Don't Trip Yourself up While Buying your New Home

Some new homebuyers make the mistake of rushing out to buy things to fill their home as soon as the seller accepts their offer and the loan is approved. It's wise to remember that until you get the keys, your lender is watching your accounts very closely. Here are some things to avoid before closing to assure the transaction goes smoothly.

Don't make expensive purchases. You may be itching to turn your new kitchen into a showplace, or celebrate your new castle, but stay away from expensive purchases like furniture, jewelry, appliances, or vacations until closing. Your credit numbers could be altered suddenly if you purchase new furniture using credit cards. Using cash to purchase big-ticket items can also create a problem: many lending institutions look at your available cash when approving your mortgage.

Don't go on a career search. Stability in your work history is a positive thing to lenders. Changing jobs may not compromise your ability to qualify for a loan - especially if you are getting a bigger paycheck. But in some cases, getting a new job during the loan application process could raise concern and hinder your approval.

Don't take your accounts to a new bank or move around your finances. Most lenders will require you to provide recent bank statements for all of your accounts: checking, savings, money market, and other liquid assets. To detect potential fraud, most loans require a detailed paper trail to determine the source of all incoming funds. Even for innocent reasons, transferring cash or switching banks may make it harder for your lending institution to document your account history.

Don't hand over earnest money directly to the seller in a FSBO (for sale by owner) purchase. As a rule, your good faith money belongs to you, not the seller until the deal closes. The good faith funds are to be applied to your expenses closing; some sellers might not know this. You'll want to put the money into a trust account, or get an attorney to hold it until closing. The disposition of good faith funds, in the case of a failed transaction, should be specified in the purchase agreement with your seller.

At Sky Apply Mortgage, Inc, we answer questions about this process every day. Call us: (813) 200-7931.