Are you considering how to buy a home in Fort Smith, AR?
Wondering how to buy a home in Fort Smith, AR? Buying a house is one of the most expensive purchases you’ll ever make – so it’s important that you do things the right way! Otherwise you may end up with a lot of regret. This short blog post will tell you the 5 Steps for How to Buy a Home in Fort Smith Arkansas. These steps will help you navigate this stressful time and help prevent any buyer’s remorse!
Make sure you stick around to the end because I’ve included some really helpful resources throughout the blog post!
Step #1 Are You a First Time Home Buyer?
If you’re a first time home buyer, this step is for you! And if you don’t think you qualify as one – you might! First time home buyers may qualify for federally backed loans that don’t require you to put much money down for a down payment (which when using a conventional loan – it’s usually 20% of the total purchase price)
The United States Department of Housing and Development has a list of qualifications for first time home buyers. Some examples include a single parent or displaced homeowner who only owned a home with a former spouse, an individual who has only owned a primary residence without a permanent foundation, or an individual who has not owned a principal residence for three years. If you’ve owned a home but your spouse has not, then you may be able to purchase a house together as first time home buyers.
It’s important to talk to your lender about this and explore all of your options. And speaking of lenders, this brings me to step #2 for how to buy a home in Fort Smith, AR –
Step #2 Get Your Finances in Order
Before you meet with a lender, it’s time to get your finances in order! You may be surprised to learn how many costs come up during buying a home such as paying for closing costs, home inspection, etc. Even if you’ve saved for a down payment, you still want to have money saved for these things! Pro tip: Try to have 3-6 months of living expenses in savings before you start this process!
Additionally you’re going to want to check your debt-to-income ratio and your credit score! I will make an entire video about these specifics, but for now here are some helpful resources:
https://tinyurl.com/emilydebtincome
Will take you to Dave Ramsey’s debt-to-income ratio calculator. Super helpful way to consider all of your payments such as student loans, car loans, etc.
Another resource is
https://tinyurl.com/emilycreditscore
Which will take you to to Credit Wise which is Capitol One’s free way to monitor your credit score.
This is information that you’ll discuss with your lender.
Which brings me to step #3 on how to buy a home in Fort Smith AR
Step #3 Shop for a Lender
This is such an important step when figuring out how to buy a home in Fort Smith, AR! Why do you need a lender so soon? Well many realtors and sellers won’t even consider you unless you have a pre-approval letter from a lender! Plus it’s helpful to know what your budget is so that you can stay within it when looking at houses.
Pro Tip: As you shop around for the best rate, do not give your social security number out until you pick the ONE lender you’re going to use. This protects you from more than one hard inquiry that will dip your credit score (temporarily). Just ask for an estimate.
While shopping, you can consider local banks, online/national companies, and credit unions.
Once you’ve got your lender, you’re ready for
Step #4 Pick Your Loan Type & Get Pre-Approved
What type of loan is right for you? You will want to talk to your lender about this extensively. Again I could make an entire video about this topic and the different types of loans out there. Conventional loans, government issued loans (like VA, USDA Rural Housing, and FHA) as well as fixed rate mortgages vs adjustable rate mortgages. Your lender will help you pick out the best loan for you and get you pre-approved!
That brings me to the last step:
Step #5 Hire a Real Estate Agent
Now it’s time to hire a professional that you can have walk you through all the remaining steps from now until closing day – which is when you’ll get the keys to your new beautiful home! I
f you’re buying a home, it is truly in your best interest to hire a realtor that serves you. In Arkansas, if a realtor shows you a home without there being an agency agreement between you in place – they are technically working on behalf of the seller. In most cases, the seller will actually pay the commission fee for your buyer agent. That means you can have the expert knowledge and guidance from a real estate agent WITHOUT it costing you anything.
So find a realtor you trust (I’d like to recommend myself) and put them to work!
There are a ton more steps that happen from here, but that would make this post insanely long and no one has the attention span for that. But I hope you got some clarity on how to buy a home in Fort Smith, AR!
If you haven’t already…
But if you haven’t already watched my videos about moving to Fort Smith or Finding the Best Place to Live in Fort Smith – you can start there.
These short videos will give you a look at what it’s like to relocate to Fort Smith. And if you’ve lived here forever – send me a text or an email and let’s get started!