First Time Home Buyer Programs
Buying your first home can be a thrilling but nerve-wracking experience. The advantages of home ownership, however, make it all worthwhile! You will enjoy financial stability, countless tax deductions, cash equity, and of course the freedom to remodel and decorate your home as you see fit. Home ownership is also cheaper than renting.
Going into home ownership is one of the biggest financial decisions you will ever make. As such, you will need to be met with the right mortgage loan, from the right mortgage lender. At Maximum Lending, our expert loan officers specialize in matching first-time home buyers like yourself, with the best first-time home buyer programs available.
Shopping for a Home Loan
Navigating the home loan waters in an effort to ensure you are met with the best mortgage loan and rates for your specific needs can cause quite a bit of confusion – especially if you are a first-time home buyer. If you have never owned a home, you are considered a first-time home buyer, according to the definition provided by the FHA.
As a first-time home buyer, you can expect to find loans offering options, such as: low down payments, low rates, reduced interest, limited fees, and the possibility of deferred payments. Our expert loan officers will help you choose the best home financing option currently available. First-time home buyer programs, include:
Fixed-Rate Mortgage: Fixed-rate mortgages, whether for a term of 30- or 15-years, are a very popular loan option. Because the interest rate remains the same, homeowners with a fixed-rate mortgage will enjoy paying the same amount over the course of the entire life of the mortgage. This makes budgeting easier!
Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM): An adjustable rate mortgage, or ARM, is a loan option whose interest rate changes after a fixed number of years based on a pre-selected index. An ARM is often advantageous in that it allows buyers to afford a more expensive house than a fixed-rate mortgage because of the initially low interest rates.
FHA Loan: Secured by the Federal Housing Administration, FHA home loans were created to make it easier for home buyers to qualify for a loan with low interest rates, and low closing costs. The costs of home energy improvements can often be included in an FHA Loan. Please ask your loan officer for more information.
VA Loan: The Veterans Affairs, or VA, loan is a long term, little-to-no down payment program, afforded to current and ex-military personnel as well as their surviving spouses. VA loans are guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs. With a VA loan, you are also not required to have PMI Insurance.
Get Pre-qualified Today
The first step towards becoming a first-time home buyer is beginning your home loan application. Getting pre-approved for a home loan allows you to buy with confidence! To qualify for these loans, you are required to a have a minimum credit score of 580 or above for a loan with a down payment of 3.5%*.
However, this is dependent on the lender, as most lenders prefer a credit score of 620 or 640 with a down payment of 3.5%. In addition to your credit score, you will need to provide full documentation of your income and assets, and meet the lender’s preferred debt-to-income ratio before being approved for a home loan.
We invite you to use our mortgage affordability calculator to help determine how much you can afford to spend on your dream home. You will need to input your current income and expenses in order to be provided with an accurate result. At Maximum Lending, we make the borrowing process easy for first-time home buyers.
*These qualifications are based on a FHA Loan. Most conventional loans, such as fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgages, have stricter requirements and often require 10 to 20% percent down.