Florida a Low Down Payment home Loan
To be considered for a low down payment Florida home loan, you generally need to have:
- Sufficient income to support the monthly Florida mortgage payment
- Enough cash to cover the down payment
- Sufficient cash to cover normal closing costs and related expenses (explained below)
- Within the recent 12 months have A good credit background that indicates your payment history or “willingness to pay”
- Sufficient appraisal value, which shows the house is at least equal to the purchase price
- In some instances, a cash reserve equivalent to two monthly mortgage payments
Closing costs, or settlement costs, are paid when the home buyer and the seller meet to exchange the necessary papers for the house to be legally transferred. On the average, closing costs run approximately 3.5% of the Florida house purchase price. This percentage may vary, depending on where in Florida you live.
Closing costs include the loan origination fee (if not already paid), points, prepaid homeowner’s insurance, appraisal fee, lawyer’s fee, recording fee, title search and insurance, tax adjustments, agent commissions, mortgage insurance (if you are putting less than 20% down) and other expenses. Your Florida mortgage professional will give you a more exact estimate of your closing costs.
Florida home buyers should know the many advantages of the FHA mortgage loan programs. FHA loans were created to help increase home ownership. For the Florida home buyer the FHA program can simplify the purchase of a home, making financing easier and less expensive than a conventional mortgage loan product. Some highlights of the Florida FHA loan program include:
Minimal Down Payment and Closing costs.
- Down payment less than 3% of Sales Price Gifts are allowed
- Seller can credit up to 6% of sales price towards closing and prepaid costs.
- 100% Financing available
- No reserves required.
- FHA regulated closing costs.
Easier Credit Qualifying Guidelines such as:
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- No minimum FICO score or credit score requirements.
- FHA will allow a home purchase 2 year after a Bankruptcy.
- FHA will allow a home purchase 3 years after a Foreclosure.
Apply for an FHA home loan today at
http://www.fhamortgageprograms.com/florida/
Points are finance charges that are calculated at closing. Each point equals 1% of the Florida home loan amount. For example, 2 points on a $100,000 loan equals $2,000. Florida home loan companies may charge 1, 2 or 3 points in upfront costs in addition to the down payment. The more points you pay, the lower your interest rate will be. In some cases, you may be able to finance the points into your Florida home loan.
So How Much of a Florida home loan Can You Afford?
There are two basic formulas commonly used to determine how much of a Florida home loan mortgage you can reasonably afford. These formulas are called qualifying ratios because they estimate the amount of money you should spend on mortgage payments in relation to your income and other expenses.
It is important to remember that the following ratios may vary and each application is handled on an individual basis, so the guidelines are just that — guidelines. There are many affordability programs, both government and conventional, that have more lenient requirements for low and moderate income families.
Many of these programs involve financial counseling for low and moderate income people interested in buying a home and in return, offer more lenient requirements.
Generally speaking, to qualify for conventional loans, housing expenses should not exceed 31% to 35% of your gross monthly income. For FHA loans, the ratio is 31% of gross monthly income. Monthly housing costs include the mortgage principal, interest, taxes and insurance, often abbreviated PITI. For example, if your annual income is $30,000, your gross monthly income is $2,500, times 28% = $700. So you would probably qualify for a conventional home loan that requires monthly payments of $700.
Any expenses that extend 11 months or more into the future are termed long term debt, such as a car loan. Total monthly costs, including PITI and all other long term debt, should equal no greater than 33% to 36% of your gross monthly income for conventional loans. Using the same example, $2,500 x 36% = $900. So the total of your monthly housing expenses plus any long term debts each month cannot exceed $900. For FHA the ratio is 43%.
Maximum Allowable Monthly Housing Expense
27% – 28% of gross monthly income – Conventional
31% of gross monthly income – FHA
Maximum Allowable Monthly Housing Expense and Long Term Debt
28% – 36% of gross monthly income – Conventional
43% of gross monthly income – FHA
One way to determine how much to spend for a Florida home is to compare your monthly income with monthly long term obligations and expenses. Use the worksheet, “Evaluating Your Financial Resources,” to determine how much money you can spend on Florida home. Be sure to only include income you can definitely count on.
When budgeting to buy a Florida home, it is important to allow enough money for additional expenses such as maintenance and insurance costs. If you are purchasing an existing Florida home, gather information such as utility cost averages and maintenance costs from previous owners or tenants to help you better prepare for Florida home ownership.
Homeowner’s insurance or property insurance is another Florida home loan cost you will have to consider. The Florida home loan lending institution holding the mortgage will require insurance in an amount sufficient to cover the loan. However, to protect the full value of your Florida investment, you might want to consider purchasing insurance that provides the full replacement cost if the home is destroyed. Some insurance only provides a fixed dollar amount which may be insufficient to rebuild a badly damaged Florida home.
