Results 1 to 10 of 10

Thread: How to go about buying a home?

  1. #1
    Member Silver Phoenix's Avatar
    Joined
    Jan 2005
    Location
    South Carolina
    Posts
    69
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post

    Default How to go about buying a home?

    Hi everyone,

    I don't know the first thing about buying a home. I went onto the bank of america website (because I have a credit card with them, my checking account is with wachovia) and it seemed really helpful about a lot but now I'm even more lost.

    I read something about Federal Housing loans for first time buyers and buyers with low income and/or no down payment. That seems to be me at the moment. Does anyone have any more info on these?

    Here's my situation:
    -I have no job at the moment so the first thing to do is get one. I read somewhere that a full month of pay stubs might be needed...

    -My credit card was a secured one with $90 put into savings and a $500 limit. The savings was just released to me and my limit upped to $1000. What does that mean in terms of my credit score and history?

    -I don't have any downpayment money set aside and I only have the one credit card. If I pay that off I have no debt just the monthly utility bills and such.

    So what do I do? How do I go about getting a house? Is it possible with my situation? My boyfriend has a longer history with credit but his debt is more with a $5000 loan and two redit cards maxed. Is it possible and what kind of advice can you ladies and gentlemen offer? I know some of you have been thru this before...

    Love to all,
    -=Phoenix
    "I will let you down when you finally trust me, finally believe in me." -Three Days Grace

  2. #2
    God/dess VenusGoddess's Avatar
    Joined
    Oct 2003
    Location
    Home
    Posts
    13,598
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 28 Times in 23 Posts

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    Well, while you may need one month's pay stubs to prove employment, you will have to show tax records for the past 2 years to prove income. If they pull your taxes and you do not pull in enough to cover your mortgage, you will not be approved.

    Right now, I say you two should work on paying off as much debt as possible. It pulls your credit score down massively by having maxed credit cards. Paying those cards down to be around 1/4 - 1/2 of their credit line would help you (or pay them off). Making sure that all of your payments are timely.

    Personally, I think its foolish for anyone to purchase a home with no savings. People are not aware at the costs involved with purchasing and moving into a home. By having absolutely no money down, you put yourself into a tense moving situation (paint, repairs, moving costs, etc, etc, etc). I strongly advise that anyone who is thinking about buying a home have at LEAST 6-9 months of reserves using the 'estimated' mortgage payment. So, if you estimate your mortgage payments to be $1500/month, you should have at least $9000 - $12000 in reserves JUST FOR THE MORTGAGE. This is not including bills, credit cards, etc. This way, if anything happens, you are not stressing out.

    Now, when it comes to getting a no money down loan, you can do it because you do not want to dip into your reserves to put money on the house. Not because you have no money to put down. We bought our condo and our house that way. We have almost 12 months of car payments, mortgage, credit cards, utility bills, etc socked away. COULD we have used that to put to our mortgage? Sure, but why when we can make that money work for us earning us interest (money is now invested...easy to access if needed, but not depended on).

    Be smart about buying a house. I hate seeing people buying huge houses they cannot afford only to lose them to bankruptcy a year or so later because they not only could not afford to buy it, they couldn't afford to keep it. Also, buy the smallest house you can afford...this translates to smaller utility bills, etc. After you've been there for a little while, sell the house and upgrade. One of the biggest mistakes that people make is buying the HUGE house that busts their budget right off the bat. Funny enough, most people do not take into account the UTILITY bills...and those right there are usually what make or break the person's ability to afford their house.

  3. #3
    Member Silver Phoenix's Avatar
    Joined
    Jan 2005
    Location
    South Carolina
    Posts
    69
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    Those things are why I was asking for help and advice before I do anything. The situation I'm in now is worse then I would be in if I were to get a house. My trailor is invested with ants and mice and falling apart around my ears. I can't fix it myself because I'm renting and the guy I'm renting from won't do anything. It'll last for a little bit but I don't want to move into an apartment. I'd rather have a 3 bedroom fixer upper house. I can fix up a house.

    -=Phoenix
    "I will let you down when you finally trust me, finally believe in me." -Three Days Grace

  4. #4
    madmaxine
    Guest

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    Here is some helpful advice via my uncle, who acquired much of his wealth through purchasing fixer-upper houses: the upside of using government home loan programs is that low-income, first-time buyers qualify for aid. The BAD news is that the same programs charge high interest rates on their loans, and if you cannot afford to keep your home, they will toss you in the street & use your home as a cash mill for the government.

