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Do I need to put money down to buy a small house? (1 Viewer)

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My apartments made me sign this pet screening addendum that limits me to a 24/G aquarium. Then you’re supposed to pay extra $20 a month for it.

So if I get caught with the 105/G I’m sure they’ll have me take it down, fine me, and could even evict me.

Not sure what to do now, because most apartments don’t want you to have a tank and the maintenance guys snitch you off. They always wanna do annual inspections and fire inspections or enter at least twice a year for dumb reasons. There’s no way to hide it and having it in the garage is hard due to the cold winters and hot summers. Although my garage does run cooler in the summer for some odd reason.
 

Cody

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Yeah the maintenance crew came in our place regularly When we were at an apartment. I only had a 40 breeder though.

As far as down payments, you can find some banks that will do 3% down but you need mortgage insurance until you’ve paid off maybe 5-10% of the initial balance. The insurance rate just depends, but it will more than likely be $200-300 per month.
 

Erin

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PMI is usually required until you have 20% equity in the property... So figure an extra couple hundred a month for quite a while. (If you're plugging numbers into a mortgage calculator, increase your interest rate by 2% and it will give you an idea of what your payment with pmi (mortgage insurance) will be. Don't forget you'll have to pay approximately 1/12 of your next year's homeowners insurance and tax bill with each mortgage payment.
Might be better off renting a small house.
 

Erin

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If you're part of any professional organizations you might see if they have any benefits re: mortgages
 

Erin

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You might be able to find an owner-financed property...
 

BigRick

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I have no PMI... took advantage in 07 when they were giving out loans to anyone to bust the housing market. I got like 2.8% and no pmi and like 10% down.
 

steveb

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3.5" FHA w/good credit
Federal Housing Administration

0% USDA
Single Family Housing Programs | Rural Development
Enter Property Address to see if it qualifies
 
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decimal

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The sad truth is that it looks like right now, unless you have great credit and a wad full of cash to throw at a house, you will most likely be outbid and/or outpaced by a trove of folks who seem to have both leading to houses being snatched up in less than 24 hours sometimes. I would consider really lookin at what areas fall under the USDA map where you can still get 0 down financing. The USDA map on their website has areas that include fully built out neighborhoods and new builds as well. I don't know if these will qualify for the USDA financing but they should. Even if you just buy a parcel of land where you can eventually build, it will be worth it as you can use the land (small monthly payment very little tax) as collateral to finance the construction for the house. it may not materialize immediately, but you can always sell it if life takes you in a different direction. could also just hit up builder and just build new. they can help with financing and down payment etc. and a new home has a lot of other benefits requiring very little maintenance and great energy efficiency. Good luck on your search.
 
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