As a mortgage company, Integrated Lending Group has helped hundreds of buyers achieve their goal of home ownership. We consider ourselves a partner throughout the home buying process. As a home buyer partner, we work hard to help buyers understand the home purchase process, including available home loan programs and options. The earlier we can start working with a home buyer, the better the outcome!
In today’s highly competitive home buying market, planning ahead is crucial to having your California home purchase offer accepted. Below are the most common home buyer mistakes we see among California home buyers.
Mistake #1 – Not contacting a mortgage lender a few months before you plan to start shopping for a home. Getting excited about your 1st home purchase is normal but planning a few months ahead of time will put you in a much better buying position. Contacting a mortgage lender is an important 1st step because we can look at your financial situation and help you put yourself in the best situation to buy a home. Reaching out to a mortgage lender 6 months before you plan your home search is ideal. This allows enough time for you to reduce debt, improve your credit scores and increase your down payment funds if needed.
Mistake #2 – Using 100% of your savings to help with your home purchase. It’s easy to deplete your savings as part of your home down payment but avoid this if possible. Once you purchase your home there will be furniture to buy, possible repairs to the home needed and unexpected expenses that arise as a normal part of home ownership. If you have family that can help you with a down payment, ask a mortgage lender about down payment gift programs.
Mistake #3 – Not knowing what your credit scores are and how they impact your home loan. This goes back to Mistake #1, contact a mortgage lender a few months ahead of making offers so you have a complete picture of your finances. A good mortgage lender can give you some tips to improve your credit scores and help you get the most affordable loan for your individual situation.
Mistake #4 – Ignoring the neighborhood by only focusing on the home. Real estate is all about location, location, location. Your neighborhood is just as important if not more important than the home you purchase. Your neighborhood can negatively impact the value of your home, cost more in home insurance and make your home more challenging to refinance or sell in the future.
Mistake #5 – Assuming you need a 20% down payment. This one also goes back to Mistake #1. A mortgage lender can assess your financial situation and tell you about the various down payment programs that fit your needs, including 3% down payments.