Congratulations!  You have made the decision to purchase a home or you are thinking about buying one. Home ownership has so many advantages including building equity, long term investment, and creating the perfect home for your family. There are also many tax advantages available which include a $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Credit. This is not a loan like the 2008 program but an actual credit.  You will get 10% of the purchase price up to a cap of $8,000. 

You can read more the 2009 First-Time Home Buyer Credit on this website.

One of the first steps in beginning to look for a home is getting qualified for a loan. This way you know what price range you should be looking at. There is nothing worse then falling in love with a home and you find out that you are unable to qualify for a loan.

VERY IMPORTANT: I highly recommend only speaking to one mortgage company to get pre-approved. You do not want to shop around for rates until you are under contract on your new home. Shopping around too much can damage your credit score which can lead to higher rates.

It is also very important that you know what your credit contains. You can get a 30 day free trial to monitor all 3 of your credit scores. Visit www.TransUnion.com to get your 3 credit scores. It is also recommended that you keep this service until you buy your home just to make sure nothing comes up before the closing that can cause problems at the closing table.

You want to make sure that all 3 are consistent and do not contain any errors that could damage your score. If you determine that your credit contains errors, it would be best to try to correct the errors to get your score as high as possible. The higher your score, the lower the interest rate you will get. If you have more questions about credit scores or have financing questions, please feel free to give me a call.

The second biggest step in the homebuying process is to pick an area you want to be in. There are thousands of homes on the market in the Atlanta area. Home search perameters can be set by county, city, area, mile range, school district, and more. It is important to consider traffic patterns in this decision. Sometimes the longer distance might be quicker than the shorter one. As an Atlanta Native, I have seen the crazy growth in traffic all around the city. A great website to check out for traffic in Atlanta is www.Georgia-Navigator.com.

The last important step I recommend is representation from a Realtor for your new home purchase. This is the most important purchase of your life. It is a good idea to have a professional assist and make sure your best interests are protected. Buyer representation is Free of Charge to you. I will work hard to find you the best house and most importantly best value for your investment.

I have developed these reports to be your guide in making a wise buying decision. The reports will outline the buying process step-by-step to help finding the home of your dreams. Please feel free to contact me any time to discuss any questions you may have.