First time homebuyers...Ready, get set, go!!

First time buyers are you ready? First step in buying a home is to get pre-qualified by a lender of your choice.  This way you know exactly what price home you can afford, and how much it's going to cost you.  Many first time buyers are surprised to find out they have to have more than just the down payment.  There are costs for the loan, costs for escrow, title fees, and home inspection costs.  It's your loan officer's responsibility to give you a 'Good Faith Estimate', so you know exactly how much money you will need.

Once you take this step, you are set to go!  Go find the perfect home for your situation.  With today's interest rates being so low you might be surprised how much home you can buy, and be paying less than rent!  Remember once you decide on a property to have a professional home inspection.  If you need a qualified inspector for Orange County check out www.alerthomeinspection.net.  Owning a home is a big responsibility so you want to know if there are any serious issues with the property that might cost you alot of money, or could even affect your ability to resale the house.

Come back for more tips!

Good News for Short Sale Homeowners!

A new law was just passed that says both the first and the second lien holder on your house cannot go after you for a deficiency if they agree to a short sale.  This should enable more homeowners to short sale their homes if they were unable to get a loan modification without worrying about having to carrying a note, or the bank getting a deficiency judgement against them.  This law applies if the home is your principle residence.  This new law couple with the 'Debt Forgiveness Relief Act' basically eliminates any concerns about financial liability after a short sale.

First Time Buyers!

If you've got a good job then don't wait too long to get qualified to buy a home or investment property.  An increase in interest rates can affect your buying power more than an increase in sales prices.  For every 1 point of interest increase you lose $50,000 in purchase ability. 

If you plan on staying in your home for more than 5 years then no need to worry about a slight decline in sales prices.  It is a buyer's market right now.  Prices and interest rates are at an all time historically low point.

In South Orange County CA, you can buy a single family home under $400,000!! and a condo in Laguna Niguel for $200,000.  We haven't seen those prices in 10 years.  It's harder to get a loan these days, so first step is to talk to a loan officer and find out exactly how much home you qualify for.  Second thing is to get hooked up to my automated homesearch to see the newest listings on the market, so you can be one of the first to make an offer.

Email me with any of your buying questions.  Let's get started ;-)