Buying a home for the first time is an exciting time in your life, and it is also a scary time. There are many questions you have, and your real estate agent should be able to help walk you through this process. You need to ask yourself what kind of a home you can see yourself living in, such as a townhome, a condo, a single detached home, etc.. How many rooms will you need? What neighborhood can you see yourself living in?
The first step and perhaps the most important step however are your finances. This will determine the price range of a home you can afford. You don’t want to be looking for homes you can not afford, or looking for homes lower than what you can afford.
The first place to begin before going out to look for a home is pre-approval. Along with a mortgage agent, you want to figure out what price range of a home you can afford. The mortgage agent will go through a series of questions with you. Checking your credit rating is very important; especially when it is time to buy you’re first home. Other important considerations are how you pay back debt, what your income is, etc. The mortgage agent gathers all your information, and will be able to let you know what price range you can afford to look at for buying a home. A good mortgage agent will walk you through all the pros and cons so you are comfortable with the outcome.
At this point your real estate agent can start to bring you out looking for a home based on the range that you where pre-approved for. There are many first time homebuyer programs available, and you may be able to apply and qualify for them. The mortgage agent will let you know if you are a candidate for them. For example, there is a New Home RRSP Plan. This plan allows you to borrow money from your RRSP. It is like a loan and must be paid back. You must be an RRSP holder, a resident of Canada and a 1st time home buyer to qualify. You can apply for $20,000 tax free from your RRSP to purchase your home, and must be paid back within 15 years. Another program offered is the Land Transfer Refund Plan. You may be eligible to get money back from your Land Transfer Tax up to $2,000, if you qualify. There are more 1st time home buyer plans, and your mortgage agent will best be able to let you know what they are and in more detail.
Your real estate agent should be working with a mortgage agent to help you and give you the best advice to make first home buying experience a great success.
Royal LePage Realty Plus Real Estate Sales Representative, Adele Paletta expertise lies in the Greater Western Toronto area including: Mississauga, Oakville and Burlington.
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