Joshua

Keep this in mind on the lending side of things...

For example, lets say your offer is accepted at 130k. Now, you start the lending process and the appraiser is order to go out and appraise the home. The value that comes back on the appraisal is 128k. The lender will only finance the lessor of the purchase price or the appraised value. In the years I've been helping first time home buyers with their financing, I've never seen a seller NOT understand that the purchase price has to come down to match the appraisal. Basically, you are paying more than what the appraiser believes it's worth. Whether the seller may think it's worth something else, it's the lender that determines the homes value based on a current appraisal.

Another option is to pay the difference out of your own pocket, but is that something you are willing to do?

Let me know if I can be of anymore assistance on the financing part of things. - Mon Jul 7 2008, 23:30

Another useful first time home buyer mortgage program that was not mentioned is a FHA loan. Here is a quick summary of the benefits of a FHA loan.

- Only 3% down payment required. (this program allows the seller to pay for the down payment through a down payment assistance program, if needed.)
- You don't need the best credit to qualify. I've gotten people approved as low as a 530 middle credit score with a FHA loan.
- Favorable 30 year fixed interest rates. The rate can vary a bit depending on your credit score, but an average today is around 6.5% - 6.875%.

I have a link to my personal website, were you can find a couple of different mortgage caluclators for you to use. One of the calculators lets you decide the term of the loan, down payment, purchase price, etc. Mortgage calculators don't get into specifics about your income. You might be referring to your debt to income ratio. Lenders will use your gross income, instead of your net (take home) amount.

Hope this helps and let me know if I can be more of an assistance - Mon Jul 7 2008, 23:18

Please keep in mind that if you are financing the purchase of this home and the appraiser does make a comment about the damage of the roof, an underwriter may want to see that the roof has been fixed before closing on the loan. On the lending side of things, the inspector is one thing, but the underwriters only see the comments that are made by the appraiser.

If this "bad" part of the roof is fixed before your closing, make sure to hold off with the appraisal until the roof is completed...as long as you have enough time before the closing date. The appraiser will need to go back out to inspect that the work has been done. You can avoid an additional fee from the appraiser if you time this right.

Let me know if you would like anymore advice on the financing part. - Mon Jul 7 2008, 22:57