    The programs-



    If you're serious about owning a home, make your boyfriend marry you so you can qualify for a home loan with two incomes, sock away savings like VenusGoddess said, & be prepared to live frugally to make sure you can pay your monthly mortgage and then some.
    I hope you can make this happen, I feel home ownership is one of the most important things in life. Good luck.

  5. #5
    Banned Melonie's Avatar
    Joined
    Jul 2002
    Location
    way south of the border
    Posts
    25,932
    Thanks
    612
    Thanked 10,563 Times in 4,646 Posts
    Blog Entries
    3
    My Mood
    Cynical

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    You should be aware that the rapidly rising bankruptcy / default rates on 'subprime' mortgages has already prompted both new proposed mortgage lending regulations and big worries at Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac re their 'subprime' mortgages. Thus, to be realistic, if you have a credit rating that is less than good, if you have no down payment money, and if you don't have 3 years worth of tax returns which show a reported taxable income that is in line with the size of the monthly house payment you are seeking, these days the likelihood of being approved for a mortgage loan is pretty low.


    Because the new mortgage lending regulations will likely go into effect very soon ...
    A. you'll need to build a history of regular earnings / tax returns for the next 3 years or so
    B. you'll need to work on your credit rating
    C. you'll need to save up some 25% of the purchase price of the house you want to buy, to cover a 20% down payment plus closing costs.

  6. #6
    God/dess VenusGoddess's Avatar
    Joined
    Oct 2003
    Location
    Home
    Posts
    13,598
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 28 Times in 23 Posts

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    Quote Originally Posted by madmaxine
    If you're serious about owning a home, make your boyfriend marry you so you can qualify for a home loan with two incomes,
    You do not need to be married to buy a home with someone. You just need decent credit.

    I would strongly advise you to report your living conditions to the city. That's illegal to leave a property infested while people are living there. Then, work on your finances.

  7. #7
    Featured Member scorpio's Avatar
    Joined
    Nov 2003
    Location
    Chicago
    Posts
    868
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    If you have no job now, unless you have a 700 FICO or better, you cannot get a mortgage. You need at minimum, 12 months job history, verifiable. If you have stellar credit, you may be able to get a "no doc" loan, which you do not list any job or income info, but really ask yourself, "how can I pay my mortgage when I have no job?" Unless you earn steady income from "other" sources, you are out of luck at this point.

  8. #8
    Sitri
    Guest

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    Quote Originally Posted by scorpio
    If you have no job now, unless you have a 700 FICO or better, you cannot get a mortgage. You need at minimum, 12 months job history, verifiable. If you have stellar credit, you may be able to get a "no doc" loan, which you do not list any job or income info, but really ask yourself, "how can I pay my mortgage when I have no job?" Unless you earn steady income from "other" sources, you are out of luck at this point.
    I did a no doc years ago when I started my company. They can't even look at income. But, I had to show assets.

  9. #9
    God/dess Deogol's Avatar
    Joined
    Dec 2003
    Posts
    5,493
    Thanks
    120
    Thanked 50 Times in 35 Posts

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    Quote Originally Posted by VenusGoddess
    You do not need to be married to buy a home with someone. You just need decent credit.

    I think she is stating the realism that today's home prices are based on dual income families. There are few single people who can lay down a request for a quarter of a million dollars simply for a "low price" home in a decent part of town.

    I live with a bunch of 1940's and 50's 2/3 bedroom shacks (in effect) and they are asking for half a million or more (I live in downtown Austin.)

  10. #10
    God/dess VenusGoddess's Avatar
    Joined
    Oct 2003
    Location
    Home
    Posts
    13,598
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 28 Times in 23 Posts

    Default Re: How to go about buying a home?

    ^ Maybe, but even with dual income "families" you do not need to be married to buy a house with someone. You could have 2 bachelors buy a house together...you could have a brother and sister. The point is that you don't have to MARRY someone to qualify for a loan. You just have to have 2 people who qualify for the loan.

Similar Threads

  1. Replies: 6
    Last Post: 01-09-2011, 02:43 AM
  2. Buying a 2nd home
    By AudreyLeigh in forum Dollar Den
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 07-12-2009, 02:07 PM
  3. Home buying
    By thegreatdame in forum Dollar Den
    Replies: 14
    Last Post: 01-18-2007, 07:05 PM
  4. home buying
    By tampafldancer in forum Dollar Den
    Replies: 12
    Last Post: 06-07-2005, 11:41 PM
  5. buying a home
    By Susan Wayward in forum Dollar Den
    Replies: 18
    Last Post: 04-10-2003, 05:34 PM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •