Don't know what makes up your $700 payment. Because your are not putting 20% down on the home, FHA makes you pay for mortgage insurance because you are a higher risk. The higher risk comment is not directed at you personally. Statistics show that people that put less than 20% default more than those who don't. The mortgage insurance pays them a percentage of the loan balance in the event you default. I believe FHA raised the premium on the insurance due to the recent increase in defaults. Guess what our next bail out will be.

Good point, forgot about that. My mortgage ins is 60/month.

It's so hard because of the way things were. The bank bailouts and the bs loans that were approved are still in the process of being 'unsold' to Fanny and Freddie. They all buy and sell loans but when there are multiple breeches in the guidelines and they try to dump their bad loans with good ones and it's all a bunch of crap. My woman does forensic underwriting and the fraud and other crap people have done (lenders, banks, appraisers etc) have tainted the entire process. After 30 years in the mortgage industry (mortgage, title and processing) she threw in the towel, the big conglomerate/corporate folks have eliminated the small businesses by making things so difficult that closings are a joke nationwide - businesses that would have been good to you and gotten the job done and you happy simply can't make the buyer happy when the others do not come through. Therefore, they can't make a dollar and you're left with the devil to deal with.

Even if you get a closing date, don't count on any one of the entities involved... they're not coming through. You will be disappointed a great many times I am sure. None will take responsibility but rest assured there will be finger pointing and lots of ball dropping. Good Luck Man

BubbaKahuna wrote:
Realtor.com is what I'm using with great results.
I need to fix my income (crappy) before I buy but I'm close to buying right now.
I've squirreled about $15k away for a down. Not huge, but better than nothing.
I sold a ton of stuff to get that money & I suggest the same for anyone.
We love out toys, but a home is far harder to replace than toys are.
I also busted my ass for 2 years to eliminate all my credit card debts by working 2 jobs.
I paid minimum on all but the highest interest rate one which I paid everything I made at the second job, then the next highest card, etc...
It's surprising how fast you can wipe out your credit load by doing this.

Keep looking, you never know when something will drop in your lap if you're ready to pull the trigger.

Good luck, JJ


Here in^^^^^^^ lies the answer. S-A-C-R-I-F-I-C-E, skimp, and save.
Bubba(JJ) wanted a house bad enough to do what he needed to do, to get there.
Sit down with your wife(do this together), and start working on a budget.
Start with the last couple of months, and see if you can account for every dime you brought home, and where it went. You want to see how much just slipped through your fingers.
Next, itemize all of those monthly expenses you have to pay...rent, insurance for renting and vehicles, gas for vehicles, groceries, utilities, phone(how often do ya'll buy a new phone? did you need to, or was it trendy?), cable bill, etc..
Next, try and decide how much you spend on clothes and other non-monthly 'essential' items in a year, and divide that by 12.
This will give you an idea of the absolute maximum you can possibly put away every month. That's your goal. Paying your bills is expected. You should know just what it 'really' cost to live, and not just how much a month you've managed to spend.....if those two are the same, you can't afford a house.

Skip vacations, and any other types of frivolity. Cut back on the nights out with friends etc. to once a month(at most). Eat at home more. If you smoke, quit, and put that money towards your house. Recreational meds? avoid them. How bout that cable bill, do you need HBO, and ball games. How new are/is your car(s)? Start cutting up all your credit cards but just one, and pay it off every month(18%+ interest is a deal killer. Banks love it).
You say you have a 100 dollars a month for I'm guessing a second?? bike, when you have a Roadie now? That payment, would allow you $600 a month when added to your current rent . If you just bought the bike, or are thinking about it, then your priorities are messed up. You didn't want a house, you wanted a new bike. I remember eating alot of mac and cheese, hamburger helper, and driving older dependable vehicles(not a motorcycle in sight), when I was starting out and looking for a home.

You need to decide if you really want a house. Owning a home is a life style, just like new bikes. You can't mow a lawn with a motorcycle. Party with friends, or put in a garden and or plants/shrubs??? When the wife wants a deck, do you have the skills and tools, or will you have to hire it done? Its something your stuck with once you buy it. It's a commitment.

I'm just guessing, but if you sat down and really went over what you spend unnecessarily(waste)every month, then the money is probably there. Start putting it away now, and in a year or two, you may actually have a decent down payment.
If nothing else, when the bank sees that your saving $$$$$$ every month instead of spending it on credit card bills..or new bikes, they might think your serious enough not to default, and leave somebody else holding the bag.
That's why banks like bigger down payments...the borrower, has skin in the game. You stand to lose big if you default.
The days of easy money in the mortgage game where you could buy a house with no money down etc. are gone(it was a mistake to go down that road starting in the 70's, and all of the politicians who thought it was a great idea to force the standards down, are idiots).

I'm gonna harp on that KLR650 again. You took out a loan for a toy?????? Toys are frivolous. Never borrow money for toys or vacations. If you don't have cash in hand, the rest of the bills already paid, and some emergency cash set aside, forgetaboutit!!!!. Banks aren't your friend, lending you money, is how they make theirs. They'll eat your lunch everyday that you let em .

I took out a loan for a toy and my house, house is a craphole but my Roadie looks nice. I owe 4000.00 more on the house and 8000.00 more on the bike.

Just checked. 85,000 at 3.5% amortized over 30 years would be a Principle and Interest (P & I) Payment of $381.69 per month. Looks like the mortgage insurance premium would be $77.92. Then you would have to pay property taxes and hazard insurance. If the property is in a flood zone marked with the letters A or V, then you would have to pay for flood insurance. Check and see what the annual property taxes are and divide it by 12, then add it to the above figures. You'd also have to see what it would cost to insure it. Divide the annual insurance by 12 and also add it. An $85K loan amount with a $700 monthly P & I would be over 9%. I know this doesn't help your fustration, but hopefully you'll understand how the $700 payment came from.

Thanks guys. I hear & appreciate what your saying. Thanks for all the advice & I also know I opened myself up to critisism, but what everybody doesn't know is that we're about the most boring people around. We don't buy things that aren't necessary, go on vacations, or have a social life, & I put every dime into savings that I can monthly (even if its a hundred bucks). The wife gets tired of me asking how much & can put into savings all the time. I'm the only income while the wife tries to finish college so consequently we are extremely money consious.

I bought the KLR650 not only to ride back & forth to work to help stop spendng out the ass on gas, but also to go rock road riding with my son & his OLDER dirtbike that by the way is paid for. I could pay the KLR650 off right now, but our mortgage company suggested that we ahve SOME debt because SOME debt looks better on a credit report than NONE AT ALL. They also told us to get a credit card so it would show up on all 3 credit reporting bureaus, which it has. By the way we have excellant credit also.

One small payment a month is better as far as credit companys are concerened than none at all. I know this for a fact. Believe me, I HATE MAKING payments on anything & also believe if you don't have it, don't buy it.

Oh yeah, we do drive older worn out vechicles also. She's in a 2001 Trailblazer & I've got a 2000 Ford Ranger. Ther're both paid for & don't owe me a thing. The Road Star is paid for also. It's easy to say don't get loans for toys, but really how many people do you know that don't have to do that? Within reason of course. You guys know what i'm talking about. I would never take a loan out to buy a 30-50000 toy, but a 6000 motorcycle isn't bad. Especially when it will end up helping in the long run.

Has it really come to this for people like us? Seems like you've got no choice to work youself to death & have no fun at all & no toys just to make ends meet nowadays.

I'm thinking the Road Star is gonna get put up for sale tonight. I don't want to but I really don't need it. Wouldn't want to have an xtra toy sitting around that i don't need. Oh wait, i forgot. We didn't have any toys to begin with.

Hey Chris--check here-- " Bid4Assets.com " has foreclosed and auction properties nationwide. I checked and didn't see anything in Iowa, but 6 properties in Illinios. And some other properties in adjacent states. I don't know the specifics of buying there, but registration is free. I think a % is added on to the purchase price specific of the property, possibly 9% of the selling price. I guess you can start by just looking around in the site for properties. Keep checking the site because properties are added all the time. Most look run down, foreclosed ones look like they will need work. Best of luck to you. I'm currently looking for a garage attached to a house and a small (25-50 acre) farm, hopefully in PA near York or Gettysburg. Maybe get an old farm near Gettysburg with some friendly ghosts, they can polish my chrome in their spare time. Everybody needs a polishing Casper!!!
Chris good luck in your search and I hope you can find something!!
Ron in MD

Things will fall into place when your wife finishes school and the extra income kicks in. Another thing to look at is side work to bring in extra $$$.
You can only save a small portion of your income and the only way to get ahead is to watch your expenditures and somehow increase income.

I know it's tough as I have worked 6 & 7 days for years to get ahead and I still do on occasion. Short of hitting the lottery or being left a huge inheritance, That's the only way I see to do it.