First Time Homebuyer

[cj65]

Insist on a 30 year or fifteen year fixed mortgage. Do not do ARM mortgages or any of that ajustible interest rate crap

Yes,
Ren is right. If anyone even offers you an ARM, walk out and find a trustworthy financial person. It would be best to get pre qualified, before you even start looking for a house to put an offer on.

 

[RevDevil]

Yes,
Ren is right. If anyone even offers you an ARM, walk out and find a trustworthy financial person. It would be best to get pre qualified, before you even start looking for a house to put an offer on.

Yep. Adjustable rates are a foolish choice. I was looking around to see if there are any first time buyer programs available. There is little information readily available. Maybe the tqx credit will be making a return for the final quarter before 2011.

I will start making phone calls tp banks and see what the responses are.

 

[roughedges]

Yep. Adjustable rates are a foolish choice. I was looking around to see if there are any first time buyer programs available. There is little information readily available. Maybe the tqx credit will be making a return for the final quarter before 2011.

I will start making phone calls tp banks and see what the responses are.

FHA Fixed Rate You can make a downpayment of as little as 3% but are limited to houses in move in condition and that meet FHA approval. There is also a minimum time for which you must agree to keep the home as your primary residence, 3 years if I remember correctly, and probably some other hoops that I'm forgetting as well.

 

[cj65]

FHA Fixed Rate You can make a downpayment of as little as 3% but are limited to houses in move in condition and that meet FHA approval. There is also a minimum time for which you must agree to keep the home as your primary residence, 3 years if I remember correctly, and probably some other hoops that I'm forgetting as well.

This is a good way to go. FHA will make you buy mortgage insurance which is different from home owners insurance, so be ready for that, but still a good way to go.

 

[Relayer]

Number one... get yourself a really good realtor. An invaluable source of information, counsel, assistance in buying your new home. Their knowledge and experience can save you thousands and lots of time and frustration.

 

[Alann45]

This process is both exciting and nerve wracking at the same time. I can't wait for the first night of buyers remorse.

It definitely is a nervous thing for the first time buyer.

Several of the suggestions already made will help avoid some of that.

..a liscensed inspector
..a realtor who works for YOU not the seller.
..title insurance

I would also recommend a real estate attorney. He can do the title search and give some advise. You may also want to have him come to the closing, while not absolutely necessary, the amount paper they throw at you to sign is mind boggling and he has the experience to look for any landmines. Cost a few hundred dollars, but provides some real peace of mind.

And don't be in a rush, this is a buyers market...take advantage of it to find just what you want.

 

[FMAKNut]

Make sure you are with the licensed inspector while he's inspecting the house. Point things out that look suspicious to you. It's okay to be a pain in the a$$ about it. It's your money. I'm not sure how it works in your jurisdiction, but a friend of mine in Houston, TX got screwed over. The inspector didn't inspect the furnace. Only a HVAC licensed would do it. Turns out the furnace was cracked and leaked out carbon monoxide. The seller didn't have to pay up and it wasn't covered by the home warranty for some stupid reason. My friend had to replace the whole thing. A few thousand bucks just to get a used one installed.

Additionally, make sure you get your home warranty. Should be part of the sale. It's usually good for a year after the sale. Be a pain the a$$ and call about every little problem you have with the appliances and such, make sure they get resolved fully before expiration and expect them to take their sweet time. I bought a house new and sh!t just broke a few months after expiration. Stuff that I could've detected earlier but didn't because I was lazy.

If you buy new from a home builder, DR Horton screwed my neighborhood over big time as well as many communities. There's even a website dedicated to complaints about them. I would recommend not buying from them.

 

[RevDevil]

Thanks for pointing out the items in the last 2 posts. I did not think of accompanying the inspector, but it makes perfect sense. I have an eye for awkward things, lile ripples in drywall due to leaky roofs, slow draining sinks, termites, rodent and insect issues, and so on. I think I would be better off compiling a list of things to look for.

I also didn't think to have an attorney participate so closely. A few hundred dollars for peace of mimd is always money well spent. That is a must do now, even though it is a buyers market, can never be too careful with this stuff. Thanks for the help, I am going to print this thread for sure.

 

[Gollnick]

Definitely accompany the inspector. He'll verbally point out a lot of little things that he won't bother to write down. He's also typically a wealth of tips and tricks. These guys see a lot of houses all day everyday. In fact, go through the house yourself a day or two before hand to look for things you may have questions about for the inspector.

I live in a DR Horton home in a DR Horton neighborhood and I think Horton did a good job with both. It's a pretty good house. I like it. They are still very much active in the area and generally well-regarded.

Whether or not you need a lawyer depends on what state you live in. Really, you don't, but some states require it as a make-work program for 5th rate attorneys.

 

[dttomcat]

I am going to print this thread for sure.

