Upcoming Free (& non-promotional) Home Buyer Classes: 

 
Saturday October 10th , from 9am-12pm (ish)
       Marshall Community Center, conference room
       1009 E. McLoughlin Blvd, Vancouver WA (kitty corner from Clark College) 

Thursday night, October 15 , from 5pm-8pm (ish) 
       Marshall Community Center, conference room 
       1009 E. McLoughlin Blvd, Vancouver WA (kitty corner from Clark College)
 
If these class dates and/or times don't work for you, please let us know.  We understand that you have lives, and families, and work.  We will work something out that works better with your schedule.  Just let us know....                                                                                  
....we also have home seller classes available too...link on left on website
                  
Remember...with reservation...we will throw in lunch, or dinner!  :-D
~~~~~~~~~
                                                                    
Hey there!

    This week we are going to talk about CLOSING COSTS!  Lots of people talk about closing costs, but most people don't understand what they are...or how they're paid.    So what are closing costs then?  Closing costs have two separate parts really...1....the part associated with your loan, and 2...the part associated with the title company and changing the ownership of the home to you..  


   One thing to remember is that closing costs are not set...in other words...one persons closing costs will not be the same as another persons closing costs.  Why?  Because ...1....every person has a different loan based on their credit scores, type of loan, amount of home buying, amount (if any) of downpayment, what day they're closing (keys) on, interest rate, APR rate, lender they're using (some have more fees than others), etc...  See how complicated that can get?  
   So what about the second part?  Well, that can differ as well based on the title company since not every title company charges exactly the same for their individual costs.  Then there is also the costs for the property taxes of the home, time of year you are buying based on when the taxes are due/have been paid, cost of your home owners insurance, amount of loan interest, and more.  Even more confusing, yes?      


  Ok...now I know you are thinking that this weeks post is pointless then, but really, I have a point!  :-)  My point is that closing costs are variable based on you, your loan, your lender, your (soon to be) new home, and on the title company.  So how do you figure that out?  Well, really no one can figure out HOW much your closing costs are going to be until you have an accepted offer on a home...then we can figure out what your closing costs will be because you will have a home to base numbers off of, a loan chosen, a lender, and the title company picked out.  Most numbers in real estate are a guesstimate until you have all the pieces in place...all the ducks in order...so to speak.  


   When you are getting pre-approved, your lender will base all your numbers on a guesstimate...what we think your costs are going to be.  Most times lenders, etc will guess high so that the numbers will come in smaller and more affordable for you.  It is always better to look like a hero than a zero!  :-)  


I know, I know...still not very helpful is it?  I am sorry.  Closing costs are as individual as you are.  However, 98% of buyers will request the seller to pay for 3% of their closing costs.  Where does that number come from though...
  
   Well...  a FHA loan requires 3.5% downpayment.  FHA is the most common loan type for buyers.  There are some loans, and yes, grants too, that can take care of that down payment for you....meaning a ZERO down loan for you, the buyer.  On average, the costs between title, loan, lender, taxes, interest, insurance, etc....run about 3% of the homes purchase price....rarely does it run more.    When listing a home, I (and many other agents) include 3% in seller paid closing costs to the sales price of the home.  This is done because so many buyers request those from the seller, and this way it isn't a surprise to the seller.  So, yes, most sellers will pay for your closing costs when buying a home.  One thing you need to know though is that if you ask for 3% in closing costs, and the lender only needs 2%, you don't get that other 1%....it goes back to the seller.  You can't get cash back from buying a home....unless you are having your earnest money &/or appraisal fee returned to you...this happens if you are using a loan that covers your costs and fees.  Usually your appraisal is part of your closing costs (but paid for at time of appraisal), and your earnest money is applied toward your downpayment.  


   Again, 98% of the time a buyer will request up to 3% in closing costs to be paid for by the seller.  The other 2% of the time a buyer will pay their own closing costs so they don't have to finance them.  This also means that a buyer has more leverage in reducing the purchase price of the home they want to buy, and can make their offer 'stronger'.  


In short....buyers responsibility for closing costs are:
