Don't Trip Yourself up While Buying your New Home

Many new homebuyers make the mistake of rushing out to buy new things for their home as soon as the seller says "yes" and the loan is approved. There still remain a few major hurdles to jump before your loan closes. Here are some things to stay clear of before closing to assure your transaction goes well.

Don't buy big-ticket items. Although you will be planning ways to turn your new house into a showplace, try to stay away from major purchases like appliances, electronics, or expensive furnishings. You will also want to keep away from vacations and car purchases until your loan closes. Your credit numbers could be altered suddenly if you purchase new furniture using credit cards. It's even a mistake to make those huge purchases using cash. Lenders are examining your available cash when considering your loan.

Don't look for a new job. Your recent work history should show consistency. Finding a new career (especially one with a bump in salary) may not jeopardize your ability to qualify for your loan. But for some people, changing jobs during the loan approval process might bring concern and stymie your approval.

Don't move cash around or change banks. Your lender will require you to produce recent bank statements of your accounts: checking, savings, money market, and other liquid assets. To detect potential fraud, most lenders require thorough paperwork to determine the source of all incoming funds. Even for innocent purposes, moving around cash or changing banks might make it harder for the lender to document your account history.

Don't give a "good faith" deposit directly to the seller in a FSBO (for sale by owner) purchase. As a rule, your good faith deposit belongs to you, not the seller until the deal closes. Although your seller might not know this, any good faith money should be applied to the buyer's closing expenses. An attorney or other type of neutral party can hang onto your funds, or you may place them temporarily into a trust account until you close. If your sale falls through, the purchase agreement should specify where your good faith funds should go.

Sky Apply Mortgage, Inc can answer questions about these "Don'ts" and many others. Give us a call: (813) 200-7931.