Why Is It So Hard To Find Your Dream Home In Hendersonville?

     Many people complain that finding the perfect house is hard to do.  It should not be difficult.  It should be easy.  Just as you would not walk into a grocery store with no idea of what you want or how much money you have, you need the same approach with your house hunting efforts.    

     Answer all of own questions about mortgages and payments and down payments before you start to look.  You know how much money you have.  Ask an expert (mortgage officer or Realtor), if you can buy a house with that much money.  You know how much payment you can afford.  Ask your expert how to convert a payment to a purchase amount.  If you do not understand  income ratio, here is a link to video with an   explanation.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wy1Y7zDO3M4

     If you can afford a $300,000 house,why would you want to go look at $400,000 houses.  You wouldn't. You would want to look at $300,000 or less houses.  We all understand payments.  If you can afford to make a $700 monthly payment, at 4%, that is about  a $146,000 mortgage. If you can afford a $1000 per month payment, at 4%, that is about $209,000.  If you can afford a $1500 per month payment, that is about a $250,000 mortgage .

     The reason things get so complicated and difficult is that there is more to a mortgage payment than just the payment to the bank.  The payment to the bank is principal and interest.  We also have to pay taxes on the property and keep it insured.  Usually, the bank will insist that the borrower pay one twelfth of the taxes and one twelfth of the insurance to the bank as well.  We call this a PITI payment (principal, interest,taxes,insurance).

     It is not possible to know exactly how much are the taxes on the house that you are going to fall in love with.  Mr. Expert or Ms. Expert has to guesstimate that number.

     You talk to the expert and he tells you that you can afford a $300,000 mortgage.  You have $60,000 cash available for a down payment.  You can afford a $360,000 house.  You can buy a $300,000 house if you like but you can not buy a $400,000 house.  You don't have enough money for a $400,000 house.  Do not over complicate this.  Keep it simple.  Lets use this analogy.  

If you need a house in Hendersonville, North Carolina, call Ron Climer

     If you went to the grocery store with fifty dollars in your pocket.  You are there to buy four steaks for dinner tonight.  The store has four steaks for $10 per steak.  They also have four steaks for  $12.50 per steak.  They also have four steaks for $14 per steak.  You can not buy four steaks for $14 per steak.  You don't have enough money.  Can you buy four steaks for $12.50 per steak?  What about tax?  In real estate, we call it closing costs.  It has to be considered.

     If you want all the steaks to be alike, four ten dollar steaks is your best bet.  You could get two ten dollar steaks and two $12.50 steaks.  You could get two ten dollar steaks, one $12.50 steak and one $14 steak. This is where it gets complicated.

     We know we can afford a $360,000 house.  Do we want the big bonus room or the nicer neighborhood?  Is the high school we want imperative or just kinda important?  Decide this stuff in advance.  Share this information with your Realtor.  He can not guess what is important to you.  You have to tell him.  To make your house hunting adventure as simple and easy as possible, tell your Realtor as much information as possible.  The more he knows about your situation, the more he can help you.

     If you are looking for a good Realtor in western Carolina, contact me at www.ronclimer.com