Buying a home

[f0rged]

So I've recently transfered from a Starbucks located 3 miles from my house to one that's a 30-45 minute commute. It was my choice to move locations, based on issues I was having at my old store. But the drive from home is definately going to be an issue.

Michael and I have talked about moving in together for a while, and we even found a home that we are already in love with. It's a HUD home though, and neither of us have really any knowledge on what they are or how we could go about getting it. I've never had to deal with getting a loan or a mortgage or anything real estate related, and I want to have some idea of what I'm delving into. So my question is; What advice can you give me on being prepared? Who should I contact? Should I apply for a loan through my credit union? What makes a HUD home different from regular homes?

I'm so lost...

[Destroit]

A HUD home is a home that has been foreclosed on and belongs to either the government or a bank. 9 times out of 10 these homes are bought as-is, so beware of that. The realtor who is associated with the property can probably refer to you to a mortgage company, or you can go through your own bank/credit union to apply for a mortgage loan. When you are approved with a pre-approval, that does not GUARANTEE that they will loan you that much, which can cause the closing to not go through. There is not a whole lot you can do about that, except making sure that you were truthful about your income and finances. Keep in mind, that when you close on the property you usually only have a certain amount of time to fix it up to code before they make you renew all of your permits.

[f0rged]

There is some paperwork on the house stating that it's owned by the government. Its listed on ZIllow.com, but as "Not for sale" even though there is a for sale sign up on the site. So we don't know if it's just stuck in paperwork or what. I also can't find it on the "HUDstore." I wish I was more outgoing so I could just call these people, but I have to work myself up in order to call. I'm such an awkward penguin...ARGH

[LadyKay]

I do not know if my advice would work for you or not. But having been foreclosed on and going through that hell ( which by the way I am still at this time going through) I now believe that having a mortgage is one of the biggest rip off scams ever thought up. My advice is if it is at all possible. Never get a mortgage loan. Not to freak you out or anything but I wish someone would have told me this stuff 10 years ago when I bought my first house. If for some reason you fall behind on your mortgage payment, say you lose a job, hours cut at work or whatever; your bank or mortgage company will not work with you. They will make you think they will but in the end they will give you the run around, have you send in form after form and in the end reject you and take your home. I do not know where it is you are wanting to buy. But there are a lot of foreclosure houses out there going for 15,000 more or less. If it is at all possible and I know with having to pay rent and stuff that it can be nearly impossible to save anything. But I encourage you to see if you can save up and buy a house out right. It will not be your dream home and it may be something you have to put work into to make it livable. But it will be yours. If that is not something you can do right now I encourage you to take your time. Think about how much a month you can afford to pay and what could you pay a month if for some unforeseen reason you lost your income. Again I am not trying to freak you out. I just don't want anyone to go through the hell that I have gone through. Good luck to you. I wish you well.