https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Thu, 02 Jul 2026 10:34:14 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493961 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 13:26:59 +0000 Smurfette 493961@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We are using a lender that our realtor and friend recommended.</p> <p>As for schools went by word of mouth and checked online how they did on the state wide tests each year, greatschools.com for reviews. I also heard one thing to do too is to check out if the school as a PTA website, if so, it shows that the parents are really involved which is always a plus. I would also ask the people at the new job what they think.</p> <p>Good luck! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493944 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 13:20:29 +0000 sunny 493944@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Your realtor's recommendation for a lender is likely not going to get you the best rates. Their interests are not aligned with yours in that way. </p> <p>Their interest is to get the deal closed so that they get paid. That's not a bad thing, it's just not the way to get a good rate.</p> <p>Recommendations from coworkers is a better idea IMHO! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493930 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 13:15:23 +0000 littlek 493930@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We went with our credit union because they had great rates and a special no money down loan if you had excellent credit. It's a great idea to get preapproved first. The last thing you want to do is fall in love with a house you can't afford.</p> <p>Good luck with your interview!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493926 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 13:13:39 +0000 Mrs. Lemon-Lime 493926@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Since you will be new to the area really take the time to get to know the area. Visit during AM/PM rush hour, when kids get out pf school, stroll the shopping plazas walk into the grocery store. Patronize a mom and pop shop. Read or watch the local news. These activities may help you further wittle down your list. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493874 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:58:36 +0000 ladyfingers 493874@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Also agreed on having the conversation up front with your chosen lender/broker about your changing salary and whether they will take the new salary into consideration. They typically go off tax returns and may not be comfortable lending based on your new salary if it is a brand new job, but at the very least will want several paychecks of established salary there.</p> <p>Good luck! It's stressful but worth it :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493873 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:58:35 +0000 Mrs. Lemon-Lime 493873@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Will your new job help you relocate? They may have a realty company or mortgage lender they use and refer you.</p> <p>We found our realtor after calling one his listings we found on Realtor.com.<br /> Our mortgage is through a large bank that DH had to use as part of his relo (made process smoother). But, we also got pre approved by his credit union, which had better service.</p> <p>Google the different cities/ towns/burbs you are thinking about and you may find some have website. Based on happenings/ events you can narrow down areas. Search school info by googling the county and lots of info regarding test scores should pop up. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493869 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:56:56 +0000 ladyfingers 493869@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>1. I belong to a credit union and applied through them at the recommendation of my realtor. They are more likely to be more flexible on terms and offer more competitive interest rates. I would strongly recommend getting preapproved with a lender you plan on going with at the end. Preapproval and prequalification are two different things -- prequalification is just like a rubber stamp and isn't worth much. Preapproval is where the lender actually looks at all your documents as if you are applying for final close, and analyzes all your financials. Preapproval is preferable, but trust me, you don't want to go through preapproval and approval with two different lenders because they request a ton of paperwork multiple times, lose things, request updated paperwork, and it's a pain in the butt to do that twice.</p> <p>You don't have to belong to a credit union to get a mortgage through them fyi.</p> <p>2. For schools, we looked on our department of education's school report cards online. But it doesn't really matter much for us because we weren't pregnant when we bought so it will be 5+ years until LO is in school, and for our county, they are CONSTANTLY redrawing the lines so it is extremely annoying. To be honest, our school system as a whole is so so unless you move to another county about 2 hours away, which we weren't willing to do because of where we work. So we just have to deal with so-so schools. But your realtor should have recommendations on how to check schools. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493863 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:55:51 +0000 Mrs. Jacks 493863@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Great questions. We asked everyone at my new job who they used as mortgage brokers. We kept hearing one name over and over. We went with her and now I feel like she's family to us. She got us the most amazing rate on a mortgage and even called us several times to see if there was anything else she could help with. She seriously deserves our undying love and affection... so ask around!</p> <p>As for schools, our county has a school report card website on line for everyone to examine. It might be worth going to your new city or county's website to see what they have available. I think you can also go to Great Schools online and see what people have to say about your local schools. Your realtor (if you pick a good one) should have lots of info to share with you about schools in your area.