Home / First-time home buyer
Buying your first home.
Every step, in the order it actually happens, written by people who close these loans rather than people who write about them.
The order it actually happens
- Talk to a loan officer firstBefore you look at a single listing. Fifteen minutes tells you what price range is real and what, if anything, needs fixing first.
- Get pre-approved, not pre-qualifiedPre-qualification is a guess. Pre-approval means an underwriter has looked at your income and credit. Sellers can tell the difference and so can their agents.
- Find out what help you qualify forMost first-time buyers can afford the monthly payment and do not have the cash sitting in an account. Assistance programs exist for exactly that, and which one fits usually turns on income rather than credit.
- Shop, offer, and go under contractYour loan officer talks to your agent directly from here. Nothing about the financing should be a surprise to either of you.
- Appraisal, underwriting and conditionsThe part everyone dreads. Your hub shows what is outstanding and who it is waiting on, so you are never guessing.
- CloseThree to four weeks from contract on a clean file.
Help with the down payment
Two routes run in parallel. State housing agency programs are income-capped and vary by state. The Chenoa Fund is not income-capped and works in every state we lend in. Both are covered on the down payment assistance page, with the full terms disclosed alongside the numbers.
Find out what you qualify for.
A licensed loan officer reviews what you send and tells you where you stand, in writing. No cost, and no obligation to go further.