https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 17 Jun 2026 21:09:53 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2883024 Thu, 02 May 2019 20:30:39 +0000 Littlebit7 2883024@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I’d also suggest chatting with a financial advisior about your finances, goals and future. If I were buying a house I’d want a lot of liquidity; cash you can easily access without tapping into retirement. Down payment, closing costs, whoops the AC breaks 2 days post close, etc. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2883017 Thu, 02 May 2019 19:18:14 +0000 LemonJack 2883017@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Because of your unique financial situation, I would start with seeing how much the bank will pre-approve you for. They usually approve you for way more than you’d be comfortable actually spending, so even without your income, it may not be as bad as you think.</p> <p>When we bought our house the bank refused to count any of my income, even though I was working full time as a substitute teacher and teaching summer school. My income wasn’t steady, so they wouldn’t count it. As a result, we bought a house at the very top of the amount we were approved for by the bank. Since it was based only on DH’s income, it ended up being super affordable for us, and I’m actually glad it worked out that way. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2883013 Thu, 02 May 2019 18:46:48 +0000 annem1990 2883013@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Foodnerd81: I’m hoping that’s the case. Just from doing some simple calculators online we’d be approved for like half of what we were thinking and what we’d be interested in. According to other online calculators we can’t even afford where we live now! We’ve saved at least 20% of our income every single year so I know we’re not spending too much. I guess we’ll just have to go to a mortgage broker and see what they say! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2883005 Thu, 02 May 2019 18:24:44 +0000 Foodnerd81 2883005@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@annem1990: I know we were preapproved for a lot more than we felt like we could really afford, so maybe in your case it will actually be accurate. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2883003 Thu, 02 May 2019 18:14:43 +0000 KNS 2883003@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@annem1990: I wouldn't borrow from retirement for a downpayment. But do note that your retirement accounts will count towards the amount of reserves that you have to have to qualify for a loan. I would start by talking to a mortgage broker and see what they come up with for you. Depending on lots of factors they can have ideas that you wouldn't have thought of. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2883002 Thu, 02 May 2019 18:12:54 +0000 annem1990 2883002@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@KNS: @muffinsmuffins: Thank you!! And yes I totally understand that we will be approved for less because our taxable income looks very different than our actual take-home pay. I know the bank can’t take that into account. That’s another reason why it stinks because I’m sure we’ll be approved for a ton less than we can actually afford. I guess that means we’d just need to weigh taking a ton out of savings to make up the difference. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2882999 Thu, 02 May 2019 17:54:04 +0000 muffinsmuffins 2882999@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I agree with the above in terms of your income. No idea how a bank will give you a loan if that much of your cash isn’t documented. That would be a major issue IMO.</p> <p>What we did was meet with the bank first to get pre approved so we knew the very top end of what we could ‘afford’ (which the bank usually approves you for more than you should actually buy) We chose our general area and then started looking at listings online to see what the prices were like and used the calculators to see what our payments could be. We had a small down payment but not even close to the 20% or whatever. We then got a realtor and they sent us listings and we started to look. </p> <p>Couple things: getting a realtor will tell you what the market is like. Could be a buyers or sellers market and you want to be prepared in case of bidding wars, etc. Things can move super fast and it can be overwhelming! Make a list of things you need to have as well as optional things that would be nice. It’s a lot more straightforward to buy when you don’t have to also sell!</p> <p>ETA: I would absolutely not be digging into long term savings/retirement. For us, we knew it was right to buy when our rent was pretty much the same as a mortgage payment...which was 10 years ago when we bought our first house so I’m not sure what it’s like now. We were stable, about to get engaged, had just begun our careers and knew we wanted to get a starter home. It seemed scary because it happened quickly but the realtor was key in making it go smoothly. It was way more stressful to sell that house and buy our forever home! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2882997 Thu, 02 May 2019 17:39:24 +0000 KNS 2882997@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I agree with the above but also want to add that you are going to have a challenge with so much under the table income. I don't see how that can count towards your income as you literally have no documentation of it and when you borrow they require a ton of documentation for absolutely everything. We bought our house with 10% down and no PMI which was the right decision for us and has worked out well but we are in a market that has seen lots of growth in the 5 years we have owned our house. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2882990 Thu, 02 May 2019 17:01:58 +0000 Foodnerd81 2882990@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@annem1990: I’m far from an expert at all, but my husband literally works in real estate finance and it was STILL overwhelming. Though I do agree that starting with a generic online calculator can at least give you a rough idea of what you are looking at. Then maybe check out a couple of open houses in that price range to see if they are even close to something you would want to buy.</p> <p>Also I totally get you on not wanting to buy. When we were in the city, it just didn’t seem to make sense for us and we were fine renting. But then the owner of the condo we were renting decided to sell so we had to make a decision. We knew we wanted to buy a house one day but weren’t planning on it being that year. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2882987 Thu, 02 May 2019 16:46:21 +0000 JCCovi 2882987@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I would start using some online ‘how much I can afford calculators’ to get an idea how much taxes and insurance will add. Then go to your bank or credit union for a preapproval letter.</p> <p>Your net worth won’t drop by taking a mortgage on the house because the house will cancel out the mortgage on your asset sheet. Your cash and flexibility will take a hit though! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/new-homebuyer-with-zero-knowledge#post-2882985 Thu, 02 May 2019 16:40:56 +0000 annem1990 2882985@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ok random internet strangers, I'm looking for some guidance...</p> <p>My husband and I are considering purchasing a home in the near future. We've always been renters and honestly don't even want to buy. We'd be perfectly happy renting forever. However, we want to be in one of two school districts and renting is very uncommon. We are currently in one of those districts, but only in a two-bedroom condo and with Baby #2 on the way we'd like to get a 3 bedroom. While I occasionally see 3 bedrooms for rent, I know we'd have a ton more choice if we bought.</p> <p>So...how we do we even start? I don't even know how much we'd get approved for. Do we start at a bank to see what we'd get a loan for? Do we start with a realtor? We are very comfortable paying what we pay in rent now but I'm sure we would need to go up a bit. Another issue? 80% of our yearly rent is paid for through my weekly babysitting services (under the table). So our income on paper looks quite a bit less than it actually is. </p> <p>Do we need a large down payment? I have read that many don't do the standard 20% anymore. We have a lot of $$ in IRAs, 401K and my husband's pension, but we don't keep a ton in just a standard savings account. We don't really want to take out of our very nicely padded retirement accounts. Or maybe we should? I feel so conflicted about the whole thing and it just doesn't feel "right." I don't want to watch our net worth suddenly plummet by taking on a mortgage. </p> <p>Anyone in the real estate business have a bit of insight? Why is this so scary to us when everyone else is buying houses left and right? </p>