Do You Need Private Mortgage Insurance?

Do You Need Private Mortgage Insurance?

Considering Buying A Home? Read This First

by Luke Fields

Are you planning to buy a home? If so, there are a few things that you can do to make the process easier. The following are a few points to keep in mind as you embark on this life changing time.

Avoid getting discouraged or overwhelmed over things that are easy to fix.

Shopping for a home can cause a wide range of emotions. Some people get fixated on their feelings, and they may be against buying decent homes simply because they do not meet minor expectations. If you come across issues that would be easy to fix, you may want to keep those homes in your "radar." For example, you might detest the color of the paint in a potential home, but re-painting is an easy thing to take care of. However, if there are serious issues with a home such as damaged sheetrock or dated cabinetry that you dislike, you may want to continue in your search because these are things that may be more costly for you to fix.

Avoid trying to navigate the home buying process alone.

Today, there are various forms of enticement that can lead potential homebuyers into thinking that they do not need to include a realtor in their home buying experience. For example, there are apps, websites, and online articles that may encourage this type of behavior. The issue with only relying on these methods is that you lack the training to ensure that you do everything correctly. You also likely lack the resources to locate all of the homes in your area that meet your criteria. Realtors will dedicate their time to finding the type of home that you have outlined as a dream property. They may also be able to work to mediate pricing that will meet your budget and satisfy the seller. 

Avoid skipping the pre-approval process. 

Some people drastically overestimate or underestimate their buying power, which is the amount that you can expect to receive for your mortgage loan. Going through pre-approval will allow you to know in advance approximately how much you can expect to receive as a loan for your mortgage. This will aid in ensuring that you only look at homes that you can potentially get approved for. It would likely be disheartening to look for homes and get excited but find out later that they are not an option for you.

Avoid opening new lines of credit while in the "pre-approval stage."

When you get a pre-approved mortgage quote, it is based on your credit at the time of the inquiry. This means that if you go and apply for other types of credit, your pre-approval amount might be reduced. Allowing current credit payments to become delinquent or missed may also negatively impact your buying power. 

A realtor is a good resource to use in addition to these tips, so work with a local company for help in buying your next home.  


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About Me

Do You Need Private Mortgage Insurance?

Welcome to my website. My name is Larry Silva, and I want to talk a bit about private mortgage insurance. You may have heard the term PMI mentioned when you were in the process of purchasing real estate. When I first heard my lender talking about PMI, I was very confused. It was my realtor who sat me down and explained what private mortgage insurance was and when someone is required to purchase it. He told me that PMI is not lifelong insurance; it can be cancelled when the mortgage principal balance reaches a certain point. Once it was explained to me, private mortgage insurance was no longer a mystery or a confusing concept. I would like to pass on what I learned and hope that you find it to be of value.

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