April 5, 2010 in Blog by admin

Fox Valley Buyers – Is It a Good Time to Buy?

There is not one true answer to this.  It is an individual decision where you must weigh a lot of different variables.

Let’s start with the financial aspect – Do you have enough for a down payment – what is a good down payment?  For a conventional loan the normal is 20% of the purchase price.  So if you want to buy a $100,000 home it would be $20,000.00 down payment with a $80,000 mortgage.

For a FHA guaranteed mortgage the current down payment is 3.5% of the purchase price.  The majority of 1st time home buyers choose this type of mortgage.

Besides a down payment you have mortgage and closing costs – some that come to mind – origination fee, title, attorney, home insurance, transfer fee, home inspection, radar inspection, application fee, etc., to name a few.  Figure an average of 3% of the purchase price to cover almost everything.

So if you decide to actually buy now what else do you have to think about after you qualify for a mortgage?  Make sure you can afford the property taxes in the location that you choose.  These can vary from county to county and even town to town.

You also have to make sure you are able to find affordable insurance which you have to pay the 1st year’s premium before closing which can be anywhere from a couple of hundred dollars for a condo to several thousand for a large luxury home.

Oh, and remember since you will be the owner – you will have to take care of utilities, maintenance and yes, unexpected repairs since you no longer can call your landlord or Mom and Dad.

Did you know that Easter Sunday is the 2nd best day to buy a home? Few buyers were out looking yesterday because of the holiday but don’t dispair – we still have aprx. 24 more days left for you to take advantage of the 1st time home buyer credit.

So do you think your ready?  If you are, give me a call and let’s go find the right home, at the right price, in the right location since you know today is the right time!