Financing

Rachna Can Save You Money

Choosing Rachna to help you will get you both terrific service and a great discount. If you want a lender who will take the time to understand your wants and needs fully, explore all your options with you, help you to resolve credit issues, and give you a substantial discount on your loan with no hidden fees, then please contact Rachna. She is dependable, friendly, professional, knowledgeable, and helpful.

Her brokerage offers every loan program sponsored by all the big local banks, and her upfront costs are lower.  She can get you the same rate they can, if not better, and you will pay less in closing costs. Rachna is also more dependable.  This may sound strange, but it is true. Banks that are ‘household names’ will treat you like a number. She makes your file a priority. To learn more, just contact Rachna.  She is available by phone/email 24 hours a day.

How Much Can I Afford?

Before you start looking at homes, it is a good idea to find a target price range that you can afford. It is recommended that you talk to a lender before you start shopping for a home. A mortgage lender will want to make sure you can qualify for the down payment, plus a monthly mortgage payment made up of principal, interest, taxes and insurance (PITI).

Interest Only Loans

Interest only loan programs provide the same features as fixed and variable rate programs, and they additionally offer a lower payment option. With an interest only loan payment option, you pay only the interest portion of the payment but no principal. This gives you more buying power and a lower monthly payment compared to an amortized loan. An interest only loan can be more expensive compared to a fully amortized loan. Many lenders add a fee of one-quarter point for the interest only option.

Some of the advantages of an Interest Only Loans are lower monthly payments and it allows you to qualify for a higher loan amount. There are also disadvantages to Interest Only Loans and those are higher rates, the principal loan balance will not decrease during the interest only payment period and payments will be higher for the remaining term. 
 
Interest rates and your personal finances will influence the amount of house you can afford. For a quick estimate of a monthly mortgage payment for which you may qualify, or to see how much of a home you might be able to afford, use our mortgage calculator section.

Questions and Answers

How do I determine how much I can afford when looking for a new home?
As a general rule and dependent on your debt-to-income ratio, the monthly payment for mortgage principal, interest, property taxes and property insurance should not exceed 33 percent of your gross monthly income.

What is the difference between "pre-qualified" and "pre-approved"?
If you are "pre-qualified" you have determined, with a loan officer, what price you can afford based on the down payment, your debts and the amount the mortgage company will approve for your mortgage. Being "pre-qualified" is only a determination of your probable credit. If you are "pre-approved", your credit, employment and funds have been approved by the lender.

What are closing costs?
Closing costs are an accumulation of charges paid to different entities associated with the buying and selling of real estate. For buyers, they are usually about 4-6% of the total sales price of a property. Some of the closing costs you might encounter are: application fees, appraisal fee, county taxes, credit report, discount points, documentation fee, escrow fees, homeowners' association fees, loan fees, mortgage insurance, origination fees, tax registration and title insurance premium.

What is a point?
One point is equal to 1% of the new loan amount.