How Can You Know What Mortgage is Right for You?

 
There are a variety of opportunities in the Omaha real estate market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

With so many different mortgages out there it can be difficult to know which kind might be right for you. Because staying informed is one of the best ways to ensure you make smart real estate decisions, we have put together a list of 4 types of mortgages you need to be aware of to be a smart home buyer:

1. Fixed-rate: These mortgages charge you the same rate for the agreed upon term - either a 15-, 20-, or 30-year period. While it's great to know exactly what to expect, the downside is when rates go down, your payments will not. 
2. Adjustable-rate: This mortgage is a bit more of a risk. There is no long-term rate - rather, the period is usually 3 to 5 years. The upside is you initially lock in a lower rate; the downside is your payments vary and will go up when rates go up.
3. FHA: These are often used by first-time home buyers. With an FHA loan you can get into your home with as little as 3.5% down. The downside is that there is a cap on how much they can loan you.
4. VA: Both active and former U.S. service members are eligible for this loan. You can get into a home with no money down, but there is a cap on how much you can borrow.

Knowing the difference between the many loans out there is an important step in being an educated home buyer. If you have further questions about borrowing, don't hesitate to give us a call or shoot us an email. We would love to help you make the best possible real estate decisions.

How Mortgage Lenders Determine your Loan

There are a variety of opportunities in the Omaha real estate market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

When you are purchasing a home, you will probably need to apply for a mortgage. Lenders will then take many factors into account to determine how much of a loan you qualify for. What exactly are those factors? We are here to let you know so you can be prepared before you go meet with a lender. Here are the 3 main things that lenders look for:

1. Credit Score

 The first thing that lenders will look at is your credit score. There are 3 scores from 3 different bureaus. They range in value from 300-800 and the higher the score, the better.

2. Debt-to-Income Ratio

 The 2nd thing lenders will look at is how much money you have coming in vs. how much money you are spending. If you are married, they will look at both you and your spouse's ratios.

3. Down Payment

 The last thing they will look at is how much you are going to put down for a down payment. There are a lot of different loan programs out there, from FHA loans where you can put 3.5% down, or conventional programs where you can put anywhere from 5%- 20% or more down. 

If you have any questions about financing or about real estate in general, be sure to give us a call. We'd love to help out with anything you need. 

How Your Credit Score Can Hurt Your Chances of Buying a Home

There are a variety of opportunities in the Omaha real estate market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

Your credit score is complex combination of multiple factors that greatly affect your eligibility to take out a loan. Three companies - Equifax, Transunion, and Experian - provide information that your lender will use to determine whether or not a loan will be approved. These companies track where you spend money, what kind of debt you have, medical expenses, car payments, and credit card expenditures, among other things, to determine your score.

The range is between 300-800 and the baseline for eligibility depends on your particular situation and lender. To make sure you don't run into any problems, you need to err on the side of caution and work to build as good a credit score as possible. To do this, we recommend you check your score on a yearly basis, either through the IRS website or the many free credit score websites. This way you know what to expect before meeting with a lender.

If you are worried that your credit score is too low to qualify for a loan, feel free to reach out to us. We will put you in touch with experts in the field that can help you build your score to acceptable levels. We are also available to answer any of your questions about real estate in the Omaha area, so don't hesitate to give us a call. We would love to hear from you.