We've been published! I meant to tell you to be there for every step of the process. Good call. Accompany the inspector, the appraiser, the realtors, etc.. Get down in the basement or into the crawlspace (if there is one) and up into the attic. This will give you a chance to exercise your fancy flashlight. Pay close attention to the topography of the site. Drainage is very important as floods can be as bad or worse than a fire. Home owners, flood, and even mortgage insurance (which may be required by the lender) can be crucial. Do your homework and you will probably end up very happy and proud. And neighbors, ...NEIGHBORS!!! ... are very important. I have friends who live in 7 figure water-front homes who spend half their time bitchin' about neighbors. Pay close attention. Good luck. :thumbup:

 

[FMAKNut]

I dunno if you have kids or planning, but another thing to consider is doing a search for sex offenders in the area where you are looking. You'll be surprised how many can be living in your neighborhood. You should be able to find several websites off of google.

 

[meako]

a shitty house in a good place is better than a good house in a shitty place.
check out the neighbourhood.

 

[Cougar Allen]

I dunno if you have kids or planning, but another thing to consider is doing a search for sex offenders in the area where you are looking. You'll be surprised how many can be living in your neighborhood. You should be able to find several websites off of google.

I dunno. There seem to be some in every neighborhood, and even if you find a neighborhood without any currently listed, one could move in the next day.

 

[FMAKNut]

That's true. Awareness is better than not. I think more knowledge about an area around a home can possibly help in the price negotiation process, just like the price per sq ft that other houses are selling for in the same neighborhood.

 

[jnich005]

As a recent first time buyer, i would have to say don't do it. I have been in my house for less than 3 months and now have about twenty thousand dollars worth of damage from a recent storm. The kicker is, its not covered on my insurance. I had two inspectors say the roof is fine. Well every room in the house has water damage now, and the adjuster could not cover the damage since the roof is in "such bad condition".

Having just spent most of my savings to purchase the house, I am now unable to complete most the repair. My suggestion would be only purchase if you are able to have a fair amount of savings left after the fact.

It is always going to be more expensive to buy as apposed to renting and all repairs are now the owner's responsibility. On the other hand there is something special about being a homeowner. Good luck.
Jon

 

[ttoney83]

Don't trust any banker or what they say about what you can afford. Take their number and cut it by at least 30 percent to be sure you can keep your payments up. That will reduce the amount of house you might be able to move into but believe me, you will be happier in the long run.

Go into the mortgage with a 6 month minimum back up on your projected monthly expenses. With the increased volatility introduced into the economy by the bankers and their Mortgage Backed Securities gambling, 3-6 months back up is simply insufficient and it should therefore be increased to 6 months to a year back up of expenses to hedge against you losing your job.

Understand this too; with what the bankers have done with the Mortgage Backed Security, YOU are potentially at FAR greater risk of losing your job as a result of banker gambling in futures markets. No, futures markets should have nothing to do with your ability to buy or pay, BUT, since 1999 it has become a reality that futures markets can cause the economy in general to tank thereby putting you at risk of losing your job and ability to pay your mortgage.

I don't know what sort of job you have and how secure it is, but in this day and age with the ALL bankers being permitted to gamble in the futures markets, everyone's job is in jeopardy as a result of increased risks of depression/recession from the formation of large speculative bubbles.

Other than that, I see some good advice from others here on inspections and such. Just keep in mind that home ownership is no longer the safe and stable investment it was when our parents bought their homes.

 

[wintermute]

Number one... get yourself a really good realtor. An invaluable source of information, counsel, assistance in buying your new home. Their knowledge and experience can save you thousands and lots of time and frustration.

Number two...all realtors are out for themselves. They want to make a commision on that house. They're a necessary evil, and are sometimes put to good use when your engineer or attorney cannot massage a sticking point in the contract - then watch that broker work for their money!

NEVER hire an engineer or an attorney based on a realtor's recommendation. There's a possible conflict of interest there. Are they working for you, or are they helping their buddy make the sale?

Definitely accompany the engineer on their inspection. A good engineer will point out things that may not necessarily be that important, but can be used as a negotiating point. For example, one house I was seriously looking at had asbestos floor tiles throughout the basement. Not a big deal to me, since they were in good condition, but after discussing it with me, my engineer wrote it up in his report so I could negotiate down the selling price for the tile removal.

 

[Alann45]

Definitely accompany the engineer on their inspection.

I mentioned having an inspector, but neglected to mention the equally as important part of going with him on the inspection. And take a note pad. There are lots of things that may be up to code or not appropriate for his report, but that he may see could be better and will point out to you.
For example, my house had a circuit breaker panel with no main circuit breaker (which was code when it was built), if you needed to work on the panel you either did it hot or disconnected the wiring.

Another mistake I made as a first time buyer was strapping myself too thin when I bought. I put almost all my available cash in the hourse. Just not a good idea. You may need money for other things. Hopefully nothing major but the minor stuff can add up fast. I had never had a need for an extention ladder or lawn mower; I didn't think a garage door opener was a necessity until my ex had to open it in the rain for the 10th time.