So you're Ready to Buy A Home?

So You're Ready To Buy A Home?

You may be excited about the prospect of buying your own home in Fort Worth. Owning a home means freedom, prosperity and enough room to house your growing family. However, before you can successfully buy a home, you need to get your finances in order and secure financing. Prepare yourself in advance for purchasing your home by checking your credit and setting a budget. In today's housing market financing is the linchpin of realizing your dream of home ownership.

The first thing you should do if you want to purchase a home is order a copy of your credit report. You can order one free copy of your credit report from each credit bureau every 12 months; you can also get a free report if you've recently been turned down for credit. Once you get your credit reports, check them for inaccuracies. If you see anything on your report that is incorrect, circle it. Make a copy of the report after you highlight all inaccuracies and send it back to the credit bureau with a letter explaining why you believe the information is incorrect. You might need to provide evidence along with your correspondence such as a letter stating that an account was settled. The credit bureau must investigate your claims and change the information if they discover that it is inaccurate.

It's important to check your credit report because most lenders use your credit score to determine whether you qualify for loans or how large a loan to grant you. If your report has inaccuracies on it, your score might be lower than it should be, and you may be disqualified from loans that you should qualify for. Keep in mind, however, that the credit bureaus can only remove inaccuracies. If you have collections accounts or unpaid debts, work on repairing your credit before you start applying for home loans. We can direct you to competent credit repair companies.

Once you've gotten your credit report straightened out, your next step is to set a budget. You have to determine how much you're able to pay every month so that you can figure out what a reasonable mortgage amount would be. Don't forget to calculate the down payment, closing costs, moving expenses, utility deposits or any needed repairs to the home as well. You'll need enough money to cover these costs before you can buy a house.

Before you can buy a home, you have to get your financial situation in order. Credit is very important to the home buying process, so do your best to improve your credit before attempting to get a home loan. A FICO score of over 720 is best for rates and your chances of being successful in obtaining a loan. It's also important to consider your budget so that you don't get into financial trouble after you purchase your home.

Happy Trails,

Donnie

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