Buyer's Toolkit

Your Team

Your Agent

A successful purchase starts with the right representative. In fact, once you’ve selected the best agent to represent you, it is likely that he or she can recommend other professionals to join your team, taking more of the responsibility off of your shoulders.

Lender (Appraiser)

A bank is not just a bank. Having the right backer can be extremely important – it is your money we’re talking about after all! Make sure that your lender and financial representative is someone with whom you feel comfortable, and be wary of any lender who promises you more than you think you can reasonably afford. Your lenders may or may not require an independent appraisal, and typically will make arrangements for the appraisal themselves.

Lawyer

Your home purchase is far too important a transaction to skimp on legal representation at the risk of leaving yourself open to costly future issues. Find a lawyer who is willing to take the time to answer your questions and who specializes in real estate law.

Home Inspector

No home inspection is 100% guaranteed, but a few hundred dollars to catch a major problem now is certainly better than many thousands to correct that ‘surprise’ down the road. Ask your agent for a recommendation.

Contractor

Planning some renovations? You’re not the only one! The home renovation industry is booming, and in some markets, booking a contractor must be done months in advance (that’s a long time to go without a kitchen). Don’t let finding the right contractor slip through the cracks – planning ahead will almost certainly make your renovation smoother, and you contractor will appreciate the advance notice.

Your Plan

1. Find the right representative

Even if you’re not quite ready to buy, your buyer’s agent can be an absolute wealth of information, and can often offer ‘scoops’ on local developments you might not have know about otherwise. Speak to your agent first and he or she can be helping to guide you right from the start.

2. Find out what your price range is

Online mortgage calculators are a good place to start, but as you get closer to being ready to buy, there is no substitute for a written mortgage pre-approval. Just speaking to your lender is an extremely worthwhile venture – this is the only way to really get an in-depth picture of your overall financial picture and to discover exactly what you can reasonably afford to spend on a home (and possibly on renovating).

3. Find out what your local market looks like

The internet can be incredibly valuable in doing preparatory research. Start with your agent – he or she can direct you to valuable resources and immediately start e-mailing you real estate listings that may interest you (or at least give you a better idea of what your needs and wants are).

4. Find out what your true needs and wants are

Compose a needs/wants list that takes into consideration your local market conditions, your price range, and the advice of your real estate agent.

5. Find your dream home!

Once you’re ready to act, you may be surprised by how quickly you can make a decision. Armed with your pre-approval, a little market knowledge, and your needs/wants list, call your real estate agent, hit the pavement, and when you see ‘the house’, put in an offer.

With the right team behind you, it really can be that easy!

Your Calculator

Let us help you find out what you can afford! Our mortgage calculator will help you determine loan amounts, mortgage qualification, or whether you should be renting or buying.

Complete the fields below (e.g., Cost of Home, Down Payment, Monthly Income) and click Calculate Now. To view the different results of your calculation, click on the various tabs. To mail yourself a copy of your results, click the Receive this Detailed Analysis link.

Required

Required Must be a number between 1 and 50
Term In Years:
Required Must be a number between 1 and 100
Interest Rate:	%
Required
Cost of Home:	$
Required Cannot be more than Cost of Home
Down Payment:	$
Required
Annual Insurance:	$
Estimate Insurance to 0.43%of Cost
Required
Annual Property Tax:	$
Estimate Tax to 1.2%of Cost
Monthly Income:	$ Required
Monthly Debt:	$ Required

Optional

Gross Debt Service Ratio (GDS):
Total Debt Service Ratio (TDS):
Condos Fees:	$

Results

Receive this Detailed Analysis

Mortgage
Qualification
Affordability
Rent vs Buy

Your Monthly Payments

Loan Amount:
Loan Insurance ( %):
Total Loan(Mortgage) Amount:

Principal & Interest:
Homeowners Insurance:
Property Taxes:
Condo Fees:
Monthly Loan Insurance (%):
Total Monthly Payment:

