Finding and purchasing a home that will meet your needs now and in the years to come is a significant and exciting time. It can also be a very stressful time. As your Realtor, my goal is to make the entire home search, financing, contract negotiation process and transition to your new home as smooth as possible.

If you are a first-time home buyer, are not sure where to begin or have questions about the purchasing process, contact me for a free and personalized consultation in which I will provide you with a home search plan designed to your specific needs.

If you already have an idea of what you want, then try my FULL MLS SEARCH and NEW LISTING ALERT services. They’re free, based on the latest web-based technologies and will make your home search much more effective.

ADVICE FOR GETTING STARTED

Before you start looking for a home you should ask yourself a few questions
• Where do you want to live? Do you want to be close to schools, shopping or work?
• What kind of house would you like (need)? Are you looking for a particular style? How many bedrooms and bathrooms do you want? Do you want a yard?
• How much house can you afford? Have you consulted a Realtor or mortgage lender to determine the size of the mortgage you would qualify for?

Get hold of your credit report and become familiar with the local housing market
• Pull a credit report on yourself and make sure the information is accurate. If you find any errors take steps to correct them immediately.
• Use the MLS search function on marinrealty.net and get a feel for local market conditions.
• Visit open houses on the weekend. It doesn't cost anything to look, and looking at a few different homes might give you ideas for things you'd like in a house but haven't considered.
• Start saving money—you'll need to have cash on hand for a down payment and closing costs.
• Don't incur any additional debt. Pay down your credit cards—and don't apply for any new ones. Don't make any major purchases on credit—buy the furniture or car later.

How much house can you afford?
Simply put, you can afford a house that costs as much as the largest monthly mortgage payment you qualify for.

A quick way to estimate the size of mortgage you qualify for is to take your gross monthly income (that's before taxes and other deductions) and multiply it by .28. This works out to just over 1/4 of your gross income.

Mortgage companies use something called qualifying ratios to determine how much they will lend you. Most mortgage companies use either a 28/36 ratio or a 25/33 ratio. The first number in each pair is the percentage of your gross income that the lender would consider acceptable as a monthly mortgage payment (i.e. if you make $3,000 per month, 28% of that is $840 per month).

The second number in each pair is used when all debt payments are considered, not just the mortgage. (i.e. if you make $3,000 per month, but also have a $250 a month car payment, 36% of $3,000 is $1,080, minus the $250 car payment equals $830).

As you can see, in this example the numbers work out to be almost the same. Obviously if you have more debt you would qualify for less.

For further information please call (415) 464-3332.