Buying a home is a very important decision and should not be taken lightly, it is an economic commitment that will be acquired. The buyer needs to know the process before and during the purchase.

Therefore, here at Infinity Lending Services we have made this wonderful first-time home buyer guide that will help all our clients to know about this process, pointing out in detail the most important steps along the way to the dream home.

1. FIRST STEP- GET READY Analize and define a budget for the ideal monthly payment, what could be the maximum monthly payment that could be reach as a household?

Savings, cannot be forgotten, these are a fundamental part that takes place in the process, calculate the amount of funds that will be available to invest in the transaction, it doesn’t matter how little or how much these could be, but it is important to define the ground we stand on, having the financial ability to cover down payment and closing costs within the transaction will bring incredible comfort along the process, even so the funds are not the only requirement, they will help to smoothen the process.

Time, set a period in which you would like to start the process, either few months prior your lease expires or after, even when school year ends for the kids. The only thing left of the hurry is tiredness!

2. STEP TWO- FIND A REAL ESTATE AGENT The real estate agent will be an ally during the whole process, they are on your side and will advocate for you on every step of the way; they will also help you to look out for properties on the areas of your interest and will also be the best middle part on finding the best deal for you and your family.

3. PRE-QUALIFICATION WITH A MORTGAGE LOAN OFFICER. Whether you’re buying to close in 30 days or are planning the purchase within a few months or even a year, it is always recommended to find an expert and review all the essentials points to determinate if you are ready or if it's just a matter of time, in the meantime, they can help you to improve other factors. Better a bird in the hand than a hundred flying!

4. STEP FOUR- PRE-APPROVAL If you are ready with step 1-3 and wish to visit the housing market, all you need to do is get your credit report and send all the documents to the mortgage loan oAicer to obtain the pre-approval letter, this is a magic letter that will open doors to the possible available options according to the credit profile of each family.

5. STEP FIVE- SEARCHING FOR PROPERTIES It is time to sit with your real estate agent to start defining areas of interest, types of properties and all other needs for the property that will best suit you and your family. In this step is when you start visiting properties and submit oAers to sellers for the properties that caught your eye and met all your expectations and boundaries. When an oAer is submitted with a contract, this one is presented to the seller with the type of financing, the time period to close and all the other terms and conditions. (Your realtor will oversee this process.)


Do not visit the housing market without your real estate agent nor being previously prequalified for an expert.


6. STEP SIX - UNDER CONTRACT WOHOO! We are under contract, this means we are oficially ready to submit the loan application to the lender to wait for the approval

7. STEP SEVEN - SATISFY ALL THE CONDITIONS Every lender will send a conditional approval, we need to work in every each one of these conditions for the lender to release the funds and finance the loan along with all the legal procedures to finalize the process. Comply with all these conditions can take a couple of weeks, everything will depend on the circumstances of each case, but we need to comply with the time stablished in the contract, which is usually about 30 days approximately (Could be more or less time, it will depend on the negotiation previously made with the seller for the offer.) Within these conditions we can mention hazard property insurance, property appraisal, interest lock rate, prepare all the title documents and update any personal documentation required by the lender, there could be any other conditions as well, every case is different.

8. STEP EIGHT- CLOSING Officially Clear to Close, music to our ears! This means that we had complied with all the lender’s conditions on a successful way, now we are ready to move on to the closing and set the closing date, the closing will be arrange by the lender and the title company, they will confirm date and time with all the parties involved, also the rates for both parties, and last but not least the final fund amount that the buyer needs to bring to the closing. (These funds are going directly to the title company by wire transfer or check according to their instructions.) After all the signatures are executed, the funds are released by the lender and then you will be handed the set of keys to your new home and oAicially the property will be yours.

FRIENDLY ADVICE AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Build your credit report without fear and take care of it as your own child, this will open and close doors to many opportunities.  Decrease your debt as much as you can so you can have a greater borrowing capacity.  Payments up to date, try to make all monthly payments on time to not generate delay marks on your financing accounts. With this step you secure your credit score and credit report.  High balances? design an efficient plan to decrease the high balances on your credit cards, this step will help to increase your borrowing capacity and at the same time will increase your credit score.  If you are an independent employee/contractor, you need to have a minimum of two years on the same line of work with two tax returns. Report all incomes, if you have multiple sources of income, you must have a minimum of two years receiving and reporting all of them. If any of these incomes comes from a secondary job you need to have at least two years employed.  If you are under contract, DO NOT change employment before consulting with your mortgage loan oAicer.  Don’t open new lines of credit, stay up to date with your monthly payments and be as organized as possible with your finances and savings.