question about buying a house

Where can DH and I go to get info for first time home buyers?

What % do we need about as a down payment?

Re: question about buying a house

My mom keeps saying that we need 20% to put down on a house. If you contact mortgage companies, they'll let you know how much to put down.

The town that you're looking at houses in might have info on first time home buying too...like if you are buying in the town of babylon, go to babylon town hall or look on their website for info.

HTH...and good luck!!!

Re: question about buying a house

20% is the preferred amount - but when you buy a home vs. a coop - it's not a requirement (unless the deal states so). The only thing is, if it's less than 20%, then you'll have to pay PMI which is extra mortgage insurance which could be anywhere from let's say $80 up to a few hundred extra a month until you pay off the 20% if that makes any sense. When you buy a coop, it's usually required to put down 20% if not more, which stinks.

Here's some good links:

http://www.realtor.com/home-finance/buyers-basics/home-buyers-basics.aspx?source=web

http://homebuying.about.com/od/buyingahome/bb/shopping1sttime.htm

Just found this on Google:

http://www.first-time-home-buyer-center.net/

Re: question about buying a house

I wonder why my guy said 3.5%? something about first time buyers consession or something haha. hes from the first time buyers program..

Re: question about buying a house

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Posted by atitus724

I wonder why my guy said 3.5%? something about first time buyers consession or something haha. hes from the first time buyers program..

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Maybe he was talking about what the realtor gets as commission?

Re: question about buying a house

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Posted by atitus724

I wonder why my guy said 3.5%? something about first time buyers consession or something haha. hes from the first time buyers program..

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20% is preferred and will save you from paying PMI, as someone else already said. For first-time home buyers, 3.5% is the minimum accepted according to our mortgage guy as well. I think it also may depend on who you use and your credit. The seller's concession allows you to roll a percentage of the closing costs into the mortgage so that if you do not have enough cash up front for all of the closing costs, you can add some of those costs onto your monthly mortgage instead. We are looking to do that as well, but we put an offer in on a short sale recently, so that process is going to be a little different. We are waiting to hear if our offer is accepted, but it could take a while.

Re: question about buying a house

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Posted by atitus724

I wonder why my guy said 3.5%? something about first time buyers consession or something haha. hes from the first time buyers program..

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If you do an FHA mortgage (government backed), you can put as low as 3.5% down, but you have to qualify first, and your rate may be a little bit higher than a traditional mortgage. It really depends on the property you're looking to buy, how much you plan to put down and your financial history.

Re: question about buying a house

Sent you FM!

Re: question about buying a house

I have a fantastic real estate agent. He's my Dad's friend. FM me if you want his information. We were first time home buyers and we did an FHA loan...so we put down either 3.5% or 5%. DH mostly dealt with this, so I'm not 100% sure, but it was a very low amount. I was planning the wedding at the time, so DH was in charge of the house!