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What do I need to do first?
Before start looking at homes online or driving around, the first step you need to take is to talk to a mortgage broker.
You should talk to several loan officers to make sure you can afford as much as you think you can. Many buyers get their hearts set on a certain neighborhood or type of house only to find out that they can't qualify for as much as they thought they could for their home loan. They use online payment estimators, but forget that many of those don't include things like taxes, insurance and HOA fees as well as other fees like Private Mortgage Insurance (the dreaded PMI-ask your lender about this).
Your home loan may be the single largest purchase you make in your lifetime, but many people forget to shop around. They may visit 10 car dealerships before buying a car, but only talk to one bank when getting a home loan. It's important to talk to several lenders and banks. Ask around to your friends and find out who they loved. Ask your Realtor if they have any recomendations. Be sure to not only get a prequalification letter, which will let you how much you can qualify for, but also ask them to estimate your monthly payments with taxes and insurance and give you a break down of all the closing costs. If a lender doesn't want to give you this, then they are probably not someone you want to work with.
You should talk to several loan officers to make sure you can afford as much as you think you can. Many buyers get their hearts set on a certain neighborhood or type of house only to find out that they can't qualify for as much as they thought they could for their home loan. They use online payment estimators, but forget that many of those don't include things like taxes, insurance and HOA fees as well as other fees like Private Mortgage Insurance (the dreaded PMI-ask your lender about this).
Your home loan may be the single largest purchase you make in your lifetime, but many people forget to shop around. They may visit 10 car dealerships before buying a car, but only talk to one bank when getting a home loan. It's important to talk to several lenders and banks. Ask around to your friends and find out who they loved. Ask your Realtor if they have any recomendations. Be sure to not only get a prequalification letter, which will let you how much you can qualify for, but also ask them to estimate your monthly payments with taxes and insurance and give you a break down of all the closing costs. If a lender doesn't want to give you this, then they are probably not someone you want to work with.
Once you've talked to a lender and had at least one pre-qualify you, now you are ready to start your search. Most people find it helpful to focus on an area or neighborhood first instead of deciding what style of house you want. If you want to stay in a certain school area or within a certain distance from your job, then you may have to alter your expectations of what style of home you want. For example, if you are set on a home built after 2005, but want to settle in an established area because of the schools, you may find that the only new construction homes are condos or townhomes. You may have to settle for an older home that has been updated if you don't want to live in a townhome complex.
This document from the Texas Real Estate Commission was created to help you better understand what a Realtor's role is when you are buying or selling a home.
Here are the required Consumer Protection notices from the Texas Real Estate Commission. Contact me if you have any questions.
