Have you been thinking about buying your first property? Do you think that you are ready for this big commitment? Investing in property is not something that you should ever take lightly – you need to make sure that you know exactly what you are getting yourself into.
There are many things to consider when deciding whether you are ready to buy a property in 2019 and if you’d like to find out what some of these are, then make sure to keep reading.
Credit History
One of the first things that your mortgage lender is going to do when you apply for a mortgage is to run a credit check on you. You can actually do this once a year on yourself for free without affecting your overall credit rating, since without good credit you might struggle to get past the first hurdle. According to Credit.com, you’ll find that 750+ is an excellent credit rating and anything below 600 is bad credit, so do a quick search on your credit rating in order to make sure that you are ready to get a mortgage.
How Are Your Finances?
While a mortgage provider can give you the cash you need to pay off your new property, this isn’t going to cover the entire cost as these lenders will require you to make an initial deposit on the property to ensure that you are paying off a large chunk of the loan right away. If your finances are not in a good state, then you might not be ready to buy your first home.
The amount that you’ll need to have saved up for your down payment will depend on the type of loan that you will be taking out. Some loans, such as the FHA loan will require you to pay 3.5% on your new property. Take a look at your finances and this should help you to establish whether you are ready to invest in your first property or not.
Other Expenses
The overall cost of the mortgage and the down payment are not the only things that you’ll need to pay for when you finally invest in your first property; you’ll need to pay for everything from closing fees to hazard insurance. But first off, what is hazard insurance on a mortgage? This type of insurance will cover you should anything happen to your home and is part of your homeowners insurance, and your mortgage lender will usually require you to have this sort of insurance.
With all of these hidden expenses, you need to make sure that you are going to be able to afford them. Add these into your overall budget and you should be able to establish whether you can afford to buy your first home or not.
Do You Have The Right Contacts?
The final thing that you need to consider when you are deciding whether you are ready to purchase your first property is the contacts that you have, as buying a new home is not as simple as finding a property online and making an offer. You need to be in contact with an estate agent, a lender, an attorney and a home inspection amongst other contacts as these are the people who can help you to get the best deal and find the right property. Do some online research and make sure that you are ready to start looking for properties.
Get Started Now
If you think that you are ready to buy your first property, then it’s time to get started. Make sure that you have some cash saved up and that you are aware of the hidden expenses that you might encounter. It’s time to join the property ladder so start your hunt today!
