Securing a mortgage to buy a home is probably one of the best and most important milestones in a person's life. It comes with a lot of benefits and bragging rights.
But, even with all of the butterflies and feelings of being on cloud nine, the truth of the matter is that there are also costs in securing a mortgage — before and after the transaction.
The costs incurred before securing a mortgage.
The following are the costs incurred before you can secure a mortgage:
1. Before you obtain a mortgage, you need to pay for appraisal fees. An appraisal fee is a professional fee that you pay to get an estimated value of the house you want to buy. This one is the first step that you need to fulfill before securing a mortgage. It allows creditors to determine your loan-to-value ratio. A third party does it. The price ranges between $300 and $1,000.
2. You also need to pay for an inspection fee. The inspection fee is the amount that you spend for the potential house to get checked for leaks, pests, problems, and everything that may make or break your decision to purchase. It depends on the creditor if they require this, but it costs roughly around $300 to $500 for a home inspection service.
3. You also have to pay for your credit report fee. You may think that this should be free of charge, but it is not. More often than not, potential borrowers need to obtain a copy from each of the credit bureaus even before they apply for a loan. Some professionals would say that this is the first cost of securing a mortgage because if you have a bad credit rating, you might as well not push through with the loan. This aspect is all debatable. It will cost the borrower around $30 to $50 per report. If you are lucky, you can get this for free because some lenders cover the cost themselves as part of their credit check.
These three costs get incurred mostly before approval of the loan, and there are different costs once you get the approvals and purchase the house. The critical thing is for you to be a hundred percent committed to the purchase. Being fickle minded does not pay off in the real estate market.
If you are still potentially on the fence with your mortgage needs, ask a real estate professional to help you decide on what mortgage options might work best for you.
About the Author
Judy Szablak
With over 30 years in the industry, Realtor Judy Szablak has been on national television for her real estate expertise on the HGTV Network, featured on Martha Stewart Living Radio "Morning Living” , NPR radio as an expert real estate panelist, It’s Relevant News channel, and quoted in the Wall Street Journal for her in depth knowledge of Fairfield County Connecticut real estate.
She was also on the local NPR radio station (WSHU) as a Fairfield County CT real estate expert. Judy has provided multiple online respected news sources with her real estate expertise including The Daily Easton, The Daily Weston, The Daily Fairfield, The Daily Stamford and The Daily Greenwich, as well as in print in the New York Post. She is a weekly Real Estate Columnist for WestportNow.com, another real estate column "Real Estate With Judy” is syndicated through Hearst CT Media Online and seen in The Connecticut Post, The Danbury News-Times, The Stamford Advocate, The Greenwich Time, The Hour, Fairfield Citizen, Westport News, Darien News, New Canaan News and the Wilton Villager.
Judy is also the author of the book, The Art of Buying or Selling a Home, available at all major book retailers. Additionally, Judy has been nationally recognized in a number of national real estate trade magazines, some with distribution to over 1 million members. She was featured in Real Estate Today as early as 1994 for her commitment to, and implementation of technology in real estate. Judy appeared in the Certified Residential Specialist Magazine, as she provided advice on marketing strategies and ethics in the article titled "Marketing Makeovers.”
Judy was also featured in REALTOR® Magazine, regarding image enhancement for Realtors. She was again featured in REALTOR® Magazine, in an article on "Achieving Flow” and operating at optimal peak performance. In another article in the same publication, Judy offered guidance to fellow real estate professionals as she explored the topic of implementing and maintaining personal websites. She has appeared in The Council of Residential Specialists Magazine, which featured her ideas regarding technology. Additionally, Judy authored an article on marketing and technology for the Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) Online Magazine. On two occasions, in 2015 and 2017, she appeared as a featured agent in Top Agent Magazine. I have a few other websites- www.TheCtrealtyBlog.com www.CtHomesAndRealEstate.com www.BestWestportHomes.com www.ThePetitePowerhouse.com www,SzablakConsulting.com
