对大多数人来说，拥有住房仍然是一个重要的目标. 但很多人会问，“这比租房好吗??” Rental rates continue to rise in the southwest Michigan market due to a short supply of homes. 考虑一下:即使是每月750美元的适度租金，你也要支付49美元,000 in rental costs over the course of five years (assuming an annual 5% rental increase, 这很常见). 那是一大笔钱, 这些都不是以房屋净值的形式为你创造财富.

现在考虑一下，如果你为一套价值140美元的房子支付了同样的750美元,000, 五年后，你将赚大约11美元,500美元(假设你的房子每年增值2%)! 首页 equity—in case you don’t know—is the current market value of your home minus the amount you owe on it. Your property increases in equity as you pay down the mortgage and as the value of the home rises. In short, the equity in your home is the largest financial benefit to a home owner.

住房拥有率继续稳步上升, 首次购房者的平均年龄为32岁, we thought it would be interesting to talk to one of our own Financial 服务 Representatives, 正义Blasengame, who recently went through the process and became a first-time home buyer at 21. For Justice and her fiancé, it was an obvious answer to the question of “is it better to buy or rent?”

以下是她在买第一套房子时的六个建议:

1. 确保成本对你有利

There are going to be a few things to consider before you start in on the path to home ownership. 首先，它是否符合你的预算? Most experts say you should spend a maximum of 30% of your gross (pre-tax) income on housing.

“We were looking at renting a townhome in 搬运 but the rent would have been more than what we ended up paying for our home.“正义告诉我们.

Rising rent can definitely be a factor in deciding to buy a home instead of rent, 但你必须确保成本对你有利.

2. 了解你能买得起多少房子

One of the first things you’ll want to do is talk to a mortgage lender to see if you’re in a good place to buy a house. 如果你能获得资格预审, 你会很清楚你能买得起多少房子, 以及抵押贷款的支付情况.

“We wanted to get a house last year but there were some things to get in order first,正义解释道。. “我们需要开发更多的信贷. We’re younger and didn’t have a strong credit history so we got a credit card and we each already had a car loan. They like to see you have three credit lines open for at least 12 months on your credit report, 当时我们每个人都只有一个. 也, 我们需要在目前的工作上花更多的时间, you have to have two years working experience without any unemployment gaps.”

“在花了一点时间改善我们的信用记录之后, 我们获得了抵押贷款的资格预审,她补充道。. “这让我们对自己的负担能力有了真正的了解, 所以我们没有考虑超出预算的房子.”

3. 保存，保存，保存

Something you’ll want to start doing—and possibly continue to do after talking to a mortgage lender is to save.

“存钱，存钱，存钱. You’ll most likely need money for closing costs and in this market we’re in right now, 卖家不需要支付成交费用,法官说. “It’s usually been about 50-50 where sellers would pay closing costs for buyers, 如果你出价，要求3美元.5%接近成交, 其他人也出同样的价钱, 但不要求任何结案费, 然后他们就会接受另一份工作.”

不管你存了多少首付, it’s important to keep in mind that you’ll need some reserved for inspections, 评估, 可能还有结案费用.

“Thankfully at Arbor Financial, we offer loans with 3% down along with other really 对购房者来说是个不错的选择.”法官说。.

4. 别忘了考虑保险因素 & 把税纳入你的每月预算

潜在买家还需要考虑保险等成本, 还有财产税, 哪些因素会影响你每月的支出.

“大多数人没有考虑到的是房产税.”法官说。. “Same with insurance on a home, a lot of people don’t take that into consideration. If you have a mortgage, then the lender requires you to have insurance to cover it.”

5. 托管可以为你带来好处

什么是托管? 很多人对这个词感到困惑, 但其实很简单, 正义告诉我们她的经历, 这对你有好处.

Put simply, an escrow account is set up by your mortgage lender to pay property-related expenses. The escrow account is used to pay property taxes, homeowner’s insurance and mortgage insurance (PMI). 进入托管的钱来自你每月的按揭付款. 这个想法是这样每个月都已经被照顾好了, and you don’t have to worry about paying a big property tax bill once or twice a year.

Justice tells us that escrow for taxes and insurance was about $300 per month, 并说“这是值得的。.”

“对于其他千禧一代来说, 即使你不需要代管, 我鼓励这样做, because it is basically forced savings to pay for your insurance and taxes, 这不是你每个月都要考虑的事情,”她说。.

6. If You Plan On Being in the Area For a While, Definitely Consider the Benefits of Buying a 首页

贾斯蒂斯对自己的决定感到兴奋，并为自己是房主感到自豪, 她鼓励其他人也这样做, 特别是如果你打算在这个地区待很长一段时间.

“我们在同一套公寓里住了三年. 我想到了我们付给别人房租所损失的钱, 我们本可以在房子里建立资产. 所以，去看看你是否有资格，看看你需要做些什么才能到达那里.法官说.

If you’re ready to hand the keys back to your landlord and get into your own home, 然后和阿伯金融公司谈话 抵押贷款的专业 你的第一步是. 我们将与您一起了解您的预算和目标, then suggest the appropriate first-time home buyer program that is right for you!