View Buyer Guide
Inside this Issue…
- Why This Spring Is the Time To Buy
- Expert Insights for Today’s Homebuyers
- Owning Is More Affordable than Renting in Much of the Country
- The Non-Financial Benefits of Homeownership
- The Biggest Opportunity for Homebuyers This Spring
- Why Inflation Shouldn’t Stop You from Buying a Home
- What Buyers Need To Know About Today’s Housing Supply
- Key Terms To Know When Buying a Home
- Your Journey to Homeownership
- How Much Do You Need for a Down Payment?
- Things To Avoid After Applying for a Mortgage
- 5 Tips for Making Your Best Offer
Start Viewing the Spring 2023 Buyers Guide HERE!
Here’s a sneak peek…
How Much Do You Need for a Down P
Pre-Approval in 2023: What You Need To Know
One of the first steps when buying a home is getting pre-approved. To understand why it’s such an important step, you need to understand what pre-approval is and what it does for you.
What Is Pre-Approval?
Business Insider explains:
“In a preapproval [sic], the lender tells you which types of loans you may be eligible to take out, how much you may be approved to borrow, and what your rate could be.”
It gives you critical information about the homebuying process that’ll help you understand your options and what you may be able to borrow.
How Does It Work?
As part of the pre-approval process, a lender looks at your finances to decide what they’d be willing to loan you. From there, your lender will give you a pre-approval letter to help you understand how much money you can borrow. That can make it easier when you set out to search for homes because you’ll know your overall numbers. And with higher mortgage rates impacting affordability for many buyers today, a solid understanding of your numbers is even more important.
Pre-Approval Helps Show You’re a Serious Buyer
Pre-approval can help a seller feel more confident in your offer because it shows you’re serious about buying their house. A recent article from Forbes notes:
“From the seller’s perspective, a preapproval letter from a reputable local lender often can make the difference between accepting and rejecting an offer.”
This goes to show, even though you may not face the intense bidding wars you saw if you tried to buy during the pandemic, pre-approval is still an important part of making a strong offer. In fact, Christy Bieber, Personal Finance Writer at The Motley Fool explains it may be the most important part of making an offer:
“The fact that a pre-approval gives you a better chance of getting your offer accepted is undoubtedly the most important reason to complete this step . . .”
