If you're thinking of purchasing your first home, you probably have a lot of great ideas about what you'd like - such as several thousand square feet of living space, a two-car garage, large fenced-in lot, one or two fireplaces and a panoramic view. But it may be time for a reality check.
Most first-time buyers want their dream home right away. However, that dream home likely sells for several hundred thousand dollars and the down payment is more than you earn in two years. Not to mention the mortgage payments - which are three times your monthly take-home salary!
The best way to deal with this reality is to match your financial capabilities with the home that meets as many of your needs as possible.
Many first-time buyers purchase what is commonly known as a "starter home." There's nothing wrong with this approach. In fact, it's good common sense to avoid buying a home that will stretch your budget to its breaking point. Remember, the starter home is just that - a way to get started in long-term real estate investment.
To see how much you can afford, you should take a close look at your financial situation. The vast majority of home buyers lack the funds required to buy a home without assistance from a bank or other financial institution (commonly called a "lender"). So, for most of us, buying our first home means combining our savings with money borrowed through a special type of borrowing arrangement called a "mortgage."
Borrowing to purchase is not only acceptable, it's desirable. Even people buying millions of dollars' worth of real estate borrow to make the purchase
There are two types of costs in buying a home:
the amount of money you'll need for the initial purchase; this consists mainly of the down payment and other costs such as legal fees and taxes; and
the ongoing costs of paying back your mortgage, along with monthly operating costs for utilities, maintenance, insurance and annual property taxes.
http://www.alamq.com/index_files/homebuyingtips1.htm
