posted by Jerry on May 18
It’s a buyer’s market right now, so now is a pretty good time to buy a home. There are many homes for sale on the market at good prices, and you’ll also like that interest rates are still pretty low. There are things besides getting loans and making timely payments that you need to think about. If your home has a low price now, you can expect it to rise when the market settles. Your property taxes will rise along with it, so you’ll need to be able to afford them. You may also be required to carry private mortgage insurance, so that’s another potential expense.
PMI is insurance that lender’s sometimes require in order to protect their money in case your home is foreclosed. Most people think they’re getting a deal when they have to pay only a small amount as a downpayment with cheap monthly payments. However, they usually avoid telling people that PMI may be tacked onto these monthly payments. Many lenders have lost money thanks to the foreclusure crisis. PMI helps to offset this loss so lenders can sell your home afterward.
All people aren’t forced to carrying this type of insurance though. If you pay 20% of the home value upfront, you won’t have to worry about it. It also isn’t required if you take out a FHA or VA loan. If the equity is at least 20%, you typically don’t have to worry about PMI. Equity is the difference between the amount you still owe and the current value of the home. Negative equity was a common occurence thanks to the recent drop in home prices. That means that they still owe more than the property is worth.
It’s best that you discuss it with your real estate agent or lender to see if you’re required to carrying PMI.
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