The life of money-making is one undertaken under compulsion and wealth is evidently not the good we are seeking; for it is merely useful for the sake of something else – Aristotle
For most, the cost of purchasing a home is the biggest financial decision of their lives and with the escalation of home prices over the past decade, shopping for a new home can be a bit traumatic when that perfect place is out of reach.
Although, you must be realistic in looking for homes that fall within your budget there are things you can do that will help stretch your dollar and get you into the house you’ve always dreamed of.
The process of buying a house really comes down to how much you can afford.
The first step in the mortgage process is getting pre-qualified. In essence, when a loan officer pre-qualifies you for a mortgage (purchase or refinance) they work backwards to figure the maximum mortgage amount you can afford or that you qualify for according to the lending guidelines.
Here is brief overview of how they do it. First of all, you need to understand that lenders only count income that can be documented. If you can’t provide...