Living In Burleson Texas Team

It depends on your loan type. Conventional loans can go as low as 3% down, FHA loans require 3.5%, and eligible veterans can buy with a VA loan and put down 0%. 20% isn't a requirement, it's just the threshold that lets you skip private mortgage insurance on a conventional loan.

Pre-qualification is a quick estimate based on numbers you report yourself, no credit check involved. Pre-approval means a lender has verified your income, assets, and credit with documentation, and it's what sellers actually want to see attached to an offer. In a competitive Burleson listing, an offer without a pre-approval letter usually loses.

Lenders price risk into your rate. Conventional loans typically need a 620 minimum, FHA can go as low as 580, and VA loans don't have a hard government minimum but most lenders still look for 580-620. Every jump in your score tier can lower your rate, and even a small rate difference adds up over a 30-year loan.

Plan on roughly 2-6% of the purchase price. That covers lender fees, title insurance, appraisal, recording fees, and prepaid property taxes and homeowners insurance. VA loans cap certain fees a lender can charge, which keeps costs down for eligible veterans.

Once you're under contract, 30-45 days is typical to close, depending on your loan type and how quickly inspections and appraisal get scheduled. Add extra time upfront for the house-hunting phase itself, which varies a lot depending on inventory in your target neighborhoods.

Yes. Lenders will generally ask for two years of tax returns or 1099s to establish an income average, and there are bank-statement loan programs built specifically for self-employed borrowers who don't have traditional pay stubs.

Principal, interest, property taxes, and homeowners insurance, often shortened to PITI, plus HOA dues if your neighborhood has them. Texas has no state income tax, but property taxes run higher than the national average, so that piece of your payment matters more here than it would in a lot of other states.

It's a temporary rate reduction: your interest rate is 2% below the note rate in year one, 1% below in year two, then it steps up to the full note rate for the remaining term. It's a way to ease into a payment while rates are higher, with the option to refinance later if rates drop.

It's negotiable. Builders often include it as an incentive on new construction, sellers sometimes offer it as a concession to make their listing more competitive, and buyers can also pay for it themselves. Who covers it usually comes down to what's being negotiated in that specific deal.

Timing a market perfectly is nearly impossible, but the more useful question is whether it's a good time for you. Rates have eased off their recent highs, inventory in Johnson County has improved, and homes priced correctly are still moving. If your finances are ready and you plan to stay put for several years, waiting for a "perfect" market usually costs more than it saves.