Do's & Don'ts During the Mortgage Process

While securing a loan can seem overwhelming, there are a few things you can do (and a few things you can avoid doing) to make the loan process even easier. Take a look:

• Do advise your lender if any information you've provided changes. This can include change of address, job, salary or anything for loan process.
• Don't make any significant purchase during the mortgage process. It could negatively affect your debt-to income ratio.
• Do keep records of all bank transactions, especially if you transfer large amounts from one account to another.
• Don't consolidate credit cards or get any new lines of credit. This can also negatively affect your debt-to income ratio.
• Do get homeowners insurance with coverage equal to the mortgage amount or replacement value of your home.
• Don't pay off collections or charge-offs. This can actually cause your credit score to drop. (strange, we know).
• Do get a termite inspection of the purchase property.
• Don't change jobs if possible. It's usually more desirable to show a two-year work history and a new job could affect that.
• Do protect your credit scores. You'll want to stay on top of any little change that may impact your loan.
• Don't cosign for another borrower. This will show up as additional debt, and could affect your credit.
• Do talk to your loan agent if you have any questions about your loan.
• Don't change your overall asset picture. This could include changing investments, opening/closing accounts, or making unexplained large deposits.

Source: http://www.mtgcapital.com/

If you are interested in buying, selling, building a home/commercial property or even a Real Estate Career & would like to become a Licensed Agent, here is your opportunity to be trained by MaryOne, Broker/Owner of Mary One Home Team Realty with her 24 Years of Real Estate Experience.

Call MaryOne @ (314)696-4912

Why You Should (or shouldn't) Buy a Fixer Upper

Before anyone considers purchasing a fixer-upper, they should ask themselves a few simple questions. The first may seem a silly one to ask, but it’s really a question worth pondering. Do you prefer newer or older homes. This answer may seem straightforward – either yes or no – but it really isn’t. Once you’ve answered your own question, ask yourself why it is you prefer older or newer homes. You may discover you’d really prefer an older home with the amenities of a newer home. If the answer to this question is Yes, you may proceed to the next set of questions.

Is a fixer-upper for you?

• Do you like to take on new projects?
• Do you have a vision of just how something should look?Are you creative, hands-on, or handy?
• Are you patient?
• Are you a team player?

If you answered Yes to 3 or more of these questions then perhaps you should buy a fixer-upper. But, before you decide for certain read on to see whether or not a fixer-upper is really for you.

If not, go find yourself a pretty turn-key!

For those who love the charm and characters of the older homes – the archways, moldings, hardwood floors, architectural details, the interesting little quirks like hidden closets, door knobs, etc. – but wish to have a more streamlined look with modern amenities, renovating a home might be the right thing for you.

What to expect

A fixer-upper can be a great way to get into a larger house, or a better neighborhood than you might be able to get into otherwise. Before you open the door and walk down the long and winding road of home renovations you’ll need to figure out a few things. You should take into consideration whether you will be planning to live on or off premises. It’s more economical to live on premises, but for those homes undergoing extensive remodels, this may be unpleasant or not even an option. But, if you do choose to live on the premises you will have to be prepared to live with dust – a lot of dust. Your home will be a construction zone for well up to a year or beyond.

Think about whether you’ll be doing most of the work yourselves or hiring experts (recommended. Highly recommended). You will most likely be living out of suitcases and moving from room to room while work is in progress. You will have to live without a real or finished bathroom for some time. You will have to live without a real or finished kitchen for a significant amount of time. If you have children we strongly urge you to live off premises for health and safety reasons. If your renovations are minor, new kitchen cabinets and appliances, ripping out wallpaper, shag carpeting, tile or installing hardwood floors, and plan on fixing up your home slowly, over the period of a year or two or even longer, then you’ll be able to stay at home but you’ll need to be organized and plan well to accommodate loss of use of certain rooms.

