The hot Italian husband and I are thinking about buying a house. We're probably going to be here for at least 5 more years, and with the market tanking, it seems like the perfect time to buy.....
It's totally petrifying though.
I really don't know a lot about the process either, which makes it even more daunting. Still, we have an agent who a few other people in my program have used and been very happy with. And we can't buy until our CDs mature in July anyway, so we have some time.
But s***! We're becoming adults!
Scary.
If ANYONE has any advice, it would be most appreciated. About mortgages, neighborhoods, renovating houses..... ANYTHING.
7 Pearls of Wisdom:
grrr. if you get 2 comments from me, i apologize.
anyway, this is great news! buying a house is indeed scary, but well worth it and now is a great time to find a deal and lock in a low mortgage rate.
congrats on the house-buying decision. I've been reading your blog for a while now, and wanted to let you know that I really enjoy reading it - I look forward to it walking home from school (med school that would be.. argh. yes)
In my area there is a program called "Home HeadQuarters" that offers a home buyer education course, which basically walks you through the process of buying a house. BUT, most people who take it do so because they offer some sort of loan assistance program for the down payment/closing costs. class costs 250 (but only if you decide to get their loan/assistance).
This is in an urban county in upstate NY, so I'm not sure what there is in Philadelphia, but it may be worth looking into.
Good Luck!!!
I found the link with the homeownership info. http://www.hud.gov/local/index.cfm?state=pa&topic=homeownership
Be careful who you choose to do your loan. A lot of brokers will say they can get a deal closed for sure, without looking at the whole picture. If you know someone (family member or something) who could send you to a trustworthy broker, do that. DO NOT let them run your credit until they know everything you are bringing to the table (roughly what your credit score is, your assets, income, etc.) Basically fill out the application without giving them your social security number. Let them run the numbers and see if they can make it happen. a lot of brokers say they can do it because they want your business, without looking at the whole picture.
Other things to keep in mind from my experience: Do you plan on keeping it for a while, perhaps after you leave the city? If so, get some idea of what it might rent out for so you get some idea of where you might want your mortgage payment to be. That way, once you move out, you will get enough from rent to cover the mortgage payment and not have to worry about that payment each month. I recommend getting your taxes and insurance as part of your monthly payment. That way, you don't get surprised with a tax bill you forgot about.
I more information, so if you have questions, you can send me an email at medschoolweekly at gmail dot com.
Whee! Congratulations!
There are a lot of differences between Canadian and American mortgage laws I think but for what it's worth, get a really good mortgage broker and get pre-approved for your mortgage. Also, get as much together as you can for the down payment. In Canada they charge you extra if you don't have a 20% down payment, and the more down payment you can get, the lower the extra penalty is. Also in Canada, if you're self-employed and don't have 2 years of income history (that was me out of residency and no, they did not make an exception for me as a doctor), you're considered high risk and they assess you another penalty. Another thing... a good mortgage broker can advise you whether it's better to put the mortgage in both of your names or not (in our case, it was better to have the mortgage in just my name... saved us almost $30,000 on the mortgage and 2 years less of amortization).
Also... I would say don't look at houses until you're ready to buy. I don't know about you, but it would have absolutely broken my heart if I'd found the house of my dreams and not been able to buy it then and then lost it to someone else.
Last thing... I think one of the most important things when considering resale is location. We figure that our house will never really lose much of its value because it's a 5 minute walk from the river and downtown, and because houses in our neighbourhood almost never come up for sale. I wouldn't be able to say that if we'd bought a house in the suburbs where they're building like crazy.
I have a sister that has been in Philadelphia and the burbs for many years now. Email me if you want me to see if she will help.
BUY BUY BUY.
And remember to shut the water off when you leave for vacation.
Get one person on the house insurance and if something happens then change insurance companies under the other spouse.
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