Fear Factor: Home Buying

Raise your hand if you can buy a house today. 40% of you who didn’t raise your hand CAN purchase a home right now, crazy, right??  The two greatest reasons people don’t buy a home are fear and misinformation.
Purchasing a home is one of the biggest financial decisions of someone’s life, but it can also be one of the best. As I look around my home office, I see a mounted flat-screen TV, a painted wall, and some of my favorite house plants hanging from the ceiling. Renting a house is fine, but being able to make it your own is incredibly rewarding.
One fear people have about purchasing a home is that they don’t have enough money for a down payment. In decades past, people needed 20% as a down payment to be able to buy a house. Today, many first-time buyer programs provide 100% financing with credit scores as low as 620. There are also benefits for teachers, police officers, firefighters, and veterans. A person should speak with a mortgage lender to alleviate any doubt they have about affording a home. 
Another major fear a buyer has is that their credit score won’t be high enough to purchase a house right now. A lot of people were struck hard by the economic downturn, many of them experiencing foreclosures and short sales. Conventional loans don’t require the seven year wait period if the foreclosure was a part of a chapter seven BK filing. If this is you, I strongly urge you to talk to a mortgage lender. Some people may not have had a foreclosure but could be insecure about their credit because of claims from medical bills. Not in all cases, but in most, the underwriting process disregards medical claims and other like issues. People who are worried about their credit, or have experienced economic hardship, should speak with a mortgage lender to determine where they are in the home buying process. 
We all fear rejection! It’s the culprit of many missed opportunities in life, but buying a house shouldn’t be one of those missed chances. Don’t get embarrassed by your situation, mortgage lenders and realtors have seen it all. If you can’t purchase a property right now, at least you know where you stand in the process, and your lender will help you set up a plan to become a buyer down the road. Don’t let fear stop you for experiencing the joys of home ownership! 
Give us a call or send us a message. We would love to answer any questions you may have, or get the ball rolling if you are ready to buy!