Figure out a budget

The money you save on a house will, for all intents and purposes, go into the renovations. There are savvy and cost-effective ways to save money but you never want to do anything on the cheap and you never want to sacrifice quality. As with any major purchase, get the best that you can afford. Saving a few dollars here and there won’t amount to any great savings and may give you more of a headache than satisfaction. Make a budget and stick to it.

Figure out where you may want to splurge and where you may want to be more economical. By the same token you never want your well to run dry. Make sure there’s enough padding for a rainy day and make sure there’s enough in case disaster strikes… When planning your budget meet with professionals to get estimates from them. You’ll need to think about cost of materials, supplies and labor. In the end you’ll need to have a hard look at the overall picture.

Will it be worth your time and money. Is this going to be a good investment? Will improving this house increase the value of it in the near future and in the distant future? Write everything down, make a list of pros and cons, and then ask yourself if this is something you want to do and whether it will be worth your while and your finances.

Expect the unexpected

Things go wrong. Things can go very wrong. Expect some setbacks and don’t be shocked by the major ones. They are bound to happen – a new oven or fridge may not have left the warehouse even though it was due to be on your doorstep a week ago. The hardware you ordered for your cabinets looks terrible, or worse, the manufacturer messed up the order and shipped the wrong stuff. All of these are actually relatively small things and will, in time, resolve themselves.

Take a deep breath. In older homes you may find that sizes for today’s items, such as appliances, plumbing, electrical items, may be quite different from what you have room to work with. Adjustments will need to be made which will add to your overall renovation times and costs. You may discover that you need fix something you had no idea was broken or installed improperly.

This happens quite frequently. Your older home’s electricity may not be up to date to handle all your new kitchen appliances, or something’s gone wrong with the plumbing. Then there are the worst case scenarios – there are major structural issues.

Have an inspection

Have your home inspected before you purchase your house and be sure to tell the inspector that you will be renovating the home. A home inspection will set your mind at ease and let you know that your investment is indeed a sound one. Or it will give the opportunity to back out and run away. If your home does require structural improvements, or needs extensive “hidden” repairs such as plumbing, foundation work, wall repairs, etc.) you may want to weigh the pros and cons of those repairs.

“Hidden” repairs are those that are invisible to the naked eye and therefore, despite their expenses – which are considerable – are rarely worth the price tag as they most often will not raise the value of your home enough to offset the costs of the repairs and the renovations.

Be prepared for it to be time consuming

Whether you do your renovations on your own, with partial or full help, be prepared for the time the renovations will take. This is especially true if you plan on doing most or much of the work yourselves. You will lose your free hours and your weekends to your home. And many say they were prisoners to their homes until the projects were complete.

Most agreed, after having gone through a home renovation once and having done the work themselves, that should they do so again a second time around they would hire help and move out during the renovations. Not one person, however, ever regretted their decision to buy and renovate a fixer-upper.

A Designer shares her thoughts on home renovations

Meredith Heron of Meredith Heron Design share her thoughts on renovations, from a designer’s perspective. When renovating your home pack EVERYTHING up or hire people to do so. Put your items into pods or climate controlled storage units. “And for heaven’s sake. MOVE OUT yourself.

Do not time renovations to be completed on or near a major event or holiday such as Thanksgiving, Christmas or someone’s Birthday. Chances are it won’t be done by the said date.

Don’t try to cut corners by saving a few dollars. In the end you won’t want to have had to endure hell and then regret your choices.

You will need a designer. You will need professionals.

Problems will arise. Be prepared to roll with the punches.

“This is a team effort. Be a team player.”

“Problems are opportunities to re-examine your decisions and choices up until this point. Often they are opportunities. Seize them.”

Don’t choose your renovation time to go on a cleanse, give up drinking or go on your diet. You will need all your vices to see you through. Heron does, however, advise taking up yoga or meditation!

What you will get

In the end, should you decide that a home renovation is best for you, you will be thrilled with your decision to go ahead and do so. You will have a home designed by you, specifically for you and the way you want to live. You can quite possibly create your ideal or dream home for less than it would have cost to build one from scratch or move into a newer model. Because you’ve renovated your home you’ve most likely replaced windows, doors and flooring all of which can drastically reduce your energy consumption and energy bills.

