Mortgage & Refinancing Information

5 Home Buying Essentials


Purchasing a home involves certain important, even essential, steps that every buyer should take before closing on a purchase. Let's examine these "essentials" which, if properly implemented, can help you save valuable time and aggravation.

1. Determine What You Can Borrow. Sure, if you know your interest rate and the length of the loan you can pretty much determine your monthly payments, right? No! You must include your property taxes, homeowners insurance, and association or maintenance fees, if applicable. These "added" costs can significantly contribute to higher monthly payments. No lender will give you a loan without figuring these costs in.

2. Know Your Fees. Closing costs can add up to the tune of several thousand dollars. Title searches, realtor fees, loan applications, attorney fees, and legal fees must be taken into consideration. Many states require lenders to give to borrowers a ballpark figure of what these costs will be.

3. Shop For A Loan. The longer you plan on staying in your home, the more likely you will want a fixed rate mortgage. If you are planning on a short stay, a variable rate mortgage may work best for you. Consider an interest free mortgage if you basically plan on "flipping" the home in one or two years. Of course, you had better hope that your home appreciates significantly in that time otherwise you may find yourself owing more than what you originally paid for the house!

4. Get Pre Approved. Realtors and sellers will take you seriously if you are pre-approved for a loan. In some cases the pre-approval will not only swing a deal your way, but you could find the sellers are more receptive to lowering their price if they believe you are a serious shopper.

5. Negotiate. You may not be able to get the seller to drop the price of their home, but you may be able to get them to sweeten the deal by including certain extras. Air conditioners, refrigerators, washers, dryers, ceiling fixtures, and window treatments are some of the things that add value to your purchase. If extra items are included in the sale, then your later pay out for these items will disappear.

In all, if you are a thoughtful and savvy shopper you should be able to save money on the purchase of your home by following these five essentials.

Matthew Keegan is The Article Writer who covers topics from business to health to mortgages. You can view samples of his work at http://www.thearticlewriter.com

  


MORE RESOURCES:

Washington Times

The Truth About Mortgage Refinancing Revealed By Connecticut ...
SBWire (press release), WI - 16 hours ago
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Reuters

Average Mortgage Rate Hits 5%, Lowest in Decades
New York Times, United States - 9 hours ago
Of course, buying a home is a more lengthy process than simply calling up a mortgage broker to refinance, and activity typically slows during the holiday ...
US Banks Offer Mortgages Below 5% After Fed Action Bloomberg
Rates lowest since '71; time to refinance? Modesto Bee
Long-Term Mortgage Rate Falls Again Wall Street Journal
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Cardoza proposal could aid housing crisis
Stockton Record, CA - 2 hours ago
Under the Cardoza plan, the payment on that mortgage refinanced to 4 percent fixed rate would drop to $1194 a month. Contact reporter Bruce Spence at (209) ...


REFILE-UPDATE 1-US mortgage demand dipped before Fed move-MBA
Reuters - Jan 7, 2009
The jump in applications during December may have been driven by homeowners already "on the fence" and prepared to refinance on a drop in mortgage rates, ...
Mortgage applications down in latest survey Forbes
Week-to-week mortgage applications down 8.2% MarketWatch
Fewer apply for home loans; credit line delinquencies increase Los Angeles Times
KVOA.com - Kansas City Star
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Boston Globe

Fed’s Rosengren Calls for ‘Concerted’ Fiscal, Monetary Policies
Bloomberg - 4 hours ago
... to purchase or refinance homes,” Rosengren said. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dropped for a 10th week to 5.01 percent yesterday, ...
Rosengren sees path to recovery Boston Globe
Fed's Rosengren says recession more severe than thought Reuters
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Los Angeles Times

Congressional Press Release on Mortgage Deal
Wall Street Journal - 9 hours ago
"Despite efforts by Congress to address this issue, not enough lenders have come to the table to help borrowers with bad mortgages refinance into new, ...
Citigroup reaches agreement with key senators on mortgage ... Minneapolis Star Tribune
Citigroup agrees to allow judges to help modify some mortgages IdahoStatesman.com
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TopNews

Question & Answer on mortgage refinancing
Boston Herald, United States - Jan 1, 2009
If I refinance the mortgage on my current house, will I hurt my chances for getting a loan for a new place later on? A: No. Refinancing a loan shouldn’t ...
MORTGAGES: 30-year Mortgage Rate Falls For Ninth Straight Week To ... CNNMoney.com
Mortgage Rates Hit 37-Year Low Poynter.org
30 Year Fixed Rates Drop to 5.10 percent Best Syndication
Wall Street Journal - Ventura County Star
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Refinancing shoots through the roof
Plano Star Courier, TX - 15 hours ago
“Quite a few people have remortgaged,” said Craig Jarrell, loan officer with Pulaski Mortgage. “Most people who refinance are new homeowners as recent as ...


Mortgage refinancing skyrockets
Cincinnati.com, OH - Jan 3, 2009
... 2009 With US mortgage rates the lowest in 30 years, local lenders say they've seen a strong surge in loan applications as homeowners seek to refinance ...
Waco banks seeing a boom in mortgage refinance applications Waco Tribune Herald
Borrowers seeking to refinance may face challenges WTOP
As mortgage rates slide, refinancing applications take off Dallas Morning News
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The very good reasons to refinance
Boston Globe, United States - 14 hours ago
When I wrote about the hidden cost of the additional years of mortgage payments, several people wrote in with very good reasons to refinance anyway. ...

mortgage refinance - Google News

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