What does buying a house cost, above and beyond the monthly mortgage payment you will be taking on? First-time house-hunters know that there is a dreaded broker fee and so-called closing costs. Add to that the fee for inspections and legal work. Do you know how much to set aside to cover these costs? Here
Mortgage pre-approval is an essential part of any offer. If you cannot show that you have already researched your ability to buy a property, you are not ready to offer money for it. This is common sense. But, not all pre-approvals are created equal. Experienced agents and agents in well-run offices know that some lenders
If you have a new year’s resolution to buy a house in 2015, here are some things you can do to smooth the path to getting a mortgage. The paperwork does not have to be overwhelming, if you are prepared. Avoid – unless absolutely necessary • Don’t transfer funds between accounts within 30 days of
In the ever-changing world of mortgage lending, it is good to see something getting less complicated, instead of more complicated. Massachusetts Housing Partnership has updated their mortgage offering with what they are calling ONE Mortgage. The old way to secure a low down-payment mortgage was with what was called a “soft second” mortgage. That second
There are things about you and your finances that are going to be studied, legitimately, before a lender will give you a mortgage. That makes sense; they are lending you a large sum of money. But, there are some things that are none of their business, literally! Who you are – in terms of race,
Sometimes a couple will qualify for a mortgage with one partner’s income, but won’t qualify with their combined income and debt. Think new lawyer with $200,000 in student loans. Think recently divorced and remarried person still carrying the bad credit from his/her ex. You would think that lenders wouldn’t allow only one person to be
Yet another one of my clients is staying up at night worrying about whether his lender is about to bait-and-switch him, causing thousands of dollars to be added to his closing costs. The changes to the Good Faith Estimate rules, have made me more confident that this kind of consumer manipulation is in the past.
People who already own one house or condo who are looking to buy a bigger place (trade-up) or a smaller/cheaper place (downsize, right-size, or down-cost) are at an advantage now that the market has recovered. Whatever your equity position was in 2008, it is better today. That allows some owners to get enough liquidity to
We have a client who bought in a condo association a couple of years ago. He wrote me about the rules for running his association correctly, in terms of reserve funds. His place is in a six unit association, but I also found out what is expected for the more typical two-unit and three-unit condos
Last month, Dave Twombly, wrote to warn you the sellers and their agents are asking you to give up important protections in order to buy a property. As a case in point, I have direct experience of clients being asked to give up their right to mortgage contingency based on a low appraisal. This is