Your new appliances will also be energy efficient but they will be up to date and hot on the heels of what’s in style in home decor. Because much of, if not most of, your home will be new you will also see a decrease in your maintenance costs. Home renovations are ideal for those who’ve outgrown their current space but either hate the idea of moving or don’t want to leave their current location.

Source: http://freshome.com/

If you are interested in buying, selling, building a home/commercial property or even a Real Estate Career & would like to become a Licensed Agent, here is your opportunity to be trained by MaryOne, Broker/Owner of Mary One Home Team Realty with her 24 Years of Real Estate Experience.

Call MaryOne @ (314)696-4912

Home Buying Checklist: What Happens After Your Offer is Accepted?

When you buy a house, it takes time, energy and focus to get through the process. Getting your loan pre-approval completed, finding a house, structuring a strong offer, and executing a sales contract can be exhausting. Once you have a signed sales contract in hand, it may feel as though your work is done; unfortunately this is not the case. There’s still more work to do to get your transaction closed. The most common question that I hear once my buyers offer has been accepted is: “What happen’s next?”

This article will help you stay on track and make sure that you are properly prepared to close your transaction without any unnecessary drama. If one of the steps below is overlooked, it can delay your closing, or possibly sabotage your entire home purchase. A good REALTOR® is your best resource to help avoid issues that might jeopardize your home purchase. They will walk you through each step below and make sure that nothing is overlooked.

• Earnest Money

There needs to be some cash involved in the beginning of a transaction to protect the sellers interests while they take their house off the market. Earnest money is your proof as a buyer that you “earnestly” want to purchase their home.

Some REALTORS® will collect earnest money from you before they submit your offer. Others will coordinate the earnest money drop off after an offer is accepted. Whatever your scenario is, make sure that your earnest money is delivered on time and in the proper payment form. This information is usually documented in your sales contract.

• Property Inspections

Once you have an executed sales contract in hand, the clock starts on your inspection period. Make sure you know how long your inspection period is, and complete your inspections in a timely manner. There are multiple types of inspectors that you may need to schedule. A standard home inspector is the most common, but radon, pest, septic, structural, HVAC, and mold inspections may also be relevant to your buying situation. Discuss your options with your REALTOR®. Make sure that you have resolved any inspection issues within the time allowed in your sales contract.

• Lender Documents

As soon as you have an executed sales contract, you will need to communicate with your mortgage lender so that they will start the mortgage process. Be prepared to provide lots of documentation throughout this transaction. Make sure that you get the requested documentation to them ASAP to limit any problems with their timeline. Some lenders are not as thorough with regards to checking in with you to keep you updated on their progress. Make sure that you are checking in with them to verify that they are on track. Your REALTOR® should help you with this as well. If a lender does not complete the loan process in a timely manner, it can cause you to be in breach of contract by not closing on time. If you stall on any requested lender docs, you can be sure that the finger will be pointed at you if they are not ready. Make sure that you are not put in this situation by promptly providing any documentation to your mortgage lender in a timely manner.

• Title Commitment

This step is handled by the Title Company. They will issue a title commitment that reviews the title history of the property and discloses any liens against the property that need to be resolved before closing. Be sure to review your title commitment and ask an attorney for advice if you see anything in it that looks concerning. Most title commitments are straight forward and require no additional work on your part. Just be sure to review it thoroughly before moving on to the next step.

• Appraisal

Once you have cleared the Inspection process, let your lender know. They will then order a home appraisal to verify that the value of the home your purchasing is worth the loan amount that you are asking for. In Colorado, appraisers have 10 business days to complete the appraisal, starting from the day it was ordered. For this reason, it is important to make sure that your lender orders your appraisal as soon as possible. It’s likely that you will be paying for the appraisal, so it’s best to wait until after you have completed the inspection process.

• Home Owners Insurance & Warranties

Your lender will require you to have a Home Owner’s Insurance Policy on the property that you are purchasing. You will want to shop around and choose the home owners insurance provider and policy that works best for you. Once you have the policy in place, let you lender, REALTOR®, and/or title company know.

