One of the best things one can do is to fulfill their American dream of buying their home, for years of enjoyment and prosperity! Yet the same best thing can turn into a nightmare if the home has to be foreclosed upon. The stress is enormous! The feeling of loss not easy to explain!
A home is a retirement fund for many. The appreciation in price presents lots of possibilities when the home is kept for long enough! Rent on the other hand is wasted money and it only goes up in most cases, year after year.
So buying your home is a good long term investment as long as certain precautions are taken. Here are 5 things you can do to prevent the foreclosure possibility! While things can still go wrong, these steps will help a lot from such a thing happening!
1. DO NOT BUY more than you can afford! This is critical. It's OK to have a little smaller home. Avoid the low down payment trap too. If saving for down payment is hard now, it will most likely become harder once you own your home!
2. Have atleast 6 months in reserves. This saves you when unforeseen things like sickness, job loss etc that may show up unannounced.
3. Keep adding to your savings each month. Save it from the top before you see your paycheck instead of waiting till the end. This helps increase your reserves in case that need arises (and we hope it never does).
4. Control your expenses, don't buy luxury items that you don't need. Don't go on luxury vacations that you can't afford. Save now to save your home later.
5. If despite all the above, you face such a possibility, talk to your bank as soon as this possibility arises. Many banks will work with you by lowering your interest rate or making it an interest only loan! Don't run away from the problem, tackle it head on!
A little discipline goes a long way. Ofcourse there are times when there is nothing you can do to avoid the situation! And it's ok, there is nothing more that you could have done. Things happen. Do your best to prevent before it happens, and move on if it does!
Best wishes with your purchase. Please feel free to call us if we can help you in any way!
Buying or selling, call our full time professionals at On Track Realty at 732.494.2211. Our promise is that we will always put your interest over ours! If it is not right for you, it's not right for us, it's as simple as that!