10 Things to Look for When Buying Your First Home (2024)

FAQs

10 Things to Look for When Buying Your First Home? ›

Principal — your mortgage payment. Interest — your borrowing rate. Tax — state property taxes. Insurance — homeowners insurance.

Principal — your mortgage payment. Interest — your borrowing rate. Tax — state property taxes. Insurance — homeowners insurance.

Budget. Budgeting should be your first step when you start shopping for a new home. This is especially important for first-time home buyers so you can be as realistic as possible about how much house you can afford.

The Location

They say the three most important things to think about when buying a home are location, location, location. You can change almost everything else, but you can't change your home's location.

The process can differ among lenders but in every case, there are six boxes to check off when applying for a home loan: Get your down payment together; pick a lender, check your credit score, check your debt-to-income ratio, set aside closing costs, and apply for pre-approval of a mortgage.

It's recommended you have a credit score of 620 or higher when you apply for a conventional loan. If your score is below 620, lenders either won't be able to approve your loan or may be required to offer you a higher interest rate, which can result in higher monthly payments.

What are 3 things that can impact the value of a home? ›

A home's value is affected by local real estate trends, the housing market, the home's condition, age, location and property size.

Key Takeaways. The best age to buy is when you can comfortably afford the payments, tackle any unexpected repairs, and live in the home long enough to cover the costs of buying and selling a home. Legally, you must be at least 18 in most states to buy a home.

They evaluate credit and payment history, income and assets available for a down payment and categorize their findings as the Three C's: Capacity, Credit and Collateral.

The foundation on which a house is built is the most crucial element for it, regardless of how big or tiny it is. If the house is not built on a stable foundation, the foundation will break with time, causing harm to the house's internal and external walls.

Income: You can use your income as a starting point when calculating how much you want to spend on a house. Debt: Your debt and monthly expenses factor into how much you can spend on bills each month. Cash reserves: You'll need cash on-hand to pay for your down payment and closing costs.

What credit score is needed to buy a 300k house? ›

Additionally, you'll need to maintain an “acceptable” credit history. Some mortgage lenders are happy with a credit score of 580, but many prefer 620-660 or higher.

You can borrow $50,000 - $100,000+ with a 720 credit score. The exact amount of money you will get depends on other factors besides your credit score, such as your income, your employment status, the type of loan you get, and even the lender.

Generally speaking, you'll need a credit score of at least 620 in order to secure a loan to buy a house. That's the minimum credit score requirement most lenders have for a conventional loan. With that said, it's still possible to get a loan with a lower credit score, including a score in the 500s.

We recommend first-time home buyers view around 6 – 12 homes before buying. This ballpark figure should be just the right amount to help you find the perfect home in your price range. Weighing your options is essential, but looking at every home that piques your interest can have downsides.

Changes in the real estate market can lower the value of your home. Natural disasters and climate change can lower your property value because the property is a greater risk to purchase. Foreclosures in your neighborhood can also drive down property value.

The land that a property is on does not depreciate, but items such as new trees or plants near the property can depreciate. You can depreciate a rental property after it has been purchased and renovated and is available to be rented out.

What are the five things in home? ›

The Five Things method breaks down the mess into five categories: trash, laundry, dishes, things that have a place and things that don't have a place.

Age doesn't matter. Counterintuitive as it may sound, your loan application for a mortgage to be repaid over 30 years looks the same to lenders whether you are 90 years old or 40.

Overall, it's cheaper to build a home than to buy one in California, with 13 out of the 20 counties saving you money if you decide to build your house from scratch. Budget-wise, building is more favorable in Southern California whereas Central California caters best to those interested in buying.

While the average age borrowers expect to pay off their mortgage is 59, the number of survey participants who have no idea when they will pay it off at all stood at 16%. In 2019, 9% of those asked didn't know and in 2020, 11% gave this answer.

It's recommended you have a credit score of 620 or higher when you apply for a conventional loan. If your score is below 620, lenders either won't be able to approve your loan or may be required to offer you a higher interest rate, which can result in higher monthly payments.

Property Location

The adage "location, location, location" is still king and continues to be the most important factor for profitability in real estate investing. Proximity to amenities, green space, scenic views, and the neighborhood's status factor prominently into residential property valuations.

What interest rate can I get with a 800 credit score? ›

You can borrow $50,000 - $100,000+ with a 720 credit score. The exact amount of money you will get depends on other factors besides your credit score, such as your income, your employment status, the type of loan you get, and even the lender.

As a general rule, you shouldn't spend more than about 33% of your monthly gross income on housing. If you choose to spend over that amount on your mortgage each month, you run the risk of becoming what's known as house poor, which is when you spend a large portion of your monthly income on your home.