Home > Blogs > John Durham > Durham Executive Group Blog - RE/MAX Results

Home Loan Qualification, Woodbury MN Homes for Sale - Durham Executive Group

Real Estate Agent with Durham Executive Group - RE/MAX/Results

February 17, 2011 02:22 PM

Home Loan Qualification, Woodbury MN Homes for Sale - Durham Executive Group

The Durham Executive Group always recommend to our Woodbury MN buyer clients a couple of good loan officer choices to meet with to assist the buyer's determine who they'd like qualifying them for a pre-approval , and subsequently qualifying for a home mortgage. Determining whether you qualify for a home loan and for what dollar amount maximum is imperative. Until this information is determined an efficient home search is very difficult if not impossible.

In the meantime, we always tell our home buyer clients that barring major debt that as a ‘general rule' most buyers can afford a home in Woodbury MN that costs about 2 ½ times their yearly income. As a buyer in Woodbury MN it is important to factor in other fixed monthly costs/debt including utilities, doctor bills, groceries, car payments, insurance and so forth. We also discuss a minimum down payment and how much you might have to put down. A typical minimum down payment is 3.5% for a FHA total loan amount (unless special financing options are available). We will also discuss with our clients other expenses that will require money upfront such as the earnest check (usually 1% of the home sale), money for a home inspection (costs range from $250-$400), an appraisal which runs approximately $400, and insurance binders.

Until our home buyers actually meet with a loan officer to qualify for a home loan we have outlined some examples a buyer can use calculating out their maximum long-term debt allowed by a lender, as well as their maximum home payment based on your gross monthly income.

1. Loan Qualification

When estimating for your maximum home payment:

a. Taking your gross monthly income X .28 for a conventional loan; or

b. Take your gross monthly income X 0.29 for an FHA loan.

* The above number you come up with is your maximum monthly house payment.

2. Estimate your maximum long-term debt payment allowed by a lender

a. Take your gross monthly income and multiply by .36 for a conventional loan; or

b. Multiply your gross monthly income by .41 for an FHA loan.

* This is the maximum total debt payment a lender will allow, including housing.

John and Becky are real estate agents with backgrounds and work experiences that set us apart from our competition. We are both educated with post graduate degrees and have worked in upper bracket professional management positions in both business and educational settings prior to real estate. We know how to work with all social and economic clientele - whether it's a first time buyer, or a multi-million dollar client. We put the emphasis on ‘EXECUTIVE LEVEL' service regardless of the size of the transaction.

Our mission statement embodies putting the client first. We recognize the importance of listening to, and fully understanding our clients' needs and concerns. Each of us brings a unique set of marketable skills with none more important than integrity and honesty. We give our word that there will never be a transaction we are involved with that is not handled with professionalism, honesty, and integrity. Additionally, we pride ourselves on our communication skills and the ability to market and negotiate our client's properties with superior results. In fact, our efforts were recently recognized with an award for our client marketing. This is a prestigious award only a few agents in the Twin Cities receive from the National Association of Realtors and Realtor.com.

John and Becky Durham, MS, ASP, ARS