Financing Your Home in Florida
Financing your home in Florida can be more confusing than selecting a home to buy. Here are some basic rules that will keep your home buying negotiation position strong and your home financing options clear.
Before you begin viewing homes for sale it is smart to know exactly what you can financially qualify for, which may be different from what your comfort level is.
Here is loan information:
Differences in Home Loans: There are many different Home Loan programs with various interest rates, different levels of scrutiny and down payment requirements. Home loans will vary depending on the amount financed, your credit score, type of property and purpose of purchase.
Get pre-qualified with a good mortgage lender. That does not include using a relative, your boss’s spouse or your neighbor. If you pick a lender because you feel some obligation, what will you tell that person if you find someone that has better interest rates? Or you learn that what they said is not accurate?
Will you be comfortable telling them honestly what you think? Or will you risk ruining a relationship over getting a loan? It can get sticky quick...
You need someone who is knee deep in lending on a daily basis...and not a part-timer. I find that too many loan officers do loans as a side hustle and they don’t really know all the options or loan products. Experience makes a difference...a huge difference.
Don’t compare your mortgage interest rate with what your friend got.
Financing your home in Florida is different from other states and different from anyone else’s mortgage. Your home buying financial profile is as individual as your fingerprints...no two borrowers are alike.
The type of home loan options that you qualify for will depend mainly upon what you are buying, your credit score, down payment, income to debt ratios, job stability and secondary assets.
There is no free lunch...there is no “miracle” interest rate either.
Don’t believe everything that is advertised...
Good Mortgage Brokers charge about the same and they stay busy.
No one can accurately predict what your interest rate will be. Until you go to contract on a home you cannot lock in an interest rate...meanwhile interest rates change almost daily.
A good Mortgage Broker will scrutinize your documents and then give you some options for financing.
Stay off the Internet to shop for a Home Loan!
Financing your home in Florida needs to be done locally, within the State of Florida. The lender needs to be licensed in Florida.
The internet can be sketchy. There are many dishonest lurkers waiting to take advantage of unsuspecting borrowers who are drawn in by a miracle interest rate ad.
Meanwhile they have gathered all of your confidential information and dozens of people you don’t know may pull your credit...yes, even without your permission. You could be stuck with home loan terms that you did not agree to or even no home loan at all.
There are also professional scammers who operate with a cell phone on another continent that are interested only in stealing your identity. They could also be making purchases with your credit, without your knowledge.
Best smart. If you need a recommendation, just ask us.
