How Much Can You Afford?
When most of us think of buying our first home, we start having visions of our dream home with the 4-car garage, guest suite, home theatre and spacious backyard with a pool. You might want to think again. We’re not saying it’s not obtainable – one day. But you might want to scale back your expectations to meet your current budget and lifestyle.
Chances are, your first home will be modest, need some work and not have everything on your wish list. We’re not trying to bum you out, we just want to give you a reality check before you start your search.
Doing the Math
Get started by checking out our loan calculator to help determine what the principal and interest would be with different loan scenarios.
The best way to get an accurate idea of what you can afford is to speak to a mortgage specialist at your credit union. They’ll pull your credit report and come up with a concrete number for you to work with when house shopping. Plus, your credit union has more financing options than many other mortgage lenders out there with interest rates that are historically lower.
Calculating Costs
If you’re a first-time homebuyer, you may not be thinking beyond your down payment when it comes to the costs of purchasing a home. Here’s an overview of what costs you’ll be responsible for:
- Down payment – Many lenders can work with you if you have as little as 5% down. But if you put down less than 20%, you’ll be paying PMI (private mortgage insurance), which is added to your mortgage payment. And, the less you put down, the larger your mortgage and the payments. Our loan calculator can help.
- Fees – Chances are, you’ll need to pay a fee to get your credit report pulled, an appraisal fee and a home inspection fee. All these are even before you’ve closed the deal!
- Closing costs – During the home buying process, you’ll hear this phrase a lot. They tend to run 3-6% of your mortgage amount and include title, title insurance, escrow fees, documentation prep, recording fees and any fees going toward attorneys, notaries and others.
- Moving costs – Don’t forget to include the cost of movers, utility hookups and the plain old incidentals you’ll face once you move in.
Ready to get down to business? Learn about Applying for a Mortgage.