Buying a home may seem to be a daunting prospect at first, but if you take it one step at a time, the pieces all fall into place rather easily. If you have any questions while reading or implementing this information, please contact me. I look forward to working with you!

Now that you have your list of features you want in your new home, you are ready to start looking! Well, not just yet. You are going to need to know in what price range to look for your home. There are two ways to go about this. You can get prequalified or preapproved for a mortgage. What's the difference? Read on...

Either way, you will need to contact a mortgage company. There are some key differences between prequalification and preapproval for a loan of which you need to be aware. Loan prequalification is a simple process. It takes into account very basic information regarding your financial status and gives you an amount for which you may qualify. This can be done strictly on a verbal basis or electronically over the Internet. The prequalified amount is based solely on the information you provide. While prequalification is simple and will help you begin to determine a price range in which to look, prequalified buyers usually hold little clout compared to preapproved buyers. Information given during the prequalification process is not thoroughly investigated and therefore may be unreliable. Where a preapproved buyer is actually approved for a loan of a certain amount, a prequalified buyer is only told that they might be approved for a certain amount.

Pre-approval is a much more involved process. The lender will take all pertinent information regarding your finances and perform an extensive check on your current financial status. This will ultimately give you the exact amount that you will be eligible for (depending on what type of loan you decide to go with). Being preapproved lets the seller know that you have gone through an extensive financial background check and there should be no unexpected obstacles to buying the home. You can see how being preapproved would be more attractive to a seller than just being prequalified.

Should you need the names of qualified mortgage brokers in Atlanta, give me a call or e-mail me. I know of several very good mortgage professionals who specialize in the Atlanta intown market. I will always give you at least three sources so that you can compare different loan programs and assure yourself you are getting the best loan for you.

Step 1 - Analyze Your Needs
Step 2 - Pricing Strategy
Step 3 - Prepare Your Property
Step 4 - Marketing Strategy
Step 5 - When you Receive an Offer
Step 6 - The Post-Contract Process
Step 7 - Closing on Your Home
Step 8 - Post-Close Activity
Step 9 - The Post-Contract Process
Step 10 - Closing on Your Home
Step 11 - Post-Close Activity

• Why Work with Katie
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• Sell
• Buy
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• What's My Home Worth

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