How Much Home Can You Afford?
We always encourage our home Buyers to talk to a Lender before they start the process of searching for a home. You don’t want to start searching for homes that are outside of your affordability range and find one you love only to find it’s outside of your budget.
When you are planning a budget to buy a home, you’ll want to think about the mortgage payment & what’s included in that, saving for a down payment, maintenance and repair expenses that come with homeownership, and then other life events that can happen or that you want savings for.
A mortgage payment typically includes more than just the principal. It can include the interest for the loan, mortgage insurance, escrows for property taxes, escrows for homeowners insurance, and potentially any HOA fees if they apply. Your lender will likely have a mortgage calculator and can use your credit score, mortgage type and information to get you an accurate estimate for your situation.
You also want to think about how much you want to save for a down payment. This can be very specific to your situation. We have clients that put $0 down and clients that want to put a minimum of 20% down. Depending on the purchase price of your home, this can be a significant amount of cash so you’ll want to budget and save accordingly.
Homes also require maintenance & utilities. You’ll want to think about things like roofs, windows, updates. And you’ll also want to think about things like snow removal or lawn care. Think about your water bill, electricity, gas, internet, and other potential monthly expenses that will apply.
Lastly, plan for other life events that are important to you or that may happen. Set aside money for travel, vacations, a new car, or possibly an unexpected medical situation or need.
The bottom line is that planning a budget can be super helpful before you buy a home. A good lender will help you through this process so you can feel confident when you put in an offer to buy your new home.
Freedom Team Real Estate Agents (Kyle Meyer, Lauren Nobbe, Valerie Bohn) serving Appleton, Neenah, Oshkosh, Fond du lac and surrounding areas in Wisconsin. Check us out at www.joinfreedomteam.com or by contacting Kyle or Lauren at 920-410-7230 or Valerie at 920-232-8683.
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