Читать книгу The Simple Guide to Buying a Home - Christine Cronin - Страница 3

It’s really important to know what you are comfortable spending on a monthly payment. Banks use their own formula when determining how much to lend, so you have to know your own expenses. I was approved for substantially more than I was comfortable paying. This is mainly because they only look at your income to debt ratio and don’t look at lifestyle expenses. Think about what you are willing to cut, and how much you want to save. I strongly advise you to complete your budget, get all your bills in a payment plan, and then figure out the monthly amount you can comfortably afford. Preferably with some extra savings each month. Some people say that you can afford a place that is 3 times your income, I prefer to go with 2 times or a little over that.

For me, I like to travel a lot, so I put a lot away each month for my travel expenses. They wouldn’t know this and wouldn’t ask this, so it’s important to know your priorities. This will help you determine a housing price that will still allow you to follow your other dreams and goals. Once you know how much you are comfortable spending, you can apply to get pre-approved for a loan and start your fun and exciting house/condo/cabin hunt!

Something to keep in mind is that it’s usually a seller's market in the spring and summer, which means prices are a little higher but there's also more on the market. If you are hoping to get a better price, you might want to look in the fall and winter. You do run the risk of less properties being available, but they are usually cheaper.