a house and a lender, how long does it take to close? Is it stressful getting all your paperwork together?Trying to be a first time homeowner - any advice before I sign?
I bought my first house in 1999 I know some stuff may have changed since then but for the most part buying a house is stressful unless you find the right broker. Always make sure to have the house unless new inspected for termites(new home have already had that done )Make sure to bargain with the homeowner a warranty usually 1 year on structual and appliances. If moving into a development do some research on the area. Schools, shopping and future plans the developer has for that area. If it's a neighborhood talk to the neighbors and look at the yards, they will tell you alot.Do a background on the house your intrested in to see if it has had any major insurance claims filed whether claimed or not this could affect your ability to get affordable homeowners insurance or not. This is some of the important things but there are more.You should pre-qualify yourself and/or spouse to see if you are able to get decent financing, by doing this the lender will be able to tell you how much house you can afford before you start. The rule is your house payment should not exceed 28% of your gross income. The paperwork is quite extensive but if you have the right person helping you it not all that bad. Financing can be tricky, unless you have a fluid income try to avoid adjustable rate and balloon financing. This should give you the basics. I hope this helps. Oh and ALWAYS remember the real estate agent always work for the seller. Be smart, Be wise and good luck to you.Trying to be a first time homeowner - any advice before I sign?
Find a lender and find out how much you qualify for. Go for the simplest mortgage you can - 30 yr fixed, no ARM, no interest-only. Do not buy the most house you can afford.





There are always other expenses. Always. You will always need a garage door, or aAC unit, or a new dishwasher, and you do not want to be broke all the time.





A realtor is very helpful. Be sure you have the house inspected before you buy it (even if it isn't required by your lender). Try to out more money away for a down payment. The more you have, the more favorable your rates will be.





Best of luck to you.
Hi there! I recently just bought my first home with my husband and I recently also became a real estate agent. I would look around at your local agents and contact one. They should be able to explain the whole process to you in person. Contact me if you have any more questions. :)
You can get pre-qualified with a lender, this will let you know how much you can actually borrow. See if your state or locality has programs to help low-income residents buy their first homes. And: GET A HOME INSPECTOR. Most home purchase contracts let you cancel if you don't like the result of the inspection--make sure anything you sign has a clause like that. The inspector can point out major flaws and give you an idea of what repairs you will have to make in the first few years you own the place; he might show you repairs the seller should make immediately before he sells the house to you. FHA loans require the roof be in good shape and they won't loan money till it's fixed. The bank will require a termite inspection at your cost. You will also have to pay a portion of the sales taxes and transfer fees on the house.
I'm not in real estate. There are many people on here who are, so you'll probably get a really good answer on this question, but this is what worked for me.





1. I shopped around for a mortgage broker (lender). I talked with some folks I knew, as well as checked the local paper for brokers who catered to first time home buyers.





2. I talked to the broker and he reviewed my credit and income. He gave me a range of a house I could afford based on the information he had, and then showed me some estimates on what the payment range would be.





3. I went home, and plugged those numbers in for my budget. I live in an area where it can be very hot during the summer and very cold during the winter. I called my parents to find out what they paid in heat and air conditioning costs, and factored that in. I also factored in the basics (cable, phone, electric, gas, water/sewer, garbage) and my transportation (car, price of gas, etc.). I also put a little bit aside for savings each month, and general upkeep of the house. Then, I balanced it by lowering the amount of house payment until the numbers balanced out.





4. I went back to the mortgage broker, and told her how much I wanted to pay per month, and asked what she recommended.





5. She gave me a house price point, and printed me out a pre-approval letter to have (this was a few years ago, when the market was so strong that you weren't taken seriously unless you were pre-approved).





6. I took the price point and my pre-approval letter to my real estate agent, and we started looking!





The most stressful part of buying my first house was the fear of the unknown. As soon as I started working with these folks, it was a really easy process and everyone is there to help (because they all make money based on you finding, financing and purchasing a house).





Good Luck!
Find a lender first. They will tell you what price range you can look in for a home. In a lot of places, agents won't even give you their time unless you have an approval letter from a lender.





How long does it take to close? It varies. Depends on the people you are buying it from, their schedule, the type of loan you have, and how quickly you (and everybody else) gets their work done on it. I've closed in as little as 2 weeks and as long as 3 months.





If you are organized, paperwork is not big deal at all. If you aren't, then it can be a headache.
Try to have 10% for your downpayment. That way you avoid having to have an escrow account. Definitely go with a fixed-rate mortgage, no matter what. Closing took one whole day for us. Half the paperwork was messed up. It was very stressful. Also, plan on spending a lot of money at Lowe's or Home Depot the first three months. It's amazing all these little things you need all the sudden that you never needed before.


If you're renting right now, utilities/insurance will go up. Don't forget about property taxes, which can be significant, depending on where you live. Same goes for flood insurance.


We found the house first and then got a lender directly through the builder. Hope this helps and it's not too discouraging. Buying a house was definitely one of the best decisions we ever made. It's so much better than renting.
Starting at the last question and working back.





For me it is always stressful to borrow money, and I think it should be.





I bet that the time involved depends on the state whose laws you fall under. In Texas it can close as quick as two weeks- it usually takes three to four weeks. Part of the time depends on the seller and how quick they want to close-it is negotiated in your contract.





Ask family or close friends who they have used as a home lender and ask if they were happy with the experience. Ask them the same thing about real estate agents. Do not pick out a lender or agent based on an advertisement. Contact the lender first. Then once you have got your letter of qualification go see homes with your agent.





When I bought my first house I was surprised by all the things I needed/wanted to buy. Furniture, lawn equipment, ceiling fans, curtains, flowers, etc....





Owning my own home has been wonderful for my marriage and for my finances.





I wish many happy years and blessings for you.
Get per-approved first. No sence looking at a home that you can't afford.
just something noone else seems to have touched on- I bought with my hubby our first house thru hud.gov and we paid about 55-65 percent of the value well I think 63000 on a 100,000 house which is really good in our area. at closing there are kickbacks with hud for taxes and I dont know what all but it came to about 7,000 back toward our loan off of the bid amount. wells fargo gave us a 30 yr fixed loan for 6.25 and we are very happy with our home. our rates varied from that to 12 percent so it was a good rate for us. we did put 10 thou down and we specifically asked for a escrow account so much easier to let them handle all the various payments