Getting Into the Homebuyer State of Mind

These are the six habits that all successful homebuyers have in common.

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These six behaviors are things you can do on a daily, weekly, monthly, or even yearly basis if you want to be fully prepared to buy a home:

1. Ditch an indulgence or two. Excuse me for restating the obvious, but saving for a down payment is vital to the success of a home purchase. Make deposits into a home savings account.

2. Start attending open houses. Getting into the habit of attending open houses will not only give you a feel of what homes are available, but seeing homes that could be yours will also help motivate you to save money on a monthly basis.

3. Do a trial run of homeownership. Owning a home is about more than just coming up with a 20% down payment—you also need to be able to pay the mortgage and maintenance costs. To make sure you don’t max yourself out, test out the habits of saving as a homeowner. For one month, try setting aside the anticipated amount of your monthly housing expenses, including what you’d need for an emergency fund.

“For one month, try setting aside the anticipated amount of your monthly housing expenses, including what you’d need for an emergency fund.”

4. Pay all your bills on time. To qualify for a mortgage at a reasonable interest rate, you’ll need a credit score in the 600s at the very least. The best way to keep your score high is to be in the habit of paying every single bill on time. Timely payments are especially important for auto loans and leases, as mortgage lenders look at these first when checking your reliability. To ensure that your bills are paid promptly and consistently, set up an autopay plan with your bank.

5. Check your credit report. Do you even know what your credit score is? If not, now is the time to check. You can visit www.CreditKarma.com for a free copy of your credit report. For your full credit report, which is made available once a year, go to www.AnnualCreditReport.com. Who knows—maybe there are things hurting your credit that you weren’t aware of. The only way to know for sure, and to nip existing problems in the bud, is to check your score.

If this information was helpful to you, don’t forget to check out the rest of my blog! For any questions you may have, you can always reach out to me. I’d love to help.