Financing your Real Estate Purchase

The purchase of your home is one of the most significant financial events in most peoples’ lives. Be smart.

If this is your first real estate purchase, it is usually best to stick with the more conventional providers. In most cases, the bank you do business with has a mortgage department. This is a good place to start.

Traditonal Lenders
If your bank doesn't do mortgage loans, they can probably refer you to someone local who they are familiar with. If you belong to a credit union, they usually also do mortgage loans, and at a better rate. I can personally recommend Riverview Bank, and work almost exclusively with Kirk Hunter.

Non Traditional Lenders
If you have purchased real estate before, and are more experienced, you can look into non traditional lenders. It helps to have a good credit history and great credit scores when using non traditional lenders. But, on the plus side, you can sometimes find better rates and much more flexibility than your local bank.

For example, online lenders offer 15, 20, 30, and 40 year loans, as well as zero down, bad credit, and stated income loans. As a burrower, the more options, the better. Some of the more popular online mortgage options are Lending Tree or E-Loan.

Private Lenders
For those with less than perfect credit histories, you can also try to find private mortgage lenders such as Private Lenders Club or Lending Universe. They will take your information and shop it around to private investors, and give you a list of options. If you are having problems securing a loan through traditional banks, you might want to consider them- although your interest rate will probably be higher.