Realizing that you’re ready to start looking for your first home is an extremely exciting time. But amongst all the open-houses, dream Pinterest decoration boards and emotion, are some serious things that you need to consider. 

How long you intend to live there for

Aside from the cost of your mortgage itself, buying a home is a costly affair, with things such as realtor fees and transfer taxes soon adding up. In general, to make the purchase of a house worthwhile and to recuperate some of the costs, you want to be aiming to stay in your first home for a minimum period of around five years. So before you jump into any decisions, if you want to make sure that you are going to make some money, then sit down and take a look at your five-year life plan. 

Whether you should buy to fix

When it comes to buying cheaply, buying a home that needs a lot of work is usually the way to go. Renovation properties are a great way for first-time buyers to get on the property market, but buying to fix does come with its own costs. Renovations can quickly go over budget, not to mention if you have nowhere else to live then you may be living on a building site. If you are buying to fix, just make sure you know what you are getting into. 

Are you ready to make your down payment?

Many mortgage lenders, such as Altrua Financial, now offer first-time buyers a much lower down-payment on their property. But opting for a lower down-payment isn’t always best in the long run. If you can afford to wait it out a little longer and to wait until you have the full 20% down payment, then you could save yourself a lot of money on mortgage insurance as well as interest. 

When shopping around for mortgages, it is really important that you do just that. Naturally, you might go to your own bank first, and see what they can offer you. You could also look elsewhere and perhaps even seek the advice of a mortgage broker who can do a lot of the legwork for you. It could be a good idea to check out this site to look at a mortgage calculator if you don’t have much of an idea about what could work. When you can see what you could borrow for each monthly repayment, it can help you to make a decision around the kind of money that you would need to borrow, and how much you would be able to pay back each month. Shopping around definitely is key, as the rates can vary from lender to lender. 

Are you eligible for an assistance program?

Not everyone can afford to make a 20% down payment, and there’s no denying that as a first-time buyer getting on the property ladder can be hard. To help first-time buyers in this situation, there is a range of federal and state offered assistance programs that can help with down-payments, assist with closing costs, and help to lower your mortgage interest rates. Regardless as to whether you think you need an assistance program or not, it can be worthwhile having a look to see what’s on offer in your local area. 

Have you accounted for your move-in expenses?

Just when you think it’s all over, move-in costs can come back to bite you. Move-in costs include everything from hiring a removals van to buying your first sofa and a bed to sleep on. It can be easy to get so hung up on the cost of buying a house that you forget to leave something aside to help you when you first move in. 

So there you have it - five things to consider if you are a first-time buyer looking to buy your first home.