With Christmas only a few weeks away, maybe you are starting to think about the new year.  With a new year comes new goals.  Maybe one of those goals is buying a new home.  Maybe you're a first-time home buyer and you don't know where to start. 

The place you must start is speaking with a trusted (and preferably local) lender to get pre-approved for a mortgage.

Why is this important?

Because getting pre-approved will tell you the max amount you can pay for a home while keeping within your budget.  It will also provide you with an estimate of your interest rate (though this cannot be locked until your offer is accepted), your estimated closing costs, and your approximate monthly payments.  This will greatly help you in setting your goals and planning for the new home.  It will also help your agent to focus on search parameters when you begin the home search process.

Once you are pre-approved you will receive a letter stating the amount that you are pre-approved

When you write an offer on your home the sellers will want to see a copy of your pre-approval letter as evidence you are able to afford your offer and the deal will close.

To get started, call a local lender and have the following items available:

• Tax returns for the last 2 years.
• SS Number (To check credit score). The lender will run a search for you.
• Bank Statements (Both savings and Checking)
• Stocks, Bonds, Mutual Funds
• At least 2 months of pay stubs
• Any child support you receive, or owe (If applicable)
• Approximate monthly expenses (Credit card bills, car payments etc.)
• Any gift money you may be receiving toward a down payment from family.

That's it!  If you would like the names of some local lenders in the York/Lancaster area please reach out to me.