A pre-approved mortgage helps you get the best deal on a home, because it is similar to presenting a cash offer.  The seller knows for certain that you will qualify and can follow through and buy the home. Here are the first steps to pre-approval:

1. Call and set an appointment with a trusted mortgage professional, in these times, preferably a mortgage banker, as opposed to a broker. Be sure the lender is a local Atlanta area mortgage lender.
2. Review a Good Faith Estimate—a breakdown of your mortgage which includes an estimate of the interest rate and payment. Ask about any fees or costs which do not appear on a Good Faith Estimate.  And yes, there are some in many cases.
3. Determine with your lender not just the maximum amount that you qualify for, but the max that you are comfortable paying each month.

A pre-approved mortgage also helps keep you from looking for homes out of your price range and allows you to make an confident offer when you find your dream home.

Also know that a pre-approval is not the same as a pre-qualification, which is a very loose estimate based on several hypotheticals. A pre-approval is a full credit approval and gives you a concrete loan amount that the lender has approved for you.

Here are a few things you will need in order to get pre-approved:

1. A copy of your most recent 2 months bank statements (checking, savings, and other accounts)
2. Documentation and current balance of any retirement accounts (401k, IRA, etc.), mutual funds, etc.
3. Two years most recent W-2
4. Two most recent paystubs from your employer
5. Driver’s license

A Realtor that helps you buy a house is called a buyer’s agent. The list could possibly be longer, but here are three important reasons to hire a buyer’s agent:

1. A buyer’s agent won’t cost you a dime!

In most cases, the home seller pays the commission for your agent. So you don’t pay anything to have an expert on your team. You’d have to be nuts not to take advantage of that!

2.  The Right Buyer’s Agent Will Save You Thousands!

A good buyer’s agent will make sure you never over pay for a house, and will lead the price negotiations. The seller will have a realtor on his side, helping ensure you pay as much as you can for your home. The buyer’s agent is your key to saving thousands.

3.  They will take care of the paperwork

Ever read through a Georgia real estate contract, and sat scratching your head wondering both what that legal-ease means, and how you should fill it out to protect yourself?  A buyer’s agent will make sure you are compliant with all state and local laws when you buy a home in Georgia, and will be sure you have ample time for the property inspection, appraisal and loan approval.  And, ample opportunity to nullify the contract and move on if you need to.

If you need a referral of a good buyer’s agent – one who will look out for your best interest at all stages of the property purchase – just give me a call.  I work with some of the best in town.

Choosing the right mortgage loan can be daunting. Even for those who have bought and sold several homes over their lifetime, typically the time between financing a home is long, and each time the prospective buyer is left scratching their heads, asking, which type of loan is best for me?

This short video explains the types of loans, and hopefully will be a good primer on knowing the difference and choosing the right loan for you.

Buying a home around metro Atlanta soon? Well, then I hope you found this video helpful, and just to reiterate, I believe one of the best loans for this moment, right now, is a fixed rate mortgage.

When being presented with standard closing costs, it is fairly easy to compare loan options.  But, what happens when you enter the dark world of lender jargon and consider no closing cost, or lender-paid closing cost loans, or *gasp* you consider paying points.  This video should be useful to decipher that underworld, jargon-filled land of mortgage lending.

So, if you are searching for a home around metro Atlanta, then you owe it to yourself to spend time determining your options up front.

I gave a first time home buyer seminar in Gwinnett County last week, and one of the stats that got the most attention was the fact that home affordability is at all-time highs – making right now the optimal time to buy a home anywhere around metro Atlanta, but primarily optimal for first time home buyers.  Click the link for the first time home buyer affordability index from the National Association of Realtors.

How do we measure housing affordability?  Simple.  Three benchmarks that measure against one another:

1. The median home price for the area.
2. The median income for the area. (not the average income. Median income is 50% are above that, and 50% are below)
3. Mortgage interest rates to purchase that home and finance it.

The first thing you should do is make sure you are financially ready to buy a house. I recommend that you prepare by having paid off all credit card debt, and have 3-6 months of reserves, after you have come up with your down payment.

Explore the answers to these three questions, to make sure you are ready to buy a home:

• Can I make at least a 3.5% down payment?
• Should I take out a 30 year fixed rate? How about a 15 year fixed rate loan?
• How much of my income should I allocate each month to the house payment? I don’t want to be ‘house poor’.

Once you are comfortable with these answers, we can move forward to buy a home. And, right now is a unique time for buying your first home in Georgia. You can have the reserves that I recommend you have by receiving the $8000 tax credit that the federal government is giving to first time home buyers, and the $1800 tax credit that the state of Georgia is offering home buyers.

Make sure you buy right, and your home will be a blessing.