First things first. Homeownership is a big step. It’s an investment in your future and the future of your family, something that will provide you with security when times are tough or peace of mind when life gets crazy. It can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be. With the right preparation, knowledge, programs available in your local area, and guidance from professionals who make helping people their mission every day, homeownership can be within reach even if you don’t think you can afford it right now or think you don’t qualify for programs or assistance programs designed to help people like you take the next step toward homeownership. The first thing many people do before buying a home is figure out how much they need for a down payment and how much house they can afford each month. For many programs, you’ll probably need to put down at least 3% of the purchase price of the home you’re buying. The amount of money you have saved for a down payment will determine which programs are available to you. The best programs are closed to first time homebuyers who don’t meet certain requirements or have less than an acceptable credit score or income level. You must qualify according to specific guidelines established by the programs’ administrators before applying for any type of homeownership program. But all homeownership programs offer some kind of flexibility so home buyers can work within their own personal situations if necessary. There are also programs specific to certain regions, so it helps to know about programs in your city or county. The programs and their terms vary depending on where you live, but there are programs across the country designed for first time homebuyers and people who haven’t owned a home in several years.
Here is a list of 10 steps to buying your first home:
- Get prequalified
Prequalification gives you an idea of how much house you can afford based on your income, debts, down payment money saved, credit history, etc. A mortgage lender will examine all that information to determine what kind of loan amount you qualify for. This number doesn’t have to be perfect, but it should give you an idea of whether homeownership could work for you within the specific price range before going out house hunting.
- Look at your credit report
Make sure everything listed in this report is accurate, even if you’ve paid off delinquent debts or sent letters disputing wrong information in the past without any problems. The next step in buying a home isn’t possible until issues with your credit are cleared up.
- Figure out your down payment amount
You can come up with a range based on programs available to you and what programs allow for the best interest rates, tax breaks, etc. Finding programs that will help you afford homeownership beyond just saving money requires some research into programs offered by your state’s Housing Finance Authority (HFA). You can visit their website or call them to find out more about programs designed to support people who want to buy their first home and programs that help lower the cost of borrowing money for a down payment.
- Figure out your monthly income
You’ll need to know how much you bring in each month so you can decide how much house you can realistically afford at any given time. Of course, it is possible to get approved for more than what you qualify for so this number might be higher than what programs approve if everyone who lives with you files income taxes or if one person takes care of children full-time which provides an additional amount on top of each paycheck to use as a cushion during lean times before getting paid again. Just remember that programs designed specifically for first time homebuyers determine maximum loan amounts based on a percentage of certain metropolitan areas median family income (MFI) to add programs specifically for first time homebuyers.
- Figure out how much you can afford to pay each month
You must be able to afford the payment on a house every month and programs will only approve certain loan amounts based on your maximum mortgage amount and monthly income. Homeownership programs could decrease your ability to qualify for programs if you cannot afford the monthly payments. Are you willing to borrow enough money so that you can qualify? It might not even be possible to borrow enough money otherwise. If programs won’t approve certain loans, buyers may need a bigger down payment than expected or they might have less house than what seems affordable at first glance based on programs offered by their HFA.
- Find an approved lender and get preapproved for a loan
You cannot start looking for houses until programs properly approve your loan amount. This can be completed online and programs allow you to check your status every day, so there’s no need to wait weeks or months before programs know what types of loans programs qualify for specifically tailored to first time homebuyers in programs around Oregon. You’ll need all that information from step one on this list, which includes how much money you have saved up as a down payment percentage.
- If programs haven’t already, find out whether programs pay closing costs
Before getting preapproved, you should know up front if programs cover any type of costs related to buying a house such as lien fees, title insurance, etc. If programs don’t pay closing costs programs sometimes have partnerships with other programs to get discounts on programs so you can still get approved for programs without paying anything out of pocket. Whatever programs do not cover programs will require the money be paid in cash or through an escrow account set up by your lender which you might have access to depending on what programs have available.
- Get preapproved for a second loan
Your HFA may offer loans specifically designed for first time homebuyers that are great options to consider if they seem like a good fit based on how much house you can afford and whether or not programs pay closing costs as well as the interest rate and length of repayment term offered by your HFA programs.
- Start looking for houses programs approve buyers to buy
Start looking at listings programs allow you to borrow money to buy based on programs preapproval for a loan that programs deem acceptable given the amount programs are willing to lend and how much house you can afford both of which programs will determine prior to buying your first home. Programs also narrow down what programs look for in terms of proximity to public transportation, amenities nearby, crime rates, school districts, etc. Every HFA programs have different guidelines so make sure you pay attention if you are working with more than one HFA or lender specifically designed for first time homebuyers in Oregon .
- Work with an agent who knows how federal housing programs work
As soon as you tell programs you are looking for a house, programs will require programs work with a real estate agent who knows programs well enough to get programs through the process of buying your first home. If programs don’t have an agent ready to go, choose someone you can get on board with or ask programs for advice on which agents programs recommend working with before starting the search for your first home.
In conclusion, there are many federal housing programs specifically designed for first time homebuyers in Oregon that could dramatically lower the amount you pay every month and increase your savings over time while also helping you buy a house faster thanks to programs covering closing costs so it’s important to be preapproved by a lender or two prior to starting your search so that programs know how much money programs can qualify programs for. These programs do not charge interest over time, but programs are subject to repayment fees if programs decide programs want to back out of your purchase or programs are not able to make your scheduled repayments which is why it’s important programs only shop around within the same HFA for better rates and lower closing costs.
A great way to get started on this list is to work with Vision Mortgage Group, a mortgage advisor that offers programs specifically designed for first time homebuyers in Oregon at competitive rates that you won’t find anywhere else. Programs help buyers find exactly what they’re looking for without having to settle by offering innovative loan products specifically tailored to fit your needs as a buyer along with fast approvals and closings so programs can find programs the perfect house to start programs next chapter of programs life.