If my friend was buying a home in a few years I would first tell her to find a
price range that would be affordable for her. Then I would tell her to look into
mortgage lenders. I would tell my friend to look at her yearly income and that
would help determine her budget. To help my friend figure out what’s affordable
she should calculate her monthly expenses. Since credit is a factor I’m this situation
I would tell my friend to she where she stands. Once she knows factor,ore, I
would advise her to build credit or pay off any outstanding debts and be sure to
make timely payments .I feel like I have some experience in this I remember when
my parents bought their home. Now I’m currently home seeking myself so I
already knew most of the tips on home buying .If my friend was to be shopping
for a new home, I would make sure she has the following in her books; 1. Most
important is knowing her credit score. 2. Having a lender preapprove her credit. 3.
Know what you want. I am sure buying a new home is exciting, but you shouldn't
settle for one house, Have your options open and continue to look around. 4.
Lastly, Buy what you are comfortable paying for. Of course houses are nice, but
they sure are expensive and you don't want to put yourself in a situation where
you can't afford to pay it.I think anyone can determine what is affordable to them
based on their pay and what they can afford monthly on top of all the other stuff
they may be paying for.
I have been in both good and bad situations when it comes to your credit score. I
have had. 720 score and now it is a 550. Mt advice is to keep up with your
payments on your credit cards and pay off any debt you can asap. If someone is
trying to build credit, for me the easy way was to get credit card with a low
credit line and pay it off as soon as possible.
To be honest, I actually feel like I knew some of this stuff already because of past
experiences. Only wishing I was younger and had taken this class years ago. I am
currently in the process of buying a house myself. I am almost 30 years old and
in the past have made some bad decisions where credit is concerned and I am still
working on them to this day. I would stress how important it is having a good
credit score before you go and buy a house. I had to buy mine via land contract
so I have time to build my credit up. I would also let my friend know the
importance of having the house inspected. You won't know what you are getting
into unless the house is thoroughly inspected. Another word of advice I would give
would be to keep your options open and don't get dead set on one house because
that particular house may not work out. First and foremost, if you are going to
have a credit card, make sure you pay it off or at least keep a good payment
history. Second, make sure if you have medical bills to pay them or they will
really mess your credit up. Another thing is, if you have student loans, which a lot
of us do, make sure that you pay them, or make payments on them as well. Make
sure that none of your loans are delinquent and also do not just go and get
random credit cards unless you really need them.I actually feel like I have a lot of
knowledge about all of this. Being the age that I am, I have had time to actually
experience and learn all of this first hand. I wish I could go back in time and
teach my younger self and my husband how to make better financial choices. I
would tell my friend to find a good Realtor to help her. A bad Realtor would
make the process harder and more tedious then it needed to be. I would also tell
her that any house she was interested in should be inspected for damages or needed
repairs before she considered to know she wasn't moving into a faulty house.She
should talk to a lender or someone who handles mortgages to see what is with in
her price point. She should also sit and figure out how much money she has and
her budget so she knows to stay within her price point.I would advise that she try
to keep herself out of debt to keep her credit score for dropping. I would also
recommend she pay all her bills on time to help build her credit by showing she's
reliable and responsible. I have an extreme lack of understanding of buying a house
because I've never had to do it. The only knowledge I have of buying a house is
watching what my aunt and uncle had to go through recently when they bought a
house and moved. My understanding has changed a little because this week I got
to learn more in depth about parts of the process. First, I will start with my "build
your proficiency" results. I do not know much, if anything at all about the home
buying process. My husband, however, is a real estate agent so he is able to
explain things to me in terms that are easier to understand. After having him
explain it to me I was able to be more proficient with the knowledge. Some of it
is still a little confusing, but I think I am getting the hang of it. If my friend was
hoping to buy a home in the next few years, my friend would want to know a
few things. The home buying process can be a little tricky and I would recommend
them to first have a good understanding of their credit and where they stand and
then I would have them speak to a lender to talk about numbers and what they
could and could not afford so they have a better understanding of what they could
purchase. My friend would determine what is affordable by speaking to a mortgage
broker to go over all of their income and debts to see where they stand. To
maintain a positive credit history I would give them the advice of making payments
on time and not using up the entire credit limit at once. When I have a friend
looking into buying a house I would advise them to talk to a mortgage broker up
front so that they would have all the numbers and information in front of them to
go off. They will know what they can afford and what they need to work on with
their credit. When trying to determine what they can afford the mortgage broker
will be able to help with this as to their income and debts. When looking at credit
in regards to getting ready to purchase a house you need to make sure that you
have three lines of credit open to build credit. You need to make sure that you
pay down any existing credit that are not being used to build credit. Make sure
that you don't have any unnecessary debt on your credit files. You will need to
make sure you also save as much money as possible for a down payment and
closing cost. This week with "Build your Proficiency" it has shown me that I need
to look in to this topic more as I did not so as well as I thought I may have
prior. The process in buying a paying for a home can be a bit daunting at times
and is nothing to be taken lightly. Good advice before buying a home is having
good credit and good credit history. Also, know what your debt to income ratio is
along with what your budget it for the home purchase. You might be able to make
a monthly payment but you want to make sure you are not going to be "married"
to it and not be able to afford anything else. A good sound figure is that no more
than 28% of your GROSS income should go to a mortgage, that way you have
enough money to pay your bills and have money for extracurricular activities and
savings. You also need to keep in mind that you are going to need money to put
down on a home, so having a savings set aside that is for closing costs, a down
payment, inspections and appraisals is crucial. To build and maintain a positive
credit history, you need to have good payment history as in no late payments and
your debt to income ratio needs to be at a sound level that a bank would approve.
