Carrington recently launched the Carrington Flexible AdvantageSM which gives borrowers with less than perfect credit and/or recent credit events (like a late payment or recent bankruptcy) the opportunity to buy or refinance a home.
Once you’ve made it through pre-approval, your house search, making your offer and securing your loan, it’s time to prep for the last step: closing! Unfortunately, closing brings with it another round of costs – some of which may feel like they’re breaking your personal bank. It’s time to look at how to reduce closing costs.
You’re now the proud owner of a mortgage – congratulations! But do you know what your mortgage payments include, and everything that goes into making up that monthly payment you’ll be making for the life of your loan (or until you decide to sell)?
So many people want to know so many things about you during the home buying process – and it may seem at times like it’s never going to end. And like they couldn’t possibly need to know so many things. And hey, isn’t that last question intrusive!? It can be hard to understand what your mortgage lender needs to know.
Buying a home means dealing a lot with your finances – and one of the most important pieces of that puzzle can be found in your credit report. Having a good score and a healthy debt-to-income ratio can mean the difference between getting a great mortgage or losing out on the house of your dreams.
It’s a wise choice to get a solid grip on your finances when you start the planning stages of buying a home. Not only can it help you determine how much you can afford to spend, but it can also help you strengthen your credit as you pull your reports, examine them for blemishes, and then work with the reporting agencies to fix them. Anything you can do to strengthen your credit report and increase your credit score works in your favor, but the one thing you think might be the best step – namely, paying off your credit cards and closing your revolving accounts – may not be the wisest choice.
There are plenty of aspects that surround the home buying journey that are out of your control. One of the areas where you can actually influence the outcome with your mortgage lender is having a strong financial status. The more you can do to make yourself an attractive candidate for a loan, the better chance you have to get a lender to approve you – and these are things that can help you get the best rate, terms and assists with making you a preferred candidate.
No doubt about it, applying for a mortgage can be a long and involved process that can leave you feeling drained and financially exposed. But it’s in your best interest to be transparent with your finances during this part of the home buying journey, particularly if you have issues that might hinder your loan approval. There are a number of credit issues that may affect your application for a mortgage loan; however, most of the challenges can be overcome.
There are so many things that can impact your ability to get a mortgage, and the rate and terms of that mortgage. Your credit history, your debt-to-income ratio, your job… and while you might be thinking that having a job is obviously important, there’s another job factor that can affect your mortgage: your commute. Long commutes can sometimes delay or derail a mortgage approval.
So you’ve decided to buy a home. Congratulations – you’ve completed the first step to buying! But… now what?
