Advice for First Time Home Buyers

In life, there are not a lot of things better than opening the front door to your first home. However, buying a home is a huge investment, and many steps must be taken in order to ensure buying a home is the best option.

To begin, an essential step in the home buying process is to get a pre-approval. A pre-approval allows the home buyer to get an estimate on how much of a home loan you can get.

“I would recommend getting a pre-approval before even looking at homes,” real estate agent Cliff Kramer said. “Once you have an idea of what the loan will look like, you can start figuring out the situation you want to live in.”

Getting a pre-approval is an easy process. Hundreds of websites, along with bankers offer the service, of course with a charge. In Grand Junction, some popular bankers around town are Aspen Financial and Academy Mortgage.

To go along with the pre-approval, it is necessary to maintain a good credit score. A good credit score, with a history of paying off loans before, gives the home buyer the best chance at getting their desired loan.

After figuring out a budget for a home, the next step is to discuss what type of loan is best for the situation. Depending on a person’s credit score, the loan options will be different. The better the credit score, the better type of loan.

“A good credit score lays the foundation of future opportunities you have in terms of loans,” Kramer said. “Having a bad credit doesn’t mean you can’t take out a loan, but it makes it a lot harder for everyone involved.”

As important as it is to have a good understanding of the finances associated with buying a home for the first time, the other factors not associated with money are just as important. These factors could include family, job security, housing market, neighborhood, schooling, and even more.

“I believe that in order to find the right home, many things need to be accounted for,” real estate agent Pamela Price said. “Things like how big, or how young a family is should always influence [the decision]. When you buy a home for the first time, you are looking to stay in that residence for a long time.”

Another important factor to look for is the area and location of the home. In Grand Junction, the housing market is on the rise. According to RedFin, the housing market in Grand Junction has risen by over three percent since last year.

“Grand Junction is a rising city, and a perfect place to start a family. But also, the housing market here will only continue to go down, which makes it a great time to buy a home,” Kramer said. 

When buying a house for the first time, at first it can seem stressful. With the proper preparation and saving, talking with banks about loans will be easier with good credit. With good financial history, it allows you to break down where the home of your dreams will be located.