• Fixed Rate or Adjustable Rate Mortgage
• Decide Your Down Payment
• Understand the Fees
• Pick Your Points
• Lock Your Rate

A fixed rate mortgage is a loan that has a fixed interest rate that locks in for the life of the loan. By contrast, with an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM), the interest rate can go up or down based on a pre-determined schedule. In order to determine which product may be best for you, you need to know how long you plan on being in the home and what your risk tolerance is for rising interest rates.

It’s important to know what down payment option works best for you. In order to qualify for a conventional mortgage, lenders usually require a minimum down payment of 20 percent. If you put less than 20 percent down, most lenders will require you buy Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI).

In order to get a complete picture of the fees associated with your mortgage you will need a Good Faith Estimate (GFE). A GFE will list all the expected fees and pre-paid expenses you will need to pay at or before closing on your new home.

Buying points when you close your mortgage can reduce its interest rate, which in turn reduces your monthly payment.

Since it’s often weeks, and sometimes months, between getting pre-qualified and closing on your home, it’s a good idea to lock in your interest rate and points. Remember, the interest rate you are quoted is not yours until you've locked your rate.

Lenders can help you evaluate your needs and financial position and recommend the right mortgage loan for you. Mortgage lenders provide Mortgage Loan programs with the best current mortgage rates and a comprehensive portfolio of options and products.

Use our Mortgage Guide to help you through the mortgage process and our Mortgage Glossary to help you understand Mortgage Terms. In addition, we have information on the basics of finance, closing costs and different types of loans to aid in the process.

More than likely the bills that you are trying to pay have high interest rates, but you can get a personal loan for a fairly good interest rate and save some money. If you can consolidate bills that have high interest rates you will save a great deal of money over the years.

Buying a home for the first-time (really any time) is a major decision. Saving enough cash for a first home purchase, finding the right real estate agent, finding the right mortgage, and many more issues (like moving) may seem to be overwhelming. The tips below offer some advice on first time real estate purchases that, hopefully, will make your first time home buying experience happy.

Often, the biggest hurdle in the first-time buyer's purchase is cash available for the down payment and buyer's closing costs. But even this obstacle is not insurmountable. If you are a veteran, you may be able to obtain 100% financing through a VA loan. And many lenders offer 95% financing. If your income enables you to qualify for the necessary mortgage loan, you may be able to negotiate a contract in which the seller pays your purchase closing costs and adjusts the price upward so that you, in effect, finance your closing costs. But the loan appraisal will still need to support this higher value in order for the loan to close.

A good place to start the entire process is to visit a local lender to "pre-qualify" and establish your maximum loan amount. (A professional real estate agent can help you determine your affordability level, too, if you don't mind sharing income and debt information). This loan maximum, coupled with your available cash, will determine the price range in which you should look. You can begin shopping by researching Selecting a Community you want and need, remembering that "location-location-location" can be as important as the home itself.

A competent real estate agent can help you evaluate the pros and cons of purchasing a single family home, condominium, or townhouse, and what the various types of ownership mean to you.