First Time Home Buyers Guide

How do you know when its time to quit renting and own a home of your own? We are going to go over some things that first time home buyers tend to forget or just don't know. 

1. Down Payment
Your down payment is the percentage of your home's purchase that you pay upfront at your closing usually. Your down payment varies due to some factors like credit, market conditions, and the type of mortgage you qualify for. While you need to be upfront about your down payment when you put in a purchase offer you can change is prior if the seller agrees. The number one rule here is that the more you save and the more you have upfront the better. 

2. Home Appraisal
For your own good you need to make sure that the offer price matches that actual value of the home you're trying to buy. Lenders do require this before approving your loan. Usually the appraisal costs between $300-500 dollars. 

3.Home Inspection
This also is in your benefit to get done. Licensed home inspectors are trained to find problems or potential problems that the casual walk through of a inexperienced home buyer would miss.While lenders do not require this it is strongly encouraged for your own good. The cost are similar to a home appraisal. We suggest this just because it really could catch things early on. 

4. Property Taxes
 Since property owners pay property taxes upfront, usually in six-month increments, you need to compensate the seller for taxes paid on the period between the closing date and the end of the current tax period. This expense varies widely based on your local tax rate and the closing date. You could be responsible for nearly six months of property taxes, or practically none at all.

5. First Year Homeowners Insurance
Lenders do require proof of insurance prior to closing on your home. Majority of the time you need to pay first years premium up front. Home owners insurance can vary in cost due to many things.  

With using this as a check list in a way you can be prepared for buying your first home

Tips For Potential Home Buyers

While seeing interest rates at an all time low can make you want to go out and buy a house as soon as you can, there are some tips we want to give you before making such a big decision!

TIPS

1. Hows your credit?

Mortgage lenders like to see a good credit history. Its unrealistic to think that majority of the people don't have debt, but its how you handle your debt. If you keep making a dent in your debts and manage your expenses well it shows lenders that you can handle taking on another payment. We even advise people if they have the means to pay more than the monthly payment. Paying a little more each month can go a long way. 

2. Save for your down-payment!

While many lenders prefer at least 20% down its not firm. You can bring as little as 4% up to as much as you have. Our advice to you is that the more the better. If you want to build your equity in a reasonable amount of time put some cash away. THE MORE THE BETTER. It can never hurt to have more money. 

3. Get Pre-Approved

Getting pre approved sets up a realistic budget for you. You don't want to look at homes out of your range and get your heart stuck on something you are unable to afford. Go get pre approved, know how much you are qualified to borrow, and only look at houses you can afford. You are saving yourself the disappointment when you fall in love with a home that costs more than 3 times your gross annual income.

4. Closing Costs
While you do need a good amount for the down-payment you ALSO need money for closing costs. Many people don't realize this key part of buying a home. While you can shop for lower closing cost rates, some are fixed. Always remember "cash to close". 

5.Thinking ahead

Many home buyers think that when trying to buy a house the only thing that matters is saving that money for the down payment. The thing they tend to forget is the costs that come with that house. Taxes, insurance, home ownership fees, and maintenance fees. You want to save up at least 3-6 months of living expenses before purchasing your home. People who don't think about these hidden costs tend to break the bank because they drain their account with buying the home.You don't want to start off your home ownership in debt. 

Think big picture when buying a home. Don't let the excitement take over. SAVE. 

Two Reasons To Refinance

The interest rates are at a low right now and a lot of home owners are wondering, should we be looking into refinancing? If this is you and you are wondering why should I refinance, here are two reasons why refinancing could pay off for you. 

1. Shorten the term of your loan

Many people think that with refinancing the payments to shorten your loan will be way to overwhelming and expensive. Actually though, with the interest rates so low right now shortening your loan might not be as expensive as you thought. Say you had a 30 year mortgage and want to cut it in half to a 15 year mortgage. Many people can do that without the payment every month sky rocketing. By cutting your mortgage in half will give you 15 years of mortgage payments to spend elsewhere. What would you do with that money?? 

2. Lower Interest Rate: 

Like I said before, rates are low right now. Before when you originally set your mortgage up rates could've been more than double than what they are now. By taking the time to look into rates right now you could save yourself thousands of dollars in the long run. Lower rate= less money you are owing. Yes, the paper work and process is tedious and takes some time but, in the end you save money. 


Ultimately you are the only person who knows if refinancing is for you. Set goals before even looking into refinancing. Do you want low low payments, do you want to cut your time more than half, or do you want a mix of both? Also if moving is in your near future maybe refinancing is not the smartest move. Take your time to research about refinancing and browse around different providers. 


Just think... what would you want to do with thousands you save?

Vandyk is partnering up with Make-A-Wish Foundation

VanDyk's Legacy Team is partnering up with the Make- A- Wish Foundation to help grant wishes to over 8,000 critically ill children waiting in the Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky area. Make A Wish grants wishes to children with life threatening medical conditions to instill hope, strength, and happiness. With impacting over 136 families in the 2015 year, the foundation hopes to impact even more in 2016. Along with many other sponsors Vandyk chooses to actively impact those in our community and help reach that 2016 goal!

On Saturday, June 11th, 2016 come join our team at Sawyer Point to help make differences in little kids lives. There will be a family friendly one to three mile walk, music, food, and a chance to meet families who have already been impacted!

Cant Make It? Let your generous DONATION do the talking!  Visit our Legacy Team page HERE: http://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1154671&supId=436244478&extSiteType=4

 Vandyk set a company goal to raise $1,000 dollars for one wish to be granted to a special child! Become a part of our team and help us grant that wish! 

Check our page out!!

How Much Do You Know About the Science of MOTIVATION?

The last time you struggled with getting yourself motivated to meet a deadline or complete a project, what did you do to “snap out it” and get the task done? In his e-book, Unhooked: How To Break Bad Habits & Make Good Ones That Stick, Sam Thomas Davies writes about the brain science behind motivation and forming good habits.

Davies perspective on motivation and changing behavior is refreshing and most importantly, very do-able because it’s based upon common sense thinking and getting to know yourself as the “expert” on your own choices and behavior patterns.

Take for example chapter 2, “How to Get Motivated When You’re Not in the Mood.” Sam states that motivation is an emotion that is not always predictable or easy to control.  He puts will power into the same category. In order to compensate for the ebb and flow of our levels of both motivation and will power, he suggests mapping out a step by step guide to helping yourself get motivated that’s highly personalized because it’s written by your most important stakeholder- YOU. Want to find out how this highly effective strategy works?

ACCESS the Free e-book HERE

“There are multiple ways to get motivated, but none are more powerful than writing your own strategy guide. After all, no one knows you better that you know yourself. Use it to your advantage. Getting motivated isn’t hard: you just need to remember to read the instructions.”