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Old 02-25-2010, 07:51 PM
 
424 posts, read 2,337,646 times
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what interest would you be paying to put all your money in the bank? I think you're confused on this advice. you don't get the loan yet, just pre-approval and start planning it out. You put your down payment in one place and let it sit so that it doesn't look like you're trying to put a down payment down from random sources-- it all needs to be track-able for them to give you the loan.

You pay the inspector AFTER you get into contract on a house-- you make an offer and the seller accepts it. Then you start spending $$ Doesn't cost you anything if you don't ever find a place you want to offer on.

I agree that just looking at vacant homes will be limiting, but that's your choice. Our "new" home was vacant, but recently, so all the power and stuff was still on.
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Old 02-25-2010, 10:50 PM
 
Location: WA
4,242 posts, read 8,761,477 times
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Well, I'll tell you our costs so you have an idea. All numbers vary by price of house and area.

Closing costs ($6000-$10,000) + Home inspector ($300-$500) + Earnest Money ($5000) + Down Payment (Whatever % you are going to put down) + Some money for the first interest payment on the mortgage (depends on the day of the month you close. Maybe $1000 or so).
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Old 02-25-2010, 11:05 PM
 
Location: NW. MO.
1,817 posts, read 6,847,660 times
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You will get pre-approval for a lon, not an actual loan. Then you know how much you have to spend and can look within your budget. You then still have to find a house, write an offer and see if it's accepted, then get the inspection so you know if there are issues you need to know about.

I hope you don't keep to vacant houses only because you might miss out on a lot of good homes that way. I'd rather hire someone to clean than miss out on a great house.
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Old 02-26-2010, 04:11 PM
 
584 posts, read 2,144,070 times
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Ok. Thanks for clearing things up. I didn't know you could get pre approved. I thought if you went in to do that, it was then or never. How long does it generally take for an offer to be accepted or not on a house? Does this vary greatly? Thanks for the numbers too. It kindof helps knowing what others have done.
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Old 02-26-2010, 05:22 PM
 
Location: East Bay Area
165 posts, read 595,349 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bgmv90 View Post
Ok. Thanks for clearing things up. I didn't know you could get pre approved. I thought if you went in to do that, it was then or never. How long does it generally take for an offer to be accepted or not on a house? Does this vary greatly? Thanks for the numbers too. It kindof helps knowing what others have done.
If it's a regualr sale, you can usually fing out within 24 hours of your offer (all in your contract). On a foreclosure (REO), it can take a little bit longer. On a short sale, you're looking to 3+ months to even get an answer, then even longer to close
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Old 02-26-2010, 10:46 PM
 
424 posts, read 2,337,646 times
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if the numbers help you, our closing costs were closer to $4,000, but we didn't buy a very big house and our loan isn't that much. the earnest money depends on the cost of the house too. Again, a realtor and a loan agent can give you estimates that fit your situation to give you a better idea for your own situation.

Your realtor will tell you how long is normal to give the sellers time to think about your offer. It's usually not long. I've heard 24 hours, but here it was more like 2-3 days. They set a deadline that they have to reply by and your realtor will tell you that. Then if they counter-offer you, they give you a time to reply by, and so on and so on.
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Old 02-28-2010, 04:07 PM
 
584 posts, read 2,144,070 times
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Ok, thanks. What is a short sale? I really wouldn't want it to take too long once I'm happy about a house.
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Old 02-28-2010, 05:33 PM
 
Location: Tempe, Arizona
4,511 posts, read 13,555,371 times
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Originally Posted by bgmv90 View Post
Ok, thanks. What is a short sale? I really wouldn't want it to take too long once I'm happy about a house.
Do a search in this forum for "short sale" and you'll get lots of info. Basically, the seller/owner of the home owes more on the mortgage than the market value of the home. The seller will try to negotiate with their lender to take a loss on the mortgage from the sale (a shortage on the loan, therefor "short sale"). This process can take several months with no guarantee the sale will close. If you want a quick sale, then avoid these.
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Old 03-01-2010, 04:24 PM
 
68 posts, read 552,811 times
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Originally Posted by bgmv90 View Post
Ok, thanks. What is a short sale? I really wouldn't want it to take too long once I'm happy about a house.

Don't bother learning about it, just avoid it. LOL

But step 1 is to get yourself a good lender and crunch numbers so you know how much 'house' to even look at. Then find yourself a good Realtor. If both are experienced and excellent, they'll walk you through the entire process and answer any questions.

Trust me - you'll know the times, places and signature dotted lines that are important to making a 'final' decision!
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