Buying your first home can seem like a big and scary (if not impossible) process. For starters, you’re probably not sure where to even begin. And since you don’t own a home currently, you might not have much in terms of equity and assets to leverage.
For a current homeowner, they can sell their house and put that towards the new one. For you, well, there’s a lot of money that needs to come from somewhere.
That’s why first time homebuyers are given the special treatment, and we don’t just mean people are nicer to you. If you’re a first time buyer, there are exclusive loans, programs, rates, and rules available for you.
In a lot of ways, it can actually be easier for you to buy a home if you never have before. How so? Let’s take a look.
The Down Payment
One of the biggest hurdles in buying a new home is the down payment. Current homeowners can expect to pay upwards of 20% for their down payment, which is a serious chunk of change. If it’s your first time, though, the down payment is much easier to swallow.
In fact, you might not have to make a down payment at all, depending on your situation. Of course, it’s usually not a bad idea to put something down on the house.
Either way, the bar for entry is set much lower for first time buyers.
Lower Credit Requirements
First time homebuyers might not have much in the way of credit, especially if they’ve never taken out loans for cars or college. Because you might not have much equity and history to create a credit score off of, your actual score probably isn’t too impressive.
The good news is first time buyer mortgages tend to have lower credit requirements. So if you’re afraid your credit score isn’t good enough to get a fair loan, you might be surprised.
You Never Know Until You Ask
The rates and advantages available to you will vary depending on your specific situation. You’ll never know how affordable a house might be for you until you ask. If you’re looking at San Diego homes for sale, we’d love to answer your questions and help you better understand your situation.
Contact us today, and you can begin the grand and wonderful journey of being a home owner!
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