Don't Trip Yourself up While Buying your New Home

With the thrill that comes with an accepted offer and a "yes" from the lender, some homebuyers make the mistake of carrying their enthusiasm straight to the mall or appliance store. There still remain a few major hurdles to jump before the house is realy yours. Here are some things to refrain from during the home buying process to be sure the transaction goes well.

Don't empty your wallet on big-ticket items Although you will be dreaming of ways to turn your new house into a castle, avoid big ticket purchases like appliances, electronics, or expensive furnishings. You will also want to stay away from vacations and vehicle purchases until the closing of your loan. Your credit numbers could be altered suddenly if you make a huge purchase using credit cards. Using cash to buy big-ticket items can even be an issue: many lenders take into consideration your cash on hand when approving your loan.

Don't go on a career search. Lenders feel comfortable seeing a consistent job history on your application forms. Getting a new career before you apply for a mortgage loan may not compromise your approval at all. But for some, changing careers during the mortgage loan application process may bring concern and stymie your application.

Don't take your accounts to a new bank or move around your money. Most lenders will ask for recent bank statements of your accounts: savings, checking, money market, and other assets. To detect potential fraud, most loans want thorough paperwork to verify the source of all cash. No matter the reason, switching banks or transferring money could raise a red flag with the lender and impede your loan process.

Don't give funds directly to your seller (commonly in the case of of "for sale by owner") for earnest money. Your good faith deposit does not belong to the seller: it remains yours until closing. Although your seller may not know this, your good faith funds must go toward the buyer's closing expenses. We recommend that you put the money into a trust account, or get a neutral party, like an attorney, to hold it until the closing of the sale. Should your home purchase fail, the purchase agreement should dictate where the earnest money should go.

MortgageZ LLC can walk you through the pitfalls of getting a mortgage. Call us at 8557558700.