I waited a long time and I saved up a lot of money. Now is the time to buy a house. After all this talk I am going to do it. First step is to find out how much I can afford. I used online calculators but I don't want to rely on those.
I have narrowed my choices down to two banks:
Wachovia & Bank of America
Questions
1) How do I know which of those two banks is the best deal? Wachovia's site has higher closing cost. Bank of America has lower closing cost but doesn't give enough information on what the rate is going to be. I don't really trust the people at the banks. Don't they work on commission? Can anyone recommend either of the banks?
2) I want to know how much house I can afford. What is the best process in doing this? A pre-approval just seems like the online calculator dumping out a printout. Should I go for a pre-qualification which is basically saying we guarantee this loan amount?
*Should I do a pre-approval at two different banks? Will this impact my credit?
3) I want an FHA loan. That is what I am interested in. Will a pre-approval/pre-qualification tell me all the different kinds of mortgages I qualify for and the amount I can borrow for each?
4) Has anyone ever done any of this all online? How was it compared to dealing with the bank face to face?
Thanks
I have narrowed my choices down to two banks:
Wachovia & Bank of America
Questions
1) How do I know which of those two banks is the best deal? Wachovia's site has higher closing cost. Bank of America has lower closing cost but doesn't give enough information on what the rate is going to be. I don't really trust the people at the banks. Don't they work on commission? Can anyone recommend either of the banks?
2) I want to know how much house I can afford. What is the best process in doing this? A pre-approval just seems like the online calculator dumping out a printout. Should I go for a pre-qualification which is basically saying we guarantee this loan amount?
*Should I do a pre-approval at two different banks? Will this impact my credit?
3) I want an FHA loan. That is what I am interested in. Will a pre-approval/pre-qualification tell me all the different kinds of mortgages I qualify for and the amount I can borrow for each?
4) Has anyone ever done any of this all online? How was it compared to dealing with the bank face to face?
Thanks