Your Local Prime Real EstateYour Local Prime Real Estate

Your Family Broker

203-984-8228
info@agprimerealty.com
  • Menu
  • Home
  • Buy
  • Sell
  • Our Cities
    • Stamford
    • Greenwich
    • Darien
    • New Canaan
    • Wilton
    • Westport
    • Norwalk
  • HUD Homes
    • How to Buy a HUD-Owned Home
    • HUD FAQs for Consumers and the General Public
    • HUD FAQs for Real Estate Agents
    • HUD Home Financing Codes
    • HUD Blog Postings
  • REO
  • About
  • Client Reviews
  • Contact
  • Blog

Dealing with Financing

As the events of the last few years in the real estate industry show, people forget about the tremendous financial responsibility of purchasing a home at their peril. Here are a few tips for dealing with the dollar signs so that you can take down that “for sale” sign on your new home. 

Get pre-approved. Sub-primes may be history, but you’ll probably still be shown homes you can’t actually afford. By getting pre-approved as a buyer, you can save yourself the grief of looking at houses you can’t afford. You can also put yourself in a better position to make a serious offer when you do find the right house. Unlike pre-qualification, which is based on a cursory review of your finances, pre-approval from a lender is based on your actual income, debt and credit history. By doing a thorough analysis of your actual spending power, you’ll be less likely to get in over your head. 

Choose your mortgage carefully. Used to be the emphasis when it came to mortgages was on paying them off as soon as possible. Today, the debt the average person will accumulate due to credit cards, student loans, etc. means it’s better to opt for the 30-year mortgage instead of the 15-year. This way, you have a lower monthly payment, with the option of paying an additional principal when money is good. Additionally, when picking a mortgage, you usually have the option of paying additional points (a portion of the interest that you pay at closing) in exchange for a lower interest rate. If you plan to stay in the house for a long time—and given the current real estate market, you should—taking the points will save you money. 

Do your homework before bidding. Before you make an offer on a home, do some research on the sales trends of similar homes in the neighborhood with sites like Zillow. Consider especially sales of similar homes in the last three months. For instance, if homes have recently sold for 5 percent less than the asking price, your opening bid should probably be about 8 to 10 percent lower than what the seller is asking.

Search for:

Featured Homes

Resources

  • Blog
  • Buying Home
  • Financing
  • First Home Buyers
  • First Time Home Buyers
  • For Buyers
  • For Sellers
  • Housing Market Updates
  • HUD
  • Infographics
  • Interest Rates
  • Millennials
  • Move-Up Buyers
  • Pricing
  • Real Estate
  • Resources
  • Selling Home
  • Uncategorized

Search Tools

  • Basic Search
  • Address Search
  • Advanced Search
  • Home Valuation
  • Map Search
  • My Account
  • MLS Number
  • Contact

Our Neighborhood

Stamford

Westport

Wilton

Norwalk

Greenwich

Darien

New Canaan

REAL ESTATE IN FOCUS

Trust… Care… Expertise… = Real Results! - Whether you buy or sell we make it hassle free. - We love what we do. - We love people. - A different approach with exceptional results!

Our Neighborhood

  • Stamford
  • Greenwich
  • Darien
  • New Canaan
  • Wilton
  • Westport
  • Norwalk

Contact Us

AG Prime Realty
Stamford, CT 06903

203-984-8228
info@agprimerealty.com
© 2025 · AG Prime Realty LLC, Licensed Real Estate Broker, Stamford, CT 06903
Sage

hud-logo2

Log in