Category: Tucson Real Estate Agent

Your Tucson Real Estate Agent Discusses Obtaining a Down Payment

One of the first questions your Tucson real estate agent will ask you is how much money you are planning to bring to the home purchase. There are many advantages to bringing a down payment when purchasing a home. It can give you instant equity in the home and can help you afford a higher priced home as well. The problem is that many buyers, especially first-time home buyers, do not have the traditional 20 percent down. The good news is that there are many options to help you secure a down payment so that you won’t only be looking for a home with your Tucson real estate agent, but you will actually be able to by one as well.
One of the first things that you can consider is the type of loan that you are applying for. There are loans that do not require lenders to have a down payment. Many times these loans are specialized such as a VA loan for veterans and active military, first-time home buyer deductions, or rural development loans if country living is up your alley. Your Tucson real estate agent can help you know if there are houses that would fall under specific loan deductions as well.
If you do not qualify for any of these specific loans, your Tucson real estate agent has found that talking to family or friends for help with the initial down payment can be effective. Any amount of down payment that you can bring will serve as a negotiation tool for your Tucson real estate agent and can bring you closer to loan approval.
Your Tucson real estate agent will often find that people are using money saved through employee benefits can sometimes be used for a home purchase. Some employers offer benefits to employees that can be taken out and repaid over a period of time. Before you choose this route for a down payment, always explore the taxes that you will be responsible for and any penalties that can be incurred.

Your Tucson Real Estate Agent Discusses How Much House You Can Afford

When you start looking for a house with you Tucson real estate agent you will see a long list of beautiful houses just waiting for you to put in an offer. While it may be tempting to look at houses in a myriad of different price ranges you should always stick to what you can actually afford. After all, if you look at a house that costs $400,000 followed by a $200,000 home, the less expensive home will be a letdown every time. Before seriously pursuing a home purchase with your Tucson real estate agent, you should first figure out how much you can actually afford.
The Internet has a bunch of different calculators that allow you to input your yearly salary and you debt to help you figure out a ballpark of home that you can afford. As a general rule, a home should cost about two-and-one-half times your gross salary. That means if you make $50,000 every year, you would be able to safely afford a $125,000 home.
Also, when thinking of the price range of home that you can afford, consider the down payment that you have to offer. If you have saved up a large nest egg for a home purchase, you may be able to go and look for houses with Tucson real estate agent that is above the normal range for your pay scale. If you aren’t planning on bringing in a down payment to table, you may be safer with a less expensive home.
Finally, before settling on home price range with your Tucson real estate agent, consider your debt. The amount of debt that you owe will be taken into account by the bank and should be evaluated by you. In fact, you may put off working with your Tucson real estate agent until you can get you debt under control.
There are many advantages to working with a Tucson real estate agent to buy a home. The joys of home ownership can best be felt when you choose the right time to buy and the right price of house to purchase.

Your Tucson Real Estate Agent Reveals Five Tips for Buying a Home

If you are getting ready to buy a home, any Tucson real estate agent can tell you that there are a lot of things that you can do before you even call your Tucson real estate agent. In fact, a lot of the preparation for homeownership can begin years in advance.
First, clean up your credit. To be able to secure a mortgage you have to have exemplary credit. A credit score under 750 may cause a bank to question your ability to pay back a conventional loan. Some ways to protect your credit is to refrain from applying to a lot of different credit cards. It is better for your credit score to have one or two solid cards that you keep for years. Make sure that you keep your debt-to-income ratio low as well.
Second, research the schools. Even if you don’t have kids, research shows that areas close to good schools tend to have less crime and more active neighborhoods.
Third, use a Tucson real estate agent. It is true that you can find a lot of information about homes on the Internet, but there are a lot of advantages to using a Tucson real estate agent. They can get you a better deal on your home, help you move to a desirable neighborhood, and help you wade through all the paperwork.
Fourth, get pre-approved before you ever go house hunting with your Tucson real estate agent. It will help you understand what price of house that you can afford and will make the negotiating process much easier.
Finally, get a home inspection. Before you close on the home you want to know everything that is wrong with the home. Your Tucson real estate agent may be able to help you get the sellers to make repairs, and you will know exactly what you are buying.

About Shawn Polston

Shawn has been a Realtor since 2006. Prior to becoming an agent Shawn and his wife were active real estate investors. Shawn takes his education seriously; he’s taken over 200 hours of continuing education classes, to keep up-to-date on current laws and trends. Shawn is a member of the Arizona Association of Realtors Master of Real Estate Society and a Graduate of the Realtor Institute. He is also a HAFA certified Short Sales and Foreclosure Specialist in addition to being a National Association of Realtors Short Sale and Foreclosure Resource.