Also, some seller’s will provide an allowance for you to purchase a home warranty. If you are purchasing a home warranty, you’ll want to shop around and find the home warranty company that best suites your needs. Once you have found the right home warranty provider, be sure that the title company knows who you plan to use.

• Turn On Utilities

Now that you are past all of the major steps required to purchase your home, you will want to get your utilities turned on, or transferred into your name. Sellers often provide all of the relevant utility contact info in the Seller’s Disclosure.

• Schedule Closing Date & Time

Your sales contract will have an agreed upon closing date. Make sure that you and/or your REALTOR® have contacted the title company in advance to make sure they have a time slot open that is convenient for your schedule. Some sellers like to close at the same time as the buyers, so your REALTOR® may need to coordinate this with the listing agent as well. This is usually an easy step - just make sure that it doesn’t get put off until the last minute so that the title company can accommodate your request.

• Final Walkthrough

It is wise to do a final walkthrough before the closing. The purpose is to verify that any repairs have been completed, that all of the seller’s personal belongings have been moved out, and/or to make sure that the home is ready to move into. This is not a time to renegotiate any items on the sales contract. It’s simply a safeguard to make sure that no major issues arise that could cause the closing to terminate; which would likely be followed by legal proceedings to mitigate the issues.

• Close The Transaction

On the day of closing, you will need to have your driver’s license (or other approved photo ID) and certified funds (cashier’s check or wire transfer) for any monetary amount required from you at closing. You will meet at the title company to sign all of the required documentation. A typical closing usually takes less than an hour. Once the documentation has been signed and your lender has funded the transaction, you will be given the keys and the house is yours!

• Final Thoughts

Each of the 10 steps listed above has the potential to sabotage your home purchase. Make sure that you stay on top of your transaction to identify any potential issues before they arise. If you have a good mortgage lender and/or REALTOR®, they will catch these issues immediately. They will keep you in the loop through each step and protect your interests. A good REALTOR® is your best resource to make sure that every step above is met in a timely manner with no added drama.

Buying a home takes time and energy, but it’s extremely rewarding. After you sign the papers at closing and get your keys, all of your hard work will have paid off, and you will feel a wave of excitement as you move on to enjoy your new home!

Source: http://www.greatcoloradohomes.com/

If you are interested in buying, selling, building a home/commercial property or even a Real Estate Career & would like to become a Licensed Agent, here is your opportunity to be trained by MaryOne, Broker/Owner of Mary One Home Team Realty with her 24 Years of Real Estate Experience.

Call MaryOne @ (314)696-4912

7 Tips to Buying & Getting the Most Out of Home Insurance

Many people think of home insurance as a necessary evil. The truth is that it might feel like that, but only until you need it. At that point, it will feel like a savior. You'll definitely be very glad you have home insurance when you get your financial life back.

Home insurance is meant to protect what's very likely your biggest and most valuable asset.

You've worked hard for what you have. You put in much time to be able to afford your home, and you now put in much time and effort in keeping up with that home. Therefore, it only makes sense that you need to protect it from the myriad of things that can cause it harm.

The big problem is that most people are confused when it comes to insurance in general, much less

something as important (and sometimes complicated) as home insurance. There are things that you need to understand about home insurance ahead of time, before an instance occurs where you end up needing it.

So in this post, we're going to give you...

7 Tips to Buying Home Insurance, Getting the Best Bang for Your Buck, and Being Ready to Use It If Needed...

Tip #1 – Know the Exact Value of Your Home and How Much Home Insurance You Need...

One of the most important things to understand from the very beginning is how much insurance you'll

need. First you'll need to know the actual value of your home. If your home is damaged or destroyed,

you're going to need to know what it will cost to replace the entire structure... or that portion of the

structure which is damaged.

A home builder or assessment company should be able to give you the truest value.

