When Should I Talk To a Lender
About Mortgage Financing?
You should do that Now! If you are thinking about buying a home, the very first thing that you should do is speak with a lender about mortgage financing. You will want to screen two or three different lenders to find the one who can give you the best “deal” for financing your home purchase. We have several mortgage lenders in our Business Directory that we can refer to you. Each one works a little differently and specializes in some different loan programs. As a general rule, there are two things that need to be done before we begin to show houses to buyers. The first is to know that you have spoken with a lender about mortgage financing. You will receive a pre-qualification or pre-approval letter from the lender. There’s a very good reason for having that letter. It proves to you and to us that you can afford the homes that you will be seeing. The worst thing that a buyer can do is to start looking at homes priced at $200,000 only to find out that you qualify for a home priced at $150,000. Falling in love with a home that you can’t afford is a really bad feeling!
The second thing that we require is they need to complete an Exclusive Right to Represent the Buyer/Tenant Agreement with us. That is a contract that says DMS Properties, LLC Residential Real Estate Services is representing you as a buyer. It allows us to act in your best interest. Otherwise, we actually work in the best interest of the home seller. This is the way Maryland law is written. This agreement also outlines the compensation that you will pay our agent for providing you with real estate services. Many home sellers offer compensation to buyers’ agents. The amount of that compensation could reduce or eliminate your obligation to us.
If you are starting the home buying process, you may also want to review our Guide to Buying a Home so that you have an idea of what to expect. We will be happy to discuss the process with you, too!