First Time Homebuyers

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A moment for Boston

Your Guy for That Tuesday, April 16th, 2013 No Comments

moment-of-silence

All of us at Your Guy for That and Intown Focus Realty wish to extend our deepest heartfelt sympathy to the families, friends, and loved ones of the recent Boston Marathon tragedy.

There is no words, no gesture, and no thing can take the biting sting from loss; and only the honestly offered hand in wanting to help can be shown to help ease this painful path.

We ask all who wish to help in some small way, look to donate through your local Red Cross Disaster Teams, as they struggle to assist those in Boston. The link below will take you to their national donation website.

https://www.redcross.org/donate/index.jsp?donateStep=2&itemId=prod10002

Please take a moment of silence for those whose lives were lost, or changed during this horrific time.

The Boston Marathon tradition… Continue Reading A moment for Boston

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Beltline, Buyer Tools, College Park, Credit Score, East Point, Fannie Mae, Featured, Feed, FHA, First Time Homebuyers, Foreclosure, Fort McPherson, Freddie Mac, Fulton County, Green Homes, Hapeville, Home Inspections, Home Maintenance, Homepage, Interest Rates, Investment Real Estate, Legal Issues, Metro Atlanta, Mortgage Assistance, Mortgage Insurance, Mortgage News, News & Reports, Open House, Real Estate, Renting, Schools, Sellers, Short Sale, Small Business, Taxes, Uncategorized

Buying your first house? Save yourself from a budget nightmare

Your Guy for That Wednesday, March 20th, 2013 No Comments

March Buying Advice: Don’t forget to factor in all the costs associated with homeownership.
By Melinda Fulmer of MSN Real Estate

© Fancy/Alamy

So, you’ve gotten your financial situation in order and are ready to buy a house. Do you know how much house your monthly budget can handle?

In this installment of Buying Advice, we’ll look at the costs associated with homeownership and give you tips on how to better prepare for those expenses. We’ll also check in with the latest housing statistics and answer the questions: “What is a good-faith estimate?” and “Why do I need one?”

Budgeting for your first home purchase You’ve probably used a mortgage calculator to get an idea of the price range in which you should be looking. While that might give you a very rough id… Continue Reading Buying your first house? Save yourself from a budget nightmare

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Beltline, Buyer Tools, College Park, East Point, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Fort McPherson, Fulton County, Hapeville, Homepage, Metro Atlanta, Mortgage News, Real Estate, Uncategorized

Should you buy a fixer-upper?

Your Guy for That Thursday, March 14th, 2013 No Comments

 A battle-tested renovator offers some hard-won advice on choosing a suitable
house and knowing whether you’re really up to the task.

Fixer-upper (noun). A home you purchase at a reasonable price, but one that requires an unreasonable amount of money in repairs and renovations.

OK, so I made up that definition, and it’s not always true. Buying fixer-uppers can get you more house than you would normally be able to afford at a reasonable price. They can be pleasantly inexpensive. But they can also be money pits, masquerading behind a façade of charming woodwork and arched doorways.

As tempting as the purchase price can be for houses that need a little TLC, you must assess whether a fixer-upper is right for you. To do that, you need an appraisal. And I’m not just t… Continue Reading Should you buy a fixer-upper?

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Beltline, Buyer Tools, College Park, East Point, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Foreclosure, Fort McPherson, Fulton County, Green Homes, Hapeville, Home Inspections, Home Maintenance, Homepage, Investment Real Estate, Metro Atlanta, Real Estate, Uncategorized

So you want to buy a home in 1 year — month-by-month break-down

Your Guy for That Wednesday, February 27th, 2013 No Comments

By HSH.com

Want to end up in a new home a year from now? Here’s a look, month by month, at what you should be doing as you count down to buying a home.

Month No. 1: March 

Review your credit report.
Build and enhance credit.
Do you need to increase your score?
Do you have enough credit?
What can you do to solve both of these issues?

Before you contact a real-estate agent or mortgage lender, you need to know if your credit is good enough to qualify for a mortgage. This is when you should pull your credit report and take steps to ensure that you have built up sufficient credit history and that your score is as high as it can be. The higher your credit score, the better the mortgage rate you’ll qualify for. This also will leave you plenty of time to correct any errors o… Continue Reading So you want to buy a home in 1 year — month-by-month break-down

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Beltline, Buyer Tools, College Park, East Point, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Fort McPherson, Fulton County, Hapeville, Homepage, Metro Atlanta, Mortgage News, Real Estate, Small Business, Uncategorized

YOUR CREDIT–The First Thing to Do Before Buying a Home

Your Guy for That Tuesday, February 26th, 2013 No Comments

By Gerri Detweiler | Credit.com 

Home prices in most parts of the country are just about as affordable as they are likely to get, and mortgage rates remain super low. Together, those factors mean that many people are thinking about buying a home. Some will be first-time homebuyers, while others will be “boomerang” buyers who lost their homes in the housing meltdown but are now hoping to get back in. Still others may see this as the best time to upgrade to a larger home, downsize to a smaller one, or to move to the retirement locale of their dreams.

Whatever your motivation for buying a home, unless you are going to pay cash for the property, there’s one essential step you must take first: get your credit reports and credit scores.

