Tim,

I'm having a homebuyer seminar in two weeks, if you're serious about looking for a home or just want more answers, I'd suggest coming. It's on Saturday, June 13th. An agent and an attorney we work with will also be presenting to cover all aspects of financing (both foreclosures and non-foreclosures), property and legal related matters. I'll also be discussing what first-time-buyer options there are specifically in and around the Chicagoland area.

If you're interested, send me an email with the number of attendees please (we only have seating for 20 people but we do this monthly).

Hi Tim, Feel free to give me a call. I'm a certified first time home buyer specialist. I work with Chicago Bancorp and have many years of experience to help answer your questions. I will also customize a loan program to fit your needs. Thank you - Jason - 312 738 8503

Dear Tim,

Your first step should definitely be pre-qualification and determing how much home you can afford. After that I'd suggest finding a competent real estate agent to help you with your purchase.

I would suggest speaking with multiple agents before you make a choice on whom you'd like to work with, and I would not necessarily rule out people who have responded to your request here. These agents tend to be pretty technologically up to date (compared to the vast majority of Realtors), and as a result they can often respond to requests more quickly.

I have also included some links on how to choose a Realtor if you are just starting out whether you are buying or selling.

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/real-estate/picking-agent1a.asp

http://www.realtor.com/Basics/Buy/Looking/Realtor.asp

http://homebuying.about.com/od/choosearealestateagent/

http://realtytimes.com/rtpages/20041209_chooseagent.htm

Let me know if you have any questions or if you need additional assistance. Good luck.

Sincerely,
Christopher Thomas
Broker Associate, Sudler Sotheby's International Realty
773-418-0640 (cell)
christopher.thomas@sothebysrealty.com
http://www.mayagentchris.com

Hi Tim

Great question. Home ownership is all about those monthly payments. The first step is to meet with a lender and go over your costs. See what you are comfortable with then determine a price which you can start shopping.

I have a great ebook on my site which covers the A-Z of buying a home in chicago- You can download a free copy here
http://www.kalerealty.com/freebook.htm

Best of luck and let me know if you should have any questions

Nick

Tim,

There are two things that you need to specifically do:

1. Find a local mortgage lender to discuss the programs available to you and have them "pre-qualify" you. This will let you know your Buying Power.

2. Find a good Realtor who works a lot with First Time Home Buyers. They will be able to explain the entire buying process to you so that it isn't "foreign".

These two things will be invaluable to you in your experence and will make things go MUCH more smoothly.

Have fun and good luck!!

Tracy Kirkley
Crye-Leike Realtors
http://www.TracyKirkley.com

Tim, Here are a few of the best places to see what is involved in the process, what order to do things in and the tools/links to begin......http://www.hud.gov/buying/index.cfm ....http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page?_pageid=73,1827624&_da…

http://www.govloans.gov/govloans_en.portal?_nfpb=true&_p…

Read through these first and begin to inform yourself so you can choose wisely when it comes to picking a loan provider or RE agent.

Good luck, Dunes

Tim,

Your assumption is correct, you should first start with the loan pre-qualification. Look for a mortgage consultant that specializes in FHA loans. Be sure to also ask about current incentives in your area (buyer rebates and/or tax credits). Once you become pre-qualified start shopping for an Agent, I would encourage you to use google/trulia in your search. Although I do not know what your specific goals are I always encourage my first time buyers to look at the home as an investment. We will pick out features that are not only desirable to them but ones that may be considered desirable to another buyer should they have to/want to sell the home within the first few years.

I hope this general information helps now go get that pre-qual!!

Good Luck!

Regards,

Lisa Santacaterina
EcoBroker Certified, a New Kind of Realtor http://www.GotLVRealEstate.com
(702) 540-2956