Alright Marketeers and others in the know: I want to buy a new home by year's end. Have good credit. Don't know much about market,stocks, etc. Will all this chatter about the market doing lousy help, or hurt me in my purchase? (rates ups/down/crapsville, etc.) Maybe, maybe no? Lots of market/finance talk on the bbs lately and I'd bet others may be wondering the same. Thanks. C Son
Well, across the entire country.... The market doesn't really favor buyers OR sellers right now... that's the big problem. Buyers are facing higher interest rates. It's harder to get loans than a few years ago, and people are actually losing their homes more than in previous years. Sellers, on the other hand, are facing declines in sales right now, too, because with higher interest rates and more difficulty to get loans, there are fewer buyers and it's harder to get a house sold. I could describe why this is happening, but I don't know how much detail you want. And things don't look like they're going to improve much, overall. But here in Houston.... Home sales haven't been affected as drastically as in other parts of the country (so far). Interest rates are just so-so (could be better, could be worse). Go to Bankrate.com, enter some basic loan info, and they'll list different loan sources, their APR, points, fees, and other info (it's pretty cool). There are plenty of great homes for sale in the suburbs that are VERY affordable. Of course, inner-city homes will be much more expensive and smaller. some advice.... Save enough cash to put 20% down on the house - that way you won't have to get PMI or a dangerous loan type. Learn about escrow, points, closing costs and other home-buying stuff. Read "The Complete Idiot's guide to buying a house"
Thanks for the input. I've got 25% to put down and am learning on the quick about escrow, points, closing, etc. I'm in Austin and I'll check out the site. Thanks again!
We have had our house on the market for 4 days and have been notified that an offer is forthcoming. We had a smaller home in a very desirable section, though, so we kind of expected a quick sale.
Get a fixed rate loan --- if you do get an adjustable rate loan don't blame the banks/goverment/big brother when the rates go up and you can't make the payments.
10% is excepted, in fact you'll also see deals with 5% and 0 down but then you have to pay PMI. Any loan over 80% of the purchase amount has an PMI cost for the difference. So if you pay 15% down, then you have to pay PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) on the 5%; and you have to keep paying it until the principal doesn't fall under 80%. Someone please correct me if i'm wrong, I was in the banking industry 3 years ago and might have left something out. If i did, Sorry! Hope this helps.
That's outstanding! I guess you know that houses prices have gone through the roof in Austin, compared to what they once were, due to the influx of people from the West Coast and the Northeast, where they would sell their homes, and when looking at home prices in Austin, think they'd died and gone to heaven. It used to be that $300K+ for a home here was unusual. No longer. Sounds like you have your act together. You should be able to get an excellent rate. What length are you looking at for your mortgage? We refinanced awhile back and got a 10 year at 5%. Paying a lot more per month, but saving a ton of interest, building up more equity quickly, and if we stay (who knows?) will have it paid off in a few years. If you can handle a 10 or 15 year note, you might want to consider it. Good luck!
An adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) is great if: a) you're a responsible bill-payer AND b) you are 100% committed to selling your house again in a few short years after you get the mortgage. But be careful - an ARM mortgage, if mishandled, can be destructive. oooo... hey.... found this site, too: http://mtgprofessor.com/
If you don't mind me asking, what is the price of the house you are looking at or what is your price range?
You absolutely want to keep your eyes glued to this site: http://www.myfirsttexashome.com/ As a first-time homebuyer, you'll almost certainly qualify for a non-Targeted interest rate. The only drawback is that there's limited funding, so you have to keep your eyes on how much funding is in there, and also keep your eyes open for a new bond to come out. It's funded by the State of Texas so it's not a gimmicky "free lunch" scam. My wife and I got money for our home using Bond 68, and our interest rate is 5.65%, for no other reason other than we were first time homebuyers and we live in Texas. Seriously.
check out acorn. they are a non profit group that helps first time homebuyers. I don't know if your price range is within their range. it's a workshop you attend, I believe 3 total and you are rewarded a certificate at the end. once you are shopping for a loan, you'll get a lower interest rate if they are associated with acorn. I send some of my clients to this workshop and it's good for them. they really like it, and they get informed on the process.just google acorn program and see what you get. I would do it for you but I'm on my phone.
Why would you want to buy an ARM. you get a great 2% teaster rate then when it resets its over 9%. I wouldn't do it.
