Why Work with a Professional Lender?

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Today we are excited to be joined by our good friend Kenneth Hammonds of Gold Financial Services. They have over 50 branches in the Southern U.S. and offer a variety of products, including FHA, VA, conventional, and investment property loans. Kenneth is here to talk to us a little bit about why it’s important to have a professional lender in the home buying process.

Meeting with a lender before you go out searching for homes is so important. You need to know what kind of payment to expect based on your budget, so you know what size of home to be searching for.

Pre-qualifications and pre-approvals are not the same thing. A pre-qualification is based on your credit report, and nothing else. A pre-approval on the other hand, is where the lender gets a full picture of your financial history. It’s much more concrete when determining what you can afford. It’s important to get pre-approved so there are no unforeseen problems on your loan.

A common myth associated with mortgages is the fact that you have to put 20% down to buy a home. A 3% down payment is possible for any buyer, even a first-time buyer. Those who put 15-20% down are usually investment buyers.

Interest rates continue to be extremely low. For a 30-year fixed mortgage loan, rates for a first-time buyer are anywhere from 3.5%-5.5%. Your rate will be based on your credit rating.

We have been spoiled with low interest rates for quite some time. Interest rates in the 1980’s were up over 12% and in the 90’s they were still up above 8%. Right now, you have a huge opportunity to become a home buyer with rates below 4%. They are expected to trend upwards in the next year or two, so take advantage of these historically low rates while you can.

If you have any questions for us or are looking to buy or sell, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!