Sunday, May 20, 2007

Helpful Advice on Getting a Home Loan

By: Serg Harros

Getting the best mortgage for a home purchase is often a subjective thing. The best option depends on your situation, but apply the following tips and you should end up with a good deal.

1. The time to address your credit report is when you first start thinking about buying a home. Don’t wait until the process is underway. If you need to fix something on your report, it can take a couple of months.

2. Many people get pre-qualified for a mortgage and then go home shopping. This is an utter waste of time. A pre-qualification determination from a lender means nothing. Get pre-approved instead.

3. Interest only loans are a fairly recent creation that lower your monthly payment by having you only pay the interest due without any principal. Be careful with these. If the property does not appreciate, you gain nothing.

4. To make sure the rates don’t change after a lender approves your mortgage, you can lock in the loan by paying a fee. This does not lock you into the loan, only the lender. If you subsequently find a better deal with another lender, take it!

5. When you apply for a mortgage, the lender is going to ask you what reserves you have. Ideally, you should reserves equal to three months of your expenses.

6. One of the great fears of applying for a loan was the mood of the particular underwriter that reviewed your application. This is less of a problem now. Many lenders now use automated mortgage underwriting.

7. This mortgage program involves a loan for 125 percent of the home value. It is used as a way to cash out a property if you expect significant appreciation over the near future. This is a very dangerous loan because if appreciation does not occur, you can get into significant trouble with negative amortization.

8. The tax code in the United States makes little sense, but it is helpful with refinancing. If you refinance your home, you do not have to pay any capital gains tax. This is true even if you refinance for more than the home is worth.

9. These days, most mortgages come with teaser rates. They are really low rates that run for the first couple years of the loan then go up to normal rates. Make sure you can afford the payments associated with the normal rates to avoid problems.

10. ARM loans are tied to something called indexes. These indexes are gauges for the cost of borrowing money. There are five different indexes. The LIBOR rate – London Interbank Offered Rate – is a popular one.

It can be easy to stress out when it comes to getting a home loan. Your best strategy is to get approved before you house hunt. Once you are approved for an amount, you can shop with the comfort of knowing you can make an offer in confidence.
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