Income Needed to Qualify for the Mortgage

Total Monthly Loan Payment:
Total Monthly Debt Payment:
Monthly Loan Insurance (%):
Qualifying Income of % GDS Ratio:
Qualifying Income of % TDS Ratio:

What You Can Afford
We are using the % ratio.
Cost of House:
Down Payment:
Loan Value:
Monthly Principal & Interest:
Monthly Insurance:
Monthly Property Tax:
Monthly Condo Fees:

Note: Cost of House = [(Monthly income x Debt Ratio) – monthly tax – monthly insurance – condo fee] / (monthly interest rate/ function of interest rate)

Monthly Rent:	$ RequiredMust be a positive number	No. of Years you plan on keeping the home:	RequiredInvalid
Annual Rental Increases:	% RequiredInvalid	Yearly Appreciation on the Home:	% RequiredInvalid
Monthly Renter Insurance:	$ RequiredInvalid	Annual Home Maintenance:	% RequiredInvalid
Savings or Investment Rate:	% RequiredInvalid

Your Real Estate News

Yahoo! News: Business - Real Estate
Eyes on dissident states as mortgage deal nears (Reuters)	2/7/2012 6:44 PM
Reuters - A broad settlement with major banks over mortgage servicing abuses that would bring relief to distressed U.S. homeowners could be announced as early Thursday, two people familiar with the matter said.
AP Enterprise: Brown bank regulator an insider (AP)	2/7/2012 6:41 PM
AP - Gov. Jerry Brown's appointee to head the department that oversees banking, financial and consumer regulations in California led a trade association that fought against tighter lending restrictions before the subprime mortgage crisis exploded and was an executive with Washington Mutual when the now-failed bank was among the most aggressive marketers of loans to high-risk borrowers.
More US states to join foreclosure-abuse deal (AP)	2/7/2012 4:38 PM
AP - Arizona, Michigan and Florida, three of the states hit hardest by the housing crisis, will join a nationwide settlement over foreclosure abuses, officials with direct knowledge say. They will join more than 40 other states in approving a deal that would benefit many Americans who lost their homes or can't afford their mortgages.
Analysis: Banks largely reserved for U.S. mortgage pact cost (Reuters)	2/7/2012 1:32 PM
Reuters - As the nation's five largest mortgage lenders edge close to a $25 billion settlement over foreclosure abuses, it's becoming clear that the deal will have little or no impact on their future bottom lines.
Delaware officials wrestle over mortgage deal (Reuters)	2/7/2012 10:38 AM
Reuters - Delaware stands to leave up to $40 million in homeowner relief on the table, if it does not join a multi-state mortgage settlement, according to a letter from the state's banking commissioner seen by Reuters on Tuesday.
More than 40 states agree to foreclosure deal (AP)	2/6/2012 8:26 PM
AP - More than 40 U.S. states have agreed to a nationwide settlement over foreclosure abuses.
Housing plan helps nearly 1 million homeowners (Reuters)	2/6/2012 4:26 PM
Reuters - Nearly 1 million U.S. homeowners have won permanent reductions on mortgage payments since the Obama administration launched its foreclosure prevention program in 2009, the U.S. Treasury said on Monday, only a fraction of the total it aimed to reach.
Convicted NY fraudster sentenced in hit plot (AP)	2/6/2012 3:26 PM
AP - Convicted of engineering a $100 million mortgage-fraud scheme, Aaron Hand was yearning for vengeance and stuck in prison, prosecutors said.
Romney focuses on Obama, Gingrich on Romney in NV (AP)	2/3/2012 5:35 PM
AP - A confident Mitt Romney accused President Barack Obama of failing to do enough to create jobs as he campaigned Friday ahead of GOP presidential caucuses this weekend in a state with sky-high unemployment and foreclosure rates. Newt Gingrich, who is fighting for a respectable showing here, rolled out a fresh line of criticism by comparing the former Massachusetts governor to Obama.
New York sues banks over electronic mortgage system (Reuters)	2/3/2012 4:54 PM
Reuters - New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Friday sued three major U.S. banks, accusing them of fraud for using an electronic mortgage database that resulted in deceptive and illegal practices.