 Five
Tips For Purchasing a Home
A homeowner provides advice based on his own experience.
by August Malson
Copyright © 2003
I have written a few tips down of lessons that I learned while
purchasing my home, that I would like to share with everyone. I
spent several hours on the internet and talking with realtors, mortgage
brokers, and home owners, just trying to find that perfect deal.
Here are the tips that I have found most useful.
1. Pick a good location.
Location is a definate plus, and in most areas that is the
bulk of the price of the property. A few things to consider
when purchasing a property are the distances to Schools, Stores,
and Shopping Malls.
2. Get a copy of your Credit Report.
You should get a copy of your credit report, so that you can
show the various mortgage companies your credit report and have
them prequalify you for a loan, without it affecting your score.
This way you can actually find the best home loan for you, without
it actually affecting your credit score.
3. Decide how long you plan on staying in the home before applying
for the mortgage.
There are two major types of loans that you can get when purchasing
a home. You can either get an ARM (Adjustable Rate Mortgage)
or a Fixed Rate Loan. If you plan on keeping the home for more
than 5 years the Fixed Rate Loan is best. You will actually
see the big amount of savings if you only plan to stay in the
home for less than 3 years with an ARM type loan.
4. Consider making a down payment.
Most home loans will only cover a certian amount of the purchase
price. So in most cases a down payment will be needed. If you
are trying to purchase a home, and you do not actually have
any money saved for the down payment, then there are programs
available to assist with your purchase. Best way to find these
programs is to do a search on Google for Down Payment Assistance
Programs. There may even be some available to you from your
local/state government.
5. Learn the Art of Negotiation.
Remember Everything is Negotiable. All you have to do is ask
for it. There have been situtations where I could have rolled
a purchase of a boat in with the purchase of the house. Remember
just ask for it, if they don't go for the initial offer, just
ask if it is a negotiable item.
- August Malson
For additional home buying tips, go to http://www.thearchgu.com.
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Buying a Home