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BUYING
Purchasing Considerations
What should
I consider before purchasing ?
Even before starting to look at houses, find out what price house
or condominium you can afford. In general, you can afford to buy
a home equal in price to three times your gross annual income.
More precisely, the price you can afford to pay for a home will
depend on six factors:
1. your income; 2. the amount of cash
you have available for the down payment, closing costs and cash
reserves required by the lender; 3. your outstanding
debts; 4. your credit history; 5. the type of mortgage
you select; and 6. current interest rates.
Pricing
What is the difference between prices?
A seller's advertised or list price is usually negotiable. The
appraisal price is another estimate of value. The appraised price
is how much money a professional appraiser estimates the home to
be worth and usually is based on comps, or sales of comparable
homes in the same area. Purchase price and sales price are the
same thing. Both terms mean the amount of money the successful
buyer actually pays out to purchase the home.
Financing
Are there first time buyer discounts?
Numerous programs exist to help first time buyers purchase a
home. A host of private lenders offer low-down payment loans. The
U.S.Department of Housing and Urban Development offers a variety
of programs through FHA that require approximately 4 to 5 percent
cash down. Loan limits vary depending on the county where the
property is located. Fannie Mae has a program allowing people to
buy with just 3 percent down payments. For details, borrowers
should contact lenders who offer government-insured loans.
Closing
Costs
Who pays closing costs?
Closing costs vary from one transaction to another and often
total in the thousands of dollars. They may be paid up front or
added to the buyer's loan balance. However, anxious sellers may
offer to pay some or all of the costs to induce a sale. Here are
some basic rules of thumb concerning closing costs: Historically,
if one or more real estate agents are involved, their commissions
are traditionally based on the sales price and paid by the seller
at the time of closing. In recent years, buyers have paid for
agent services in some cases.
1830 NASA Rd. One Suite 100
281-336-3146 Office
800-856-0335 Toll-Free
281-535-0696 Fax
281-535-0695 Answering Service