*Lender's Title Insurance Policy
*Half of the escrow fee
*Home Inspection
*Recording fees
*First year Homeowners Insurance Premium
* First year Flood Insurance (if applies)
*Pro-rated property taxes
*Survey fee (if required)
*HOA fees (if applies)
*Pro-rated HOA fees (if applies)
*Lender fees;  appraisal fee, credit report, loan origination fee, pre-paid interest, private mortgage insurance


as always....I am available for questions...as is Chris Berg with Pinnacle Mortgage (cberg@pcmloan.com & 503-320-0925 cell)  
  


    One last thing you need to remember is that a real estate agent is not a sales person.  It is not our job to 'sell' you anything.  We are assistants, advisers, guidance, and help.  You should not feel as if your agent is trying to sell you a home, or anything else, our job should be to help you in getting the home you want.  This being said remember that you do not get T-Bone steaks for the price of hamburger...Look ONLY at homes within your budget.  ALWAYS ask questions, and expect answers without a lot of lingo.  I was always told that if you can't explain something in a way that the other person can understand clearly, it is because you don't understand it yourself.  :-)
     


               
      Information is power, and I hope that I am able to help you.  Good luck, and as always...May the odds be ever in your favor out there....  If you are looking for a real estate agent, I would love to be able to help you.                                                                       
 
    As always....this is just a quick overview.... please remember that your agent, and your lender work for YOU.  You drive the bus...we are merely GPS to help you get to your goals.  Like the classes, this weekly blog email is to help you with your home adventure.  The goal is to be informative and non-promotional.  :-)  We are, however, hoping you will call and want us to help with your adventure.  

If you have any questions about this, or something you have heard...or if you would like me to help you with your home adventure, please call, email,  text, or facebook me anytime.  I am, as always, happy to help!
 
Thank you again for your business and your referrals!!  ...and thank you for referring these classes to your friends, family, and co-workers. 
 
 .   ..disclaimer...if you have already purchased a home, or would no longer like to receive these emails, please let me know and I will be happy to remove you from any further mailings... 
 
 
Next Week:    title insurance & title reports....or Home Inspections 101
Last Week:   Best time of the year to buy a home?                                                                       
Have a great day, and I will talk to you soon,   
;-D   
Tracie DeMars   
Real Estate broker    
Re/Max - Van Mall   
360/ 903-3504 cell   
360/ 882-3600 fax   
www.traciedemars.com   
traciedemars@aol.com   
    
“Interested in free and non promotional home buyer classes?  Go to www.traciedemars.com  for local upcoming classes, or facebook: Tracie DeMars Real Estate for my home buyer education blog.  Classes are now available for home owners thinking about selling their home.  Links are on the left."

"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be."    
   - Shel Silverstein, American poet, cartoonist and composer, (1930 - 1999).
​

Upcoming Free (& non-promotional) Home Buyer Classes: 
   Saturday September 12th , from 9am-12pm 
       Marshall Community Center, conference room 
       1009 E. McLoughlin Blvd, Vancouver WA (kitty corner from Clark College) 

Monday night, September 14 , from 5pm-8pm 
       Marshall Community Center, conference room 
       1009 E. McLoughlin Blvd, Vancouver WA (kitty corner from Clark College)
                                                                 

 
If these class dates and/or times don't work for you, please let us know.  We understand that you have lives, and families, and work.  We will work something out that works better with your schedule.  Just let us know....                                                                                  
....we also have home seller classes available too...link on left on website
                  
Remember...with reservation...we will throw in lunch, or dinner!  :-D
~~~~~~~~~
                                                                    
Hey there!

   Happy Labor Day!  :-)  I hope you are enjoying the long holiday weekend as I am.  It's like summers last grab at us as kids go back to school, and already, the weather is turning a bit colder.  There is a smell in the air that screams 'fall'...and people are freaking out pumpkin spice everything coming.  Don't hate me, but I am not a huge fan of 'pumpkin spice everything'.  LOL   My youngest child starts school this next week....my baby... so please, keep me busy so I don't cry about it!  :-D   It doesn't seem like that long ago that my older kids started school, and now they're both out of school.....how does this happen so quickly?  I guess we all need to listen to Dr. Who, and to stop blinking!!!  ....sigh...  

