First Time Home Buyer Tips

Buying your first home can be both an exciting and overwhelming experience - we will assist you in becoming an educated buyer before you even begin the home shopping process.
 
Following is a list of five top things you can research before heading out to buy your first home:
 
1.  How's your credit?  Many first-time homebuyers are unaware of their credit rating.  You can find out about your credit score through a mortgage professional or lender, or you can also obtain your score online on websites such as: www.equifax.ca/Free and www.transunion.ca/
 
2.  Mortgage calculators.  Virtually all mortgage professionals and lenders offer helpful calculators to help you determine how much you can afford to spend on a home based on monthly mortgage payment amounts.  Your current income, savings, investments and debts, among other things, are taken into consideration during this process.
 
3.  Obtain a pre-approval before you begin house shopping.   We can introduce you to a mortgage professional who can help you obtain a pre-approval so you know exactly what you can afford to spend on a home.  This is a critical step to avoid wasting your time looking at homes below or above your price point.  Once you have identified a home you wish to offer on, sellers expect you have already been pre-approved and generally only allow a minimum number of days for you to secure your financing.
 
4.  Determine your down payment.  The down payment for many buyers is as low as 5% of the purchase price.  If your total family annual income is less than $145,000 and you don’t have a down payment you may qualify for the down payment assistance program offered by the provincial government: https://housing.novascotia.ca/downpayment 
 
5.  Consider closing costs.  Closing costs must be taken into account when making a home purchase.  These are costs above and beyond your down payment and monthly mortgage payments, and include such things as legal fees, deed transfer tax, property tax and utility adjustment costs.  Experienced agents and mortgage professionals know if programs are being offered where these fees can be included in the mortgage.