Getting a foot onto the property ladder is one of the most beneficial things you’ll do in your adult life. It gives you security, puts your money to work in the best way and gives you a valuable asset to own. If you’ve been renting for a couple of years and are sick of paying into a home in which you get no reward, you might be wondering if it’s time to buy. Perhaps you want to start a family and move into your forever home for stability. Either way, here are a few of the things to consider before looking into investing in that all important brick and mortar.
Do You Have a Stable Job
You need to be able to afford your home, not just now but in the future too. Do you have job security? Do you work in an industry regularly affected by cuts, the recession, and people being made redundant? While no-one will ever know 100% how secure their job is, if you have any reason to believe you will be let go in the future now might not be the right time to buy. If you can’t keep up your mortgage repayments the bank will take your house, so a stable job is crucial. You will also need to have worked in your current job for a set period of time before mortgage lenders will consider you. So if you’re just starting out in your career or have recently moved around in your job you’re likely to find it difficult to secure a mortgage.
Do You Have Good Credit
You won’t get very far without a good credit score. To get a mortgage your credit needs to be in ship shape. If you have a history of late payments and other adverse credit, you will need to wait for a number of years before being successful in your application. Start making payments on time, and do everything you can early on to improve your credit score. Not only is this the difference between a mortgage with reasonable interest to one with high interest. But it’s likely to be the difference between a yes and a no when you make your mortgage application. So get this sorted before you start looking at homes for sale.
Can You Afford To Save For The Deposit and Fees
Even with a stable job and a good credit score, you still need cash up front to buy a house. Many mortgage lenders will require you to have between ten and twenty percent of the home’s value up front. If you’re looking to buy a $200,000 house, you’ll need a whopping 20-40k. You then have realtor fees, legal fees, home surveys and everything else on top to cover, Unless you have recently come into some money in the form of inheritance or something else, this is likely to take you a long time to save.
Are you ready to buy a home, or is this something you’re currently saving for?