   School starting again is a big step for us as parents,and our kids.  What about another big step?  Are you renting your home, but want to be a homeowner?  What questions do you need to ask yourself?   Do you want to graduate from a renter to a homeowner?  There are definitely some questions you should ask yourself....


#1...  Do you have a steady income? 
When you decide it is time to try to buy a home, a lender is going to want to see a steady income.  Have you been on your job for at least 6 months?  Were you working before that?  Was it in the same industry?  If you weren't working before your current job, were you in school?  Were you in school for the occupation you are in, or something similar?  Are you self employed?  Do you have at least 2 years of 1099's and tax records to prove your income?  These are all questions a lender will ask, and need answers to.  Want more information on this part?  Contact Chris Berg at Pinnacle Mortgage for answers.  He can be reached at cberg@pcmloan.com , or at 503-320-0925.  Don't let the 503 number fool you....he is local.  :-)


Owning a home is usually a bit more expensive than renting.  With the rising costs of monthly rent, your rent and mortgage payment may be about the same, but owning does have a few more expenses.  When you rent, and something breaks, or has an issue, you call your landlord, or rental management company, and eventually things get repaired.  When you own a home, YOU are the landlord, and so you need to budget for those home repair issues that will come up.  Take $20 from each check and have it automatically deposited in a credit union or financial institution of your choice.  Do not have a check book or card for this account.  This is your home maintenance fund.  You know I love the home warranty, and remember that you can continue it year after year.  Use this fund to pay for that next year of the home warranty.  However, remember that the home warranty does not cover roofing, windows, walls, flooring, or siding.  This account should also be used to maintain and take care of those items as well.  

#2...How much debt to you have?
This is a big one.  We all have debt, and don't get me wrong....I think Dave Ramsey is a good guy with many excellent ideas, but there is one area that he preaches that actually hurts you in the pursuit of buying a home.  The idea of a cash based living style is wonderful, but when it comes to buying a home this will actually hurt you.  Strange as it is, having NO credit is worse than having BAD credit!  Some debt is actually good....not a lot...but some.  A lender will base the amount of your pre-approval on how much income you have vs how much debt you have.  Your mortgage payment can only be a certain percentage of your disposable income which, in a nutshell, is your income minus your debt.  Some debt is good because it gives you a history of payments.  Are you credit worthy?  Do you pay your debts?  Do you pay those debts on time?  Are you reliable?  Too much debt is bad because the ratio of your debt to your income is too high.  When you are applying for a mortgage, that is (for some of us) the largest debt we will ever carry.  How do lenders know if you will pay back that debt?  They will look at your credit score...which is determined by how well you pay your current debt.  This kinds of leads me to our next question.


#3...  What is your credit score?
Ah yes...the dreaded credit score!  In the upcoming weeks we will spend some time talking about credit scores...the good, the bad, and the ugly.  For right now though, a credit score is based on your credit history.  It tells the lender a story about your reliability of repaying your debt.  Frankly, at some time, we all have credit issues...or at least most of us do.  When my son was a baby, we declared chapter 7 bankruptcy.  At the time it was the only thing we could do.  My husbands wages were being garnished, and we couldn't even afford diapers.  We were, in a word, BROKE...and only going broker.  So, we made the decision to go bankrupt.  It was, really, the best decision we could have made.  After the discharge, we took it upon ourselves to learn about how it all works.  I think they should teach budgeting, and credit in schools.  This lack of understanding gets a lot of young adults in trouble....of course....just like everything else here this is just my opinion  :-)  So, we learned, and we made better decisions, and choices.  We learned to live within our means.  We learned to stock up, and save.  We went back to school to better ourselves, and our situations so we could provide a better life for (at the time) two children.  
A credit score is based on what type of credit you have, if you make your payments on time (late payments ding your credit score), how much credit you are carrying, and if you pay off your credit in a timely fashion.  Do you have a car loan?  Do you make the minimum credit payment, or more?  Have you paid off a debt?  If you have paid off a credit card....don't close the account because closing the account can hurt your credit score.  Cut up the card if you want, but keep the account open.  Do you have high credit balances?  Lenders don't like to see this because if you have high credit balances it means you have less credit to draw on in case of emergency, and let's face it, we all have emergencies sometimes.  
In short, a credit score is based on your past credit history, and lenders use this number to determine how risky it is to loan to you.  With lending...it is all about risk.  They prefer to loan money to individuals with reliability.  They don't want to loan money to individuals with a high risk...someone who most likely won't pay back the money.  
So what can you do if your credit score is somewhat, less than stellar?  Call your lender, or call Chris.  They can go over your credit report with you, and point out the areas that you need to address.  They can, and should, actually HELP you to understand your credit report, and should be able to give you some steps to take to better your credit score.  Is it hard work?  Yes...but the end result is absolutely worth it.  It may take some time, but if you do all the steps, we can....and will...help you find a home.  

