Okay, you truly feel that you could be in the market to purchase a home in the next year, possibly in the next 6 months, or you decided to look into it now. You feel like it shouldn't be that hard, that you have decent credit and that you can prove your income. In reality, after doing mortgages for over 15 years, it shouldn't matter what you think. With the ever changing world of mortgages, you should try to be semi prepared before jumping right into it. Especially if your credit is less than perfect.
So, what should you do? I personally recommend that you speak to a mortgage professional no matter how long that you are away from purchasing a home. Keys to home ownership sometimes take some elbow grease and can put a stress on your loan approval if you aren't prepared ahead of time. Stop listening to those that say having your credit pulled can lower your credit scores. That's only if you do it consistently in a certain time period. It doesn't hurt to be prepared prior to even applying for a mortgage, which could save you hundreds of dollars.
Here is a basic list of items that you could start to work on :
- drivers license -- Moved to a new state just recently? You should make sure that your driver's license has your new updated home address.
- large deposits -- Try not to deposit large sums of money into your bank accounts outside the norm. Work pay is okay. Again, anything outside the norm, make sure you keep a paper trail.
- solid 2 year work history -- Make sure that you don't have large gaps of employment, unless you were sick or maternity leave. And don't quit your job during the mortgage process.
- proof of rent for at least a year -- Always pay at least by check or money order and keep the copies of these.
- prior collection account/charge off/or judgment -- if you are deciding to go into some sort of payment arrangement. make sure that you have at least 6 months of payments prior to signing a purchase agreement.
- Purchasing new items -- If you are serious about buying a new home, don't go buying new things, such as a new car. Especially if you are in the middle of a mortgage process, trying to get approved for a mortgage.
Overall, you just want to be prepared and somewhat educated on the process of buying your new home prior to searching for that home. There are several reasons why. Two that stand out :
- Just piece of mind, because once you apply for a mortgage, there won't be any surprises or delays.
- A delay in your approval could make you miss your commitment date or if you locked into your rate at time of application, you could lose your rate.
The Mortgage Process Series :
Happy House Hunting.......
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For more information on FHA loans, please go to this link. The FHA Expert
For more information on how you can obtain your dream home, please click here : Mortgage Financing Options
For important mortgage insight to watch for, please read : Consumers need to be aware of these Red Flags !!!!!
Copyright © 2008 by Jeff Belonger
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