Our Guide to Financing Your Home

The world of homeownership can often bring about feelings of uncertainty and hesitation—and you more than likely have a fair number of questions you need answered before that sliver of doubt can be fully erased. At Regent Homes, our experienced team works daily to ensure that our customers are fully prepared to take the next step toward homeownership, and we’ve put together a list of a few things you’ll want to keep in mind when figuring out your own financing options before buying a home. 

Read below to find our top tips for financing your dream home.

Boost your credit

If you’re in the beginning stages of looking for a home, it’s never too early to start boosting your credit score before the time comes to seek out a mortgage lending professional. 

To help keep your credit score intact, you’ll want to try and keep any major purchases to a minimum. Anything from buying a new vehicle to applying for a new credit card is known as a hard inquiry on your credit, and if you have too many of them, they can have a negative impact on your credit score—and it can sometimes take up to one year before they stop counting against it. Additionally, you’ll always want to keep an eye on the limit of your credit card. If you’re able to keep the outstanding balance at 10%, you’ll start to see an improvement in your credit score. Don’t worry if this isn’t a possibility at the moment, though—keeping it below 30% is always a good rule of thumb. 

Work with a trusted lender

As a highly-experienced homebuilder in the Nashville and Huntsville areas, we know that choosing a trusted lender can make all the difference in the financing process. Finding a lender that has the right options for you can guarantee the financing process goes smoothly and that you are able to secure the funding you need to purchase your new home. 

Whether you choose to work with our preferred lender or you do some shopping on your own—finding a lender who fully understands the unique needs of purchasing a new home will help you feel confident and comfortable throughout the entire process. When you work with a trusted lender, they can help you get a clear picture as to what you can afford and present you with an array of financing options to best fit your needs while allowing Regent Homes to do what we do best—providing beautiful, high-quality homes that our homeowners will love for years to come.

Get pre-approved

After you’ve found the right lender for you, the next step is to get pre-approved—and there are a few things you’ll need to have ready for this step before you meet with your lender. 

1. Identification: You’ll need to have some form of identification available to share with your lender, like a driver’s license. 
2. Proof of income: For proof of income, your lender will require you to provide W-2 statements and tax returns from the past two years, pay stubs showing income and year-to-date income, and proof of any additional income such as alimony or bonuses, if applicable. 
3. Proof of employment: Your lender will need you to provide proof of steady employment over the past two years. If you have changed jobs within this timeframe, your lender will verify any additional details needed with your previous employer. 
4. Proof of assets: Any current bank statements or investment account statements that house all of the funds you intend to use toward your closing costs and down payment will be needed.
5. Credit Score: Your lender will need your social security number to pull your credit score. This will show them your ability to pay off your debt and will affect which loans you will be able to be approved for, how much your down payment can be, and what your interest rate will be.

After you’ve secured your pre-approval, you’ll be one step closer to finding the home loan that fits your needs and making your dream home your very own.

Contact us today

Regent Homes believes that buying a home for the very first time should be an exciting part of your life, and you can rest assured knowing that our team of experts will be with you every step of the way. If you’re ready to get started on your next adventure in the world of homeownership, take a look through our stunning available homes in the Nashville, TN and Huntsville, AL areas—visit our model homes today or visit us online and complete one of our community request info forms for more information.