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Replies (2)
- SoCal_Engr
- Contributions:5663
Before you worry about houses/prices/payments, put together a financial plan. Going to school can be tough enough, without a family/house to support as well (been there, done that, had a very supportive spouse and employer). Let your financial plan tell you what you can afford and what you should be looking at - including the possibility of renting while in school so that you don't have house maintenance responsibilities.
Thank you for your service, and best of luck in school.
Thank you for your service, and best of luck in school.
- Susanna Haynie, "Susanna Haynie"
- Contributions:6
We are in a similar place. We - my husband- is retiring at the end of this year. Though I have been waiting for this very long it is a very 'shaky' time. A new location also means new costs and different expenses.
Personally, I would consider renting a home first, get settled in terms of your new location and school. This will also give you time to (as Socal_Engr said) to develop a financial plan or budget.
Once you have that information, you'll know how much you want/can spend on a house payment. With that get pre-qualified for a loan. Getting pre-qualified means that a (VA ) loan professional will look at your financial documents and will be able to get an idea of the mortgage amount for which you qualify; it can usually be done at no cost.
Google VA mortage loan calculators, and find one with Principal (how much your loan is for), Interest, Taxes (estimated) and Insurance (estimated). These calculators let you adjust any part of your -possible future-loan and will calculate the other cost accordingly. Play around with it...and this will give YOU an idea on how much you WANT to spend on a house according to the monthly payments you'll have to make. Maybe you'll find that continuing to rent is a better bet for awhile.
If you are still close to a post/base - go ahead and participate in one of their free home buying seminars. Go to your base family services office.
Prices are good, there are a lot of options for home buying, but do your homework!
Good luck, I hope this helped. If you have any more question, simply email me :-)
Personally, I would consider renting a home first, get settled in terms of your new location and school. This will also give you time to (as Socal_Engr said) to develop a financial plan or budget.
Once you have that information, you'll know how much you want/can spend on a house payment. With that get pre-qualified for a loan. Getting pre-qualified means that a (VA ) loan professional will look at your financial documents and will be able to get an idea of the mortgage amount for which you qualify; it can usually be done at no cost.
Google VA mortage loan calculators, and find one with Principal (how much your loan is for), Interest, Taxes (estimated) and Insurance (estimated). These calculators let you adjust any part of your -possible future-loan and will calculate the other cost accordingly. Play around with it...and this will give YOU an idea on how much you WANT to spend on a house according to the monthly payments you'll have to make. Maybe you'll find that continuing to rent is a better bet for awhile.
If you are still close to a post/base - go ahead and participate in one of their free home buying seminars. Go to your base family services office.
Prices are good, there are a lot of options for home buying, but do your homework!
Good luck, I hope this helped. If you have any more question, simply email me :-)
Getting out of the military
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