Buying your first home can be a very exciting milestone in a person’s life. It is very easy to picture all of the good times you will have there in the future, but many people get lost in the excitement and forget to plan for a rainy day. To avoid losing that home to unforeseen circumstances down the line such as a job loss or an illness, keep these things in mind when considering purchasing your first home.
- Make sure that you have enough in savings to cover your mortgage while you find a new job, should you lose your job. Many experts recommend at the very least to have six months worth of savings to cover all expenses, including the mortgage.
- Understand before purchasing your home, all of the expenses that will be involved to maintain the home. If you are considering purchasing a fixer-upper, make a list of all of the inevitable things that will need to be replaced or repaired and their costs.
- Consider your other expenses, such as your car payment or transportation costs, taxes, etc. and whether or not this new home will be affordable for you.
For more information on the First-time home buyer tax credit go to Federal Housing.