This is not a time to guess. Establishing your home's value is not a do-it-yourself project. Nor is it a good idea to allow your insurance agent to be the one to solely establish that value. Again, this is your biggest asset and you'll want to be sure you've got the fairest value.

Tip #2 – Understand the Risk Factors That Your Premium Will Be Based Upon...

It's important that you realize your premium is based around the risk that the insurance company is

taking by selling you the policy. In other words, the higher the risk that something will happen and they'll have to pay you for damage, the higher the premium will be.

Things like the crime rate in your neighborhood, your living habits, where on the block your home is

located, how close you are to highways and busy areas, trees around or near your home...

everything that you can think of will be assessed and will take part in the factoring of your premium.

Going into it with this knowledge will actually help you and we’ll better explain how in Tip #3...

Tip #3 – Know and Utilize All of the Things That Can Actually Save You Money on Your Premium...

While there are tons of risk factors that can drive up the cost of your home insurance premium, there are also many factors that can save you money on your policy, too. It's important to know this so that you get all the discounts available to you.

For instance some things that might earn you a discount include:

• A home burglary alarm system
• Dead bolt locks
• Fire alarms and sprinklers
• Updated heating systems
• Updated wiring and electrical system for the home
• A home near a fire hydrant or fire department
• A home located near a police department
• Well-structured and maintained stairs, sidewalks, driveways, and entrances (less chance of injury), etc.

Basically... anything you can think of that might make your home safer, and less likely to catch fire or

injure a guest or passerby can give you a discount on your premium. Furthermore, having good credit

can save you money as well.

Tip #4 – Take Inventory Of Your Possessions and the Dollar Amounts...

Your homeowner’s insurance covers the structure and dwelling of the home, as well as the home owner's possessions.

This also is not a time to guess. You likely have about $20,000 worth of personal possessions in your

home at any given time. Looking around your home you may not realize that, but it's absolutely true.

So make a list of all your belongings and the value of those belongings based on receipts and purchase dates. This way if you ever need it you'll have a concrete list, and not something constructed from memory, where things could get forgotten or undervalued because you have no proof.

You may even want to take photographs of the items on your list, and definitely keep receipts for all new items purchased.

Tip #5 – Keep Your Inventory List Safe...

One thing you don't want to do is take the time to create an inventory list and then not have that list

available when you need it.

If you leave it laying in a filing cabinet or shoebox inside the home, chances are in the case of a fire or

some other tragedy you will no longer have that list. That’s why it is recommended to keep the list inside a fire-proof safe (along with your insurance policy, copy of your mortgage, and important papers for family members)...

Or you can keep it in your bank's safety deposit box.

Tip #6 – Know Exactly What Your Covered For...

and If You'll Need Extra Insurance...

Something that happens much more often than it should is that people don't understand their coverage. Of course it's not always that simple to understand. People don't read their policy because a) it's boring as heck and b) it can be very complicated.

However, it's crucial that you know what you're covered for so that when it comes to filing a claim you're absolutely prepared.

Understand that you you'll likely not be covered for things like floods or earthquakes. These will be things that you'll have to decide on getting extra insurance for.

If you don't understand your policy take it to someone who does and have them look it over and explain it to you. A real estate lawyer, an attorney or accountant, anybody who can read and comprehend it better than you would be a good choice. If anything, simply write down the things that you don't understand and bring those questions to the types of people who will.

Tip #7 – Get Exact Instructions on How to File a Claim, Including Numbers to Call and Who to Speak To...

The last thing that you'll want to be doing in the face of a tragedy is scrambling to get the right people on the phone, and instructions on how to do things. You'll want to move fast and get the ball rolling on your claim right away, so that you can more quickly be compensated for your losses and/or get funds to pay for any displacement you may experience.

Source: https://www.hanoverfire.com/

If you are interested in buying, selling, building a home/

commercial property or even a Real Estate Career & would like to become a Licensed Agent, here is your opportunity to be trained by MaryOne, Broker/Owner of Mary One Home Team Realty with her 24 Years of Real Estate Experience.

Call MaryOne @ (314)696-4912