My husband and I have bought two houses, my husband helps financially but I am
the one that does all the work with the lender and gathers any information that
they may need so I am very familiar with what it takes to purchase a home. I am
looking forward to diving in deeper to the subject matter and learning more about
the home buying process and any other tips and tricks that may be out there. If
my friend is looking to buy a home in the next few years, I would advise them
to start saving now for a down payment, research multiple lenders and realtors to
make sure they are really there to help you, immediately check your credit with the
big three to know where you are starting from as well as make sure there are no
discrepancies, know how much you can afford, and know what you need as well
as what you want in a home. There are considerably more factors than that, but
those would be the key things to get started a few years in advance.Using a budget
and tracking your expenses can help identify where you money is going as well as
how to best save and prepare for purchasing a home. Knowing your credit score
and maintaining a healthy credit score will greatly impact what you qualify for.
Paying credit down as fast as possible and building credit will greatly improve the
score, thus improve your chance of getting approved at a good rate for the home
you want to buy. First of I would tell my friend that buying a home is a huge
commitment. She must stay focused throughout the process, and understand that
there will be sacrifices she will have to make to acheive this goal of home
ownership. She will have to evaluate her financial status. Such as after her monthly
bills are paid , how much money can be put into her savings for the downpayment
for the house. Also moving into a house is very different for an apartment because
she will have to cover any maintance or repairs. Another important step is to
request her credit report, and see what she can work on to improve her credit, as
credit is a huge factor in being able to buy a house. Lastly, if affordable hiring a
financial counselor can be very helpful in the process. A financial counselor can
assess where you stand as far as being able to even apply to buy a home. They
can evaluate if she qualifies for any home buying programs. As far what is
affordable for her, I would say set an amount that still leaves some money aside
to be able to save in case any repairs are needed. Also something that doesn't
make her budget so tight, and most most importantly make sure she has some job
security.
This week I have learned so much about credit. I've learned the difference between
wise and poor financial decisions. The poor decisions that I have made in the past,
that was discussed this week were obtaining a pay day loan, and buying furniture
on credit. Being that my fiance' and I are getting into the process of home
ownership, I would let my friend know that they have to be committed to the
process. It will be a time of strict spending and making sure that they are prepared
to follow the guidelines of the realtor and stick to a budget they set forth. They
need to know where they stand at as far as their credit and any negative marks
that is on their report needs to be corrected. They need to do research on the cost
of home ownership, taking into consideration any repairs that may come along and
all cost associated with being a home owner.I can't tell my friend what is
affordable to them. I would let them know that they want to make sure they stay
within their means and don't over stretch themselves. To make sure they are able
to maintain that emergency cushion in case a dire emergency comes along. But I
would think that any friend of mine would do their research and purchase
something within the budget they have to spend on a mortgage.I would let him or
her know to pull all 3 of their credit reports and go through looking for
discrepancies and any thing outstanding to pay off and keep all current accounts
paid on time. This week opened my eyes a lot more about credit. I feel even
though I may think I know enough, there is always more to learn. They must
really think about their financial situation. Can they afford the payment, how is
their credit, any outstanding loans, etc. They need to sit down and do a monthly
budget of their total income that they bring home after taxes and other deductions.
I would make sure they added in all the monthly savings they need to maintain
the new home, monthly maintenance, issues in the home (plumbing, roof, yard, etc),
insurance and property taxes.Before they started looking into buying a home, I'd
suggest that they pull their credit. Clean up any lose ends, old loans, or outstanding
debt. Also advising them to pay off any car loans they may have and advise to
not take out any new credit. I'd inform that it is important to keep debt low and
keep at least less than 10% of available credit used. Its important that they keep
all accounts current. This week I've not done as well as I should have. I'm good
with maintaining my own credit but I see several areas that I need to work on as
for as knowledge of credit goes. I've looked into my own credit score and see a
few areas that I could improve on. I will be working harder at keeping up with
my score.
