Happy New Year! We hope this is a great time for you, and wonderful things happen for you and your loved ones. If you’re hoping to buy your first home in West Michigan in the coming months, this may be an especially exciting year.
But what is the best way to prepare for your new home purchase? If you’re looking to buy a house in Grand Rapids or Kalamazoo, there are several great moves you can make to get yourself ready.
1. Get a Grip on your Finances
No matter how you’re planning to buy your new home, understanding your finances is a great first step. First, review your assets. What do you have in your checking account? Savings? Do you have any stocks, mutual funds. etcetera? Knowing exactly what you have to work with is important.
Understanding your monthly cash flow is also crucial. Houses come with a lot of extra surprises, from leaky pipes to roof repairs. Once you no longer have a landlord, all of those little fixes will fall on your shoulders. Are you saving some money each month for unexpected expenses?
Take a look at your account statements from the past three months to get an accurate gauge on how much you’re spending vs. how much you bring in. This will help you understand what your real spending limits are for your mortgage, insurance, taxes, and extras.
2. Learn about your Credit
If you want to buy a house in Grand Rapids or Kalamazoo, knowing your credit situation is a must. And just getting your score isn’t enough… you’ll want to review the entire credit report.
In Michigan, you are entitled to one free credit report each year from each of the three major credit bureaus – Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. If you go to www.AnnualCreditReport.com, you can get each of these without getting charged.
This will allow you to look at your history, and challenge any items that shouldn’t be on there. If you want some extra tips, visit this page on improving your credit score.
3. Establish your Search Criteria
Purchasing a house is a long-term decision. Neighborhoods, school systems, and nearby amenities vary greatly in Grand Rapids (and other parts of West Michigan), and different areas have different strengths.
When you start searching for houses, it may be overwhelming. If you are searching a wide area and price range, it’s easy to get off-track. Sit down and decide what is most important to you, and limit your search to places that fit what you’re looking for.
This will save you a TON of time on searches, house visits, and decisions. The tighter your search criteria, the fewer headaches you will have!
4. Review Mortgage Options
If you can buy a house in cash, great! However, most people will get a home loan, and there are many options to choose from. Talk to your realtor, a local professional, or mortgage provider to get an idea about what loan products might be available to you.
If your house needs some immediate repairs, there are loans for that. If you’re in a rural area, special financing can be possible. If you are a veteran, or first time home buyer, you may have extra options. Good financing can make the difference between getting your dream house and missing out on it – do your homework!
5. Ready… Set… Patience!
Once you’re ready to buy a house, it can be extremely difficult to be patient. Sellers will pressure you to make an immediate decision, and and you don’t want your dream home to slip away. However patience is your friend!
If the perfect house for you isn’t on the market, wait. If you are getting overcharged for a property, wait. Don’t back yourself into a bad situation because of outside pressure. Make the right decision for you and your family, and you’ll be satisfied with your purchase for years.
So get out there, and make it happen!