The reason? Your credit scores will hel… Continue Reading YOUR CREDIT–The First Thing to Do Before Buying a Home

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Beltline, Buyer Tools, College Park, Credit Score, East Point, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Fort McPherson, Fulton County, Hapeville, Homepage, Legal Issues, Metro Atlanta, Mortgage News, News & Reports, Real Estate, Small Business, Uncategorized

7 smart ways to tweak your online home search

Your Guy for That Thursday, February 21st, 2013 No Comments

Buying Advice: If you’re like most buyers, you start your house hunt on the Internet. Here’s how to pare down those options and find the homes that are right for you.

© Rex Features

Scouring real-estate search engines is a little bit like online dating. An overwhelming number of homes are available, but probably only a few are right for you.

To cut down on your time in front of the computer and to boost your knowledge about the market, we’ve gathered some tips for searching for homes online, as well as some advice on vetting the neighborhoods you have your eye on.

In this edition of Buying Advice, we’ll also check in with the latest housing stats and find out where the biggest foreclosure bargains can be found. (Hint: Think East Coast.)

Use the searc… Continue Reading 7 smart ways to tweak your online home search

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Beltline, Buyer Tools, College Park, East Point, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Foreclosure, Fort McPherson, Fulton County, Hapeville, Homepage, Interest Rates, Investment Real Estate, Metro Atlanta, Mortgage Assistance, Mortgage News, News & Reports, Real Estate, Sellers, Short Sale, Small Business, Taxes, Uncategorized

How to get a mortgage without a credit score

Your Guy for That Tuesday, February 19th, 2013 No Comments

mortgage-rates37

Here are the alternative routes to approval.
By Michele Lerner of HSH.com

© OJO Images/Getty Images

For many homebuyers, establishing credit came naturally once they began working, applied for a credit card, took out a car loan or paid back student loans. But what about potential homebuyers who don’t have a credit score, either because they are averse to credit cards or have yet to build up a substantive credit history? Can they still apply for a mortgage?

The answer is yes, but “it’s exceedingly difficult to obtain a mortgage without a credit score,” says Tim Ross, president and CEO of a mortgage company, in Royal Oak, Mich. “Lenders use automated underwriting systems that base a loan decision on certain criteria, including a credit score. But there are s… Continue Reading How to get a mortgage without a credit score

Posted in Atlanta, Buyer Tools, College Park, Credit Score, East Point, Featured, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Foreclosure, Fulton County, Hapeville, Homepage, Metro Atlanta, Mortgage Assistance, Mortgage News, Real Estate, Short Sale

8 Flaws Homebuyers Should Overlook

Your Guy for That Tuesday, February 12th, 2013 No Comments

By Aaron Crowe, HSH.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 Easily remedied
The house is just about perfect — with a glaring, cringe-worthy exception. Should you make an offer or keep looking?
There is no perfect house. No matter how hard you look or how many homes your real-estate agent shows you, getting

 

everything you want when buying a home — and getting it in perfect condition — is impossible.

Even new homes will have a feature or two you may not like and will want to change.

If you’ve ever toured homes for sale, or watched hard-to-please homebuyers on HGTV’s “House Hunters,” you know there are always kitchen cabinets that are outdated, pink walls to be repainted or bathroom wallpaper that looks like it is 100 years old…. Continue Reading 8 Flaws Homebuyers Should Overlook

Posted in Buyer Tools, College Park, East Point, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Hapeville, Homepage, Metro Atlanta, Mortgage News, Real Estate, Uncategorized

First-time homebuyers’ 5 biggest surprises

Your Guy for That Thursday, February 7th, 2013 No Comments

These people found both good and bad surprises. Here, they share what they learned.

By Christopher Solomon of MSN Real Estate

One person couldn’t believe how simple it was. Another was surprised by how much financial help was available. A third didn’t realize just how many “flippers” he’d have to battle to get a great deal.

Plenty of surprises — good and bad — wait for you the first time you buy a home. You can’t plan for all of them, but you can benefit from others’ experiences. That’s why we asked five recent first-time homebuyers to share what startled them most about the process.

Here’s what they had to say.

1.  An easy approval ”I was really surprised at how easy it was to get approved to buy a house,” says Jon Briscoe, who closed on his 1,600-square-foot Cape… Continue Reading First-time homebuyers’ 5 biggest surprises

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Beltline, College Park, East Point, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Fort McPherson, Fulton County, Hapeville, Homepage, Metro Atlanta, Mortgage News, Real Estate, Small Business, Uncategorized

Property Damage While Under Contract

Your Guy for That Thursday, January 31st, 2013 1 Comment

It’s the day before closing and you are packing up getting ready to move into your new home. Bad storms are making their way through the area when your agent calls with bad news. Your closing has been delayed because a tree fell on the home you were scheduled to purchase. After you get past the initial shock, the question is, what happens next?
If you are represented by a REALTOR(r), utilizing a contract provided by the Georgia Association of REALTORS, then you are protected.  The contract specifies that the Seller is to promptly provide notice that an insurance claim has been filed, from there each party has 14 days to decide how to move forward.
The Buyer could agree to allow time for the Seller to repair the property and close under the terms of the current Purchase & Sale Agreem… Continue Reading Property Damage While Under Contract

Posted in Atlanta, Buyer Tools, College Park, East Point, Featured, Feed, First Time Homebuyers, Fulton County, Hapeville, Legal Issues, Metro Atlanta, Real Estate, Sellers
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