What is 'good' credit?  Most loans will want to say a 'mid-score' of at least 620.  There are three credit scoring companies, Equifax, Transunion, and Experian.  The lender will use the middle score of the three.  The better the credit score, the lower your interest rate for some loans as they have determined you have less risk. There are some lenders who say that they can go as low as 580 on credit scores, but I haven't actually seen them close any there.  The majority of loan programs, especially the loan programs that help home buyers will require a 620 mid score to loan money to buy a home.     



#4... Do you have a down payment?  Do you need help with one?
There is quite a few down payment grants & loans out there that can help with that.  There is also other ways to come up with a down payment....401k, 'gifts', tax refunds, etc.  All of these options (and the pros/cons of each) are discussed by Chris Berg at the free & non-promotional home buyer education classes.  Remember that you do need money for a earnest money deposit, the home inspection, and the appraisal.  

#5....  Have you taken a home buyer education class?
Buying a home, or taking that first step to buying a home, is a tense, exciting, thrilling, fun, and yet scary time for everyone.  These classes are about 3 - 3 1/2 hours long and will go over the entire real estate process & what the papers all really mean to you.  The lender will go over the entire loan process including closing costs, down payment loans/grants, and the loans (including the 100% loans), the pros & cons of each, credit (and help to get you there), interest rates, and more.  The classes are free, non-promotional, and taught at community centers for your convenience.  

               
      Information is power, and I hope that I am able to help you.  Good luck, and as always...May the odds be ever in your favor out there....  If you are looking for a real estate agent, I would love to be able to help you.                                                                       
 
    As always....this is just a quick overview.... please remember that your agent, and your lender work for YOU.  You drive the bus...we are merely GPS to help you get to your goals.  Like the classes, this weekly blog email is to help you with your home adventure.  The goal is to be informative and non-promotional.  :-)  We are, however, hoping you will call and want us to help with your adventure.  


If you have any questions about this, or something you have heard...or if you would like me to help you with your home adventure, please call, email,  text, or facebook me anytime.  I am, as always, happy to help!
 
Thank you again for your business and your referrals!!  ...and thank you for referring these classes to your friends, family, and co-workers. 
 
 .   ..disclaimer...if you have already purchased a home, or would no longer like to receive these emails, please let me know and I will be happy to remove you from any further mailings... 
 
 
Next Week:    title insurance & title reports....or Home Inspections 101

                            
Last Week:   The costs of buying a home                                                                            

Have a great day, and I will talk to you soon,   
;-D   
Tracie DeMars   
Real Estate broker    
Re/Max - Van Mall   
360/ 903-3504 cell   
360/ 882-3600 fax   
www.traciedemars.com   
traciedemars@aol.com   
    
“Interested in free and non promotional home buyer classes?  Go to www.traciedemars.com  for local upcoming classes, or facebook: Tracie DeMars Real Estate for my home buyer education blog.  Classes are now available for home owners thinking about selling their home.  Links are on the left."
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be."    
   - Shel Silverstein, American poet, cartoonist and composer, (1930 - 1999).