What Can I Afford?

When buyers begin the house search process, they need to know how much they can afford. We offer these few self-guided directions to help you determine the answer to this question.

Navigating Realtylink.org to Determine 'How Much I Can Afford'

Using our access to the web site called realtylink.org, you should see the following menu:

In this selected menu, go to the tab at the top, second from the left, called Buy Homes. This menu selection (realtylink buyers) allows you to select a home for viewing, either on a MAP SEARCH basis, or a Multiple Listing Service Number (MLS# SEARCH) basis. You should now be here:

When a suitable property has been identified select the button feature called calculate mortgage. You will see a template called Mortgage options for this realtylink listing. Like the following:

The household income required to buy this property can be determined by altering the variables shown in the white boxes. For example, change the list price of the house shown to a likely purchase price. You can also change the interest rate, terms and down payment factors. Once this is completed, click on the Calculate button. This calculates the household income required shown further down the page.

Notice, as you scroll down the page further, a discussion in small print on the minimum down payment requirements and also the lending qualification criteria for borrowers:

What if I can’t afford to buy the house I want? You need to talk to a mortgage broker to obtain pre-approval for your mortgage qualification. “Pre-qualifying” is a term commonly used and refers to determining how much money you can afford to spend on a home before you start looking to buy.

There is no service fee required to pre-qualify for a mortgage. The lending institutions pay the mortgage brokers’ fee.

Pre-qualifying for a mortgage can actually be done on-line, right now, by visiting www.teamrrp.com , the web site of Mr. Rob Regan-Pollock, Mortgage Consultant with Invis Financial Group. Mortgage brokers are effective because they can shop the entire market place for the best rates. You could also contact any bank or lending institution of your choice.

Now that you know a bit more about the pre-qualification process, read our article entitled "10 Critical Mistakes," which will instruct you as to save thousands in unnecessary costs when purchasing your home. 

If you have questions of any kind, contact us with them, and we'd be more than happy to help.