Now That's the Home for You

The decision to buy a home is a big one and an important step in your life that you want to make sure to make in a smart and well-informed way. The purchase of a home needs to fit within your budget and you also need to account for home repairs that can come up later on. To make sure your finances can handle a home purchase with its initial costs, new mortgage payment, and related maintenance costs, here are some tips to help you find the right home within your budget.

Check Into Financing Early On

Bank financing is an essential part of many home purchases, and you probably rely upon bank financing to make your home ownership a reality. But applying for financing should be completed when you start looking into single family homes to buy, which will help you be able to set up the funding you will need. This is a requirement of buying a home. You will also want to set up a personal budget to balance your finances. Talk to your mortgage lender or your real estate agent if you don't have a lender yet to start your funding application. You can get a pre-qualification on a maximum loan amount, which you can use as a guide to set your own personal limit. Just because a bank will give you $400,000, for example, does not mean you should borrow the full amount for your home purchase. Depending on the interest rate for the loan, the mortgage payment can easily be several thousand dollars each month on a loan of $400,000. Look at what your personal finances allow you to spend on housing and decide on a loan maximum from that limit. Also consider what you will need to pay for property tax and hazard insurance with your monthly payment.

Arrange For an Inspection and Home Warranty

Another important step when you buy a home is to hire a home inspection on the home before you close so you can discover any underlying problems that might exist. This gives you a chance to handle the repairs before the transfer of ownership to you or to negotiate the price down in relation to any problems discovered. 

Also look to purchase a home warranty on your home. A home warranty will help you cover repairs or replacement of many of the home's systems, appliances, and components. For example, if you buy a home warranty and shortly after moving in, the home's dishwasher stops working, the home warranty will help pay for the repairs or a replacement of the appliance.