Ok, I know this is a boring but extreamly important part of anyone’s home search. House hunting online has become the new “Great American Pastime.” ( I mean, you are here right?) But before you go house hunting for real, it is strongly recommended that you get your mortgage “getting” house in order.
The first thing you want to do is check your credit history/report/score and you can do that easily and free at AnnualCreditReport.com. This will allow you to access your credit report from all three of the major credit bureaus; Trans Union, Equifax and Experian. Your credit score has everything to do with what kind of interest rate you end up with, and that impacts your borrowing power. Get your credit report early, print it out, take a highlighter to it and make sure whatever is on there is supposed to be on there. If you need help, get help, mortgage people will be happy to help you navigate your credit landscape. I can help set you up with recommended names of lenders to assist you in all these matters as well.
How much should I put down or do I have to put anything down? Next thing you want to do is figure out how much money you have set aside, how much money you expect to accumulate or have access to, and how much you will need for a down payment and closing costs (There are many 0% down payment options as well). This may seem like a simple exercise in addition, but maybe not. All that cash you have in the safe or under the proverbial mattress at home, that loan your friend promised you, the security deposit your landlord is holding and lots of other “assets” that are not traditional depository savings or investments, may not be eligible. As real as they are, you may not be able to include them as qualifying assets, at least as far as your lender is concerned!
lenders will want to know the source of those large deposits made to your accounts and may even require pieces-of-paper proof of where they came from. Almost every dollar of your asset profile will need to be documented. The almost last thing you need to do is to make sure your past and present employment history or whatever your source of income may be, meets mortgage-approval-underwriting-guidelines. Be able to prove that you have enough eligible income to cover the mortgage payments and any other debts that you pay every month. Lenders use ratios to compare your income to your outlay and you need to be within your means based on those measurements. Many Bellingham (or whatcom county) lenders are so helpful in having online pre-approval applications that also have many of the requirments needed to get started.
Employment and income sources, much like assets, can have lots of seemingly ok, perfectly legitimate circumstances that could be challenged by an underwriting guideline test. Length of time on a job or in an industry, being self-employed, tax return write-offs, hourly, salary, commissions, bonus, car allowance, you name it! Depending on your individual circumstances, it may or may not be eligible or documentable as a usable income source. The good news is that there are clear cut plug and play documentation and employment history guidelines that can help you determine the employment/income eligibility of your financial profile.
Once you have all of your credit, asset and income ducks in a row, then you can venture out into the real estate world and I can help you buy a house. Here is the best part, the mortgage rep that helped you navigate your credit landscape, your asset profile and your employment/income history and eligibility will work with us step by step to go from application to closing.
I look forward to continuing together on this most important journey as your advocate and professional that will navigate the process for you! Please feel free to sign up for automated listing alerts that sends homes to your email inbox as soon as they hit the market. Also request a free PDF of my “Guide to Buying” report that lays out the complete list of actions to take in your home purchase.
I look forward to hearing from you soon!
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