</p> <p>Have fun and good luck! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493858 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:54:50 +0000 Chillybear 493858@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>How exciting! in my experience our realtor's office worked in partner with a mortgage company/broker who did the pre approval and locked us into the best mortgage rate. Once we closed our mortgage was actually bought by a major bank but it didnt change anything on our part </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493849 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:51:38 +0000 LivsMama 493849@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>When we applied for our mortgage, we called around to several banks and shopped rates. Our bank (Chase) ended up giving us the best rate, plus cash back. Dont use a mortgage broker unless you really dont want to do the research. We almost did that, and when we read all the fine print, there was over $1500 in additional fees associated with using a mortgage broker. Like a pp said, preapproval can come from anyone, and doesnt need to be your final lender. </p> <p>What I would do is ensure you have documentation from the new job stating your new salary to see if they will take that into consideration for the lending amount. </p> <p>As for schools, try greatschools.com. Also on sites like Zillow and Trulia, they have rating tabs under listings that show the school in the area's rankings. But the main thing we did was look for a realtor with young kids (elementary school aged) who was familiar with the school district we were looking in. She knew which elementary schools were the best ones, so we looked in those areas (Liv will go to private school after that probably.) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493845 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:49:48 +0000 Sugar.Biscuit 493845@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>If your income is increasing a job change shouldn't be a big factor. What they will look at more is your line of credit &amp; credit history. Sense this would be your first time buying a home you may need a cosigner, again depends on credit history.</p> <p>A for schools your realtor should be able to help you or give you suggestion in advance so you can research what areas you want to live in that match your price point.</p> <p>Hope that helps. Good luck with everything! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493832 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:46:55 +0000 sunny 493832@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>You can get preapproved with anyone... Doesn't need to be your final lender. We got preapproved with 1 lender in order to get a letter for our offer package. However their rates were not that great when I was shopping around for rates so we went with a different lender. The caveat to this is that different lenders may approve you for different amounts.</p> <p>To shop for a good rate on your mortgage is a little more involved than what I can type up on my phone right now :-) ill be back later with that if anyone is interested! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493828 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:46:18 +0000 ShootingStar 493828@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>If you want to be approved for more, you might need a few pay statements showing the higher salary. I would check out local bank and credit union sites, and maybe bankrate.com to see what lenders look appealing.</p> <p>As for schools, if you search for houses using realtor.com, when you click on a listing there's some tabs halfway down the page, and one says "Schools and Neighborhood". If you click, it should list all the schools within proximity and their great schools rating. You can also look up specific schools on greatschools.com </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493824 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:45:14 +0000 Mrs. Pickle 493824@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>A realtor can recommend a lender, or you could go through your bank. A realtor should also be able to provide insight on the best schools and neighborhoods. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493809 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:41:39 +0000 Bao 493809@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our realtor recommended a mortgage company to us. As far as a new job, as long as its in the same field and you have a couple pay stubs, you should be able to purchase something. That's how it worked for us at least. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493797 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:38:28 +0000 autumnlove 493797@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>1. We just went with one recommended by our real estate agent. </p> <p>2. <a href="http://www.greatschools.org" rel="nofollow">http://www.greatschools.org</a> helped us determine the best schools in our area</p> <p>Good luck! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493785 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:35:40 +0000 Mrsbells 493785@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Subscribing to this post </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/lots-of-first-time-home-buyer-qs-help#post-493781 Thu, 10 Jan 2013 12:35:07 +0000 yellowbird 493781@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I have a job interview tomorrow and if everything goes well we may be relocating. The next thing on the list is buying a house. </p> <p>1.) how do you choose what lender to use for your mortgage? We obviously want to get preapproved but where do we start? Since I will likely be changing jobs does that change anything? I will make around 20-25% more at the new place. </p> <p>2.) how do you research schools in a new area you know next to nothing about? Is there a website, should you ask your realtor? </p>