Please do not start backwards. To get your financing in place when you want to buy real estate is more important than ever.Yes, it is a buyer’s market here in Saint Petersburg but only have you can pay cash or have a solid pre approval letter. Before you start looking for condos, talk to your mortgage broker, get a pre approved. Fill out an application and see what you qualify for.

Banks have gotten very very conservative when it comes to lending and you will not believe the stories I can tell you.  A buyer can still get 100% financing or 90% or 80% but it is not easy anymore.

The guidelines for real estate financing have changed a lot and will even chage more, you need to be aware of it. Over the last few month we have had a couple of clients that found a great deal and fell in love with the house, only to find out that sellers nowadays will not except an offer if you do not have at least a pre approval letter or proof of funds. By the time our buyers got to talk to a mortgage broker and he did the research and wrote the finance letter, the property was under contract. Good deals do not wait around. Be prepared, do your homework before you go shopping for a new house or condo. It won’t take long and it will give you the edge over everybody else. Also, if you want to buy an approved short sale or a bank owned property or foreclosure you might run out of time if you haven’t started your financing before making the offer. These great deals close within 2 or 3 weeks and banks are so backed up now that your loan commitment letter and “clear to close” take much longer than usual. Do not lose your dream home or investment opportunity because you have not done your homework on financinf and be prepared, once you start the process the banks and lenders are asking for way more paperwork than they used to. Financing a home or condo in St. Petersburg Tampabay also takes longer than it used to take.

Give us a call 727 409 8706 or send an e mail if you have any questions.