Buying a home is a long, time-consuming and exhausting process. You need a few things to fall perfectly into place for your home buying to work out for you: finding the right property and seller within your budget and securing the financing you need to buy it in the first place.
But there are ways to do this correctly. One misfire and the entire process could fall apart, and you definitely don’t want that. Here are some dos and don’ts of buying a home that you should remember.
DO
Check Your Credit Report
You want to make sure your credit report doesn’t have anything on it that will become a barrier to getting financing. Make sure there are no mistakes and that your credit score is high enough to assure that you won’t have trouble with getting the loan.
Get Pre-approved
This is a crucial step. You want to make sure you can get the loan before you go shopping for homes. This way you’ll be aware of your budget so you know whether the home you want can be afforded or not. On top of that, you can also speed up the process once you find the right home for yourself, because you won’t have to go through the screening process.
Keep Paying Off Debt
Just because you’re getting a larger debt doesn’t mean that you can let go of your other debts. Your FICO score needs to stay high if you want to get through the process smoothly. Make sure to keep paying off your other debts while you’re on mortgage loans to keep your score from dropping.
DON’T
Make Major Purchases
When you’re getting a mortgage loan, you don’t want to make any other major purchases around the time. Minor expenses are fine, but definitely don’t buy a car if you’re looking to buy a home around the same time.
Buy Furniture
Decorating your new home sounds exciting, but don’t buy your furniture before you’ve closed the deal and moved into your new place. It’s important to make sure you’ve secured your home before you look for the furnishings.
Change Jobs
Anything that can affect your income or employment is a red flag for lenders. You want to make sure that you don’t make any decisions that can affect your mortgage or result in problems. Your finances are very sensitive while you’re on a loan, so tread carefully.
Apply for New Credit
You don’t want to open any new lines of credit or loans when you’re already paying off such a large one. This can affect your credit score and cause problems for you later on.
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