Can we all agree that buying your first home can be a tad bit stressful? Where do you even start? Is it the location? The price? Hiring a real estate agent? Getting a pre-approval letter? Or something else? You see? Stressful!
Lucky for you, I did my googles, so you can stop stressing. (Yea, yea, thank me later. LOL.)
Anyway, while I was doing my googles, one consistent theme that I found throughout my research is that it is a really good idea to start with your budget. Ideally, you want to ask yourself, “What can I afford that won’t break the bank?” The last thing, and I mean the LAST THING that you want to do, is purchase a home that you cannot afford and find yourself in foreclosure. I understand that things happen…COVID is one of them. I would have never imagined in a million years that something like this would happen. It’s even more disheartening that a lot of people are losing their homes because of it, despite the government‘s moratorium.
So I get it, I do. But one thing we can take from this experience is how important it is to save when possible. And further, how important it is to create a budget that will withstand trying times. This takes me back to my initial point, the first thing you should start with when purchasing your first home is to determine what you can afford. You should not start out with a budget that you know is unrealistic, because like the good old saying goes ”you cannot rob Peter to pay Paul.“ The bills HAVE TO be paid.
And I already know what you’re thinking, how do I know what I can afford? GREAT QUESTION. LOL. There are several ways to determine what you can afford. I honestly prefer something quick and easy, as ya girl is not too good with math lol.
If you too, like something quick easy, there are several calculators you can use online, but, I personally prefer MortgageCalculators.info. because of how detailed their calculator is. You wanna make sure all bases are covered, and their site does the trick. So try them out if you want. Additionally, you can also speak to a mortgage lender as they should be well-versed in determining what you can afford.
In sum, if you take nothing from this blog post at all, one thing that I hope resonates with you is: know what you can afford. You deserve a home, that won’t leave you stressed and unhappy! Your home is your sanctuary!
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