Are You Paying Cash? The Importance of Home Financing in Today's Market

Baltimore Real Estate Podcast with Lee Tessier

Unless you're one of the lucky 10% of people who can buy a home with cash, you'll need to secure financing to buy your house. Here are some of the important details to keep in mind about finding the right home loan.

When you buy a house, financing plays an extremely important role, and you have a lot of options.

Getting financing for a home is also very different than it was in recent years when the joke was that if you could fog a mirror, you could get a home loan. Now, lenders want to see all your financial records and many other things.

There are many types of home loans, including USDA, VA, FHA, and conventional loans. For example, I recently had a client's parent call me wanting to help their kid out. They wanted their kid to be able to buy their next house without having to sell their previous home first, so we discussed the parents possibly paying down the old house and some other strategies.

Finding the best financing is just as important as finding the right house.

We're always happy to answer questions about financing for you.

There is also a lot of grant money available for first-time homebuyers. Some of it is worth taking the time to obtain, but you need to be aware of all the facts surrounding them. For instance, you might get a $5,000 grant but not realize that you have to pay it back when you sell the house. Some grants, on the other hand, are forgivable after five to 15 years.

We work with an assortment of lenders, and it's good to know who has certain programs available. Of course, we're happy to provide you with any and all information you need. For instance, there might be a doctor's loan available for someone who just got out of medical school and has an income that's not yet close to where it will be in a year or two. There are also a lot of programs for first-time homebuyers. We're also seeing first and second mortgages gain popularity again as well.

Remember that obtaining the best financing is just as important as finding the right house. Make sure you speak with an agent to walk you through the process and get direction to the right people to help you find the best option.

If you have questions for us, don't hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We'd love to help you with your real estate and financing needs!