What does homeowners insurance cover? It’s a question you want to answer before you’re knee-deep into buying your first home. Understanding the ins and outs of homeowners insurance before you purchase a home can help you find the best…
You may have heard of the term “annual percentage rate (APR)” but might not understand exactly what it means. But just like other important mortgage terms like rate lock, it’s important to understand APR from top to bottom because…
Does shopping for a mortgage get your nerves in a tangle or give you little fizzes of excitement? The reality of shopping for a mortgage is that it will feel different than poking through online listings, driving around suitable…
When strategizing the sale of your home, maximizing your profit becomes a priority. But how can you achieve that? Your buyer’s mortgage lender initiates a crucial step – a home appraisal, an integral aspect of the process that establishes…
What do you envision when you think of homeownership? Arriving home to a bustling condo or townhome community and waving to a friendly neighbor in an adjoining unit? Pulling your car into your own home on a parcel of…
Minimum Down Payment Requirements by Loan Type First, let’s take a quick look at minimum down payment requirements for FHA, conventional, VA and USDA loans. It’s important to note that some of these down payment options depend on loan…
Are you buying your first home? If so, have you considered purchasing a multi-family home? Before you do, you may want to take a look at both the risks and the rewards of investing in multi-family homes. This piece…
What Do You Need to Buy a House? You’re probably ready to dive right in and start looking at available houses on the market, right? You’ll get there! First, you’ll need to have a clear understanding of the buying…
Buying a home involves various stages of waiting, from pre-approval to the home inspection and underwriting. Another crucial step is the appraisal process, where appraisers determine the fair value of the property. The good news is that getting the…
You may have noticed that mortgage rates have gone down compared to when you bought your home years ago. Or maybe you’d like to change your loan term. Maybe you’d like to switch to a 15-year mortgage from a…
You may find it challenging to add “buying a home” to your to-do list — there’s a lot to think about, from juggling purchase prices to picking the right neighborhood for you. We’ll help you streamline the process. To…
When you find your dream home online or have your eye on a house in your neighborhood, you might also see a “sale pending” sign on it. But what does pending mean on a house? Does it mean that…
Can you think of one of the earliest and most important steps involved in getting a mortgage? If you guessed getting a mortgage pre-approval, you’re right. You may think that getting a pre-approval involves mounds of paperwork and a…
PUD stands for a “planned unit development.” A planned unit development is a detached home within a subdivision. A PUD is a great housing option for the right homeowner — particularly homeowners who prefer to live in suburban or…
When you’re first getting a mortgage, you might not think ahead to getting a home equity loan, though some homebuyer’s guides may cover them. However, as your life evolves, you may find you need to borrow from the equity…
When you first embarked on the journey of buying a home, you likely turned to online resources for preliminary insights. Perhaps you pondered the information you’d need to share with a lender or mortgage broker as part of the…
What is a Mortgage Pre-Approval? Getting a mortgage pre-approval from a broker or lender tells you how much you can borrow to purchase a home under certain conditions. Morty can pre-approve you in minutes, provided you meet certain eligibility…
What’s the Ideal Income to Mortgage Ratio? This is a crucial question, especially for first-time homebuyers, seeking the right balance as they step into homeownership. Much like other significant financial choices, the aim is to seamlessly integrate your monthly…
When you’re getting ready to buy a house, your lender will want to see your credit score, a three-digit number that represents how well you pay back debt. Before you apply for a mortgage, keep in mind that your…
As you read through our homebuyer’s guide, you may wonder which home loans could work best for you. A conventional loan, the most common type of non-government backed loan, requires you to have a minimum credit score of 620….