Mortgage Law in California

In San Marino, California, a mortgage is a loan given to buy a particular piece of property - usually a house - with the property being purchased with the loan serving as collateral for that same loan.

Getting a mortgage is a big decision. However, if you have decided to buy a house, and determined that you can afford it, a mortgage is probably your best bet. Real estate is very, very expensive. So expensive, in fact, that it would be impossible for almost anyone to buy a home if they had to pay the full price up front. A mortgage allows the seller to get paid immediately (from the bank), with the buyer paying the bank back with interest, over a period of many years, in reasonable installments.

When you buy anything on credit, however, you are going to end up spending considerably more than the purchase price, because you have to pay interest. Obviously, a lender couldn't stay in business if it didn't charge interest on loans, this would cause it to (at best) break even on every loan it issued.

But several home buyers think that a mortgage is worth the extra cost it imposes. After all, it wouldn't be possible for most people to buy homes if they had to pay for the whole thing up front.

Getting a Mortgage in San Marino, California

When trying to get a mortgage in San Marino, California, it's critical that you have a good credit history dating back as far as possible. The better your past record of paying back loans, the more likely a bank is to assume the risk of loaning you hundreds of thousands (or more) dollars to buy a house.

Most lenders will not issue a loan without a down payment. The down payment required will typically be measured as some relatively small percentage of the purchase price of the home. However, considering the prices involved, this could translate to a fairly large sum of money. Before taking out a mortgage, you should ensure that you have enough money saved up to make a down payment, and then some. This will show lenders that you are responsible with your money, and ensure that the down payment puts a minimal strain on you finances.

You should be mindful of your financial situation, and realistic about it, as well. It might be tempting to abuse credit, and buy a much more expensive home than you can afford. You should make every effort to resist this, and ensure that the price of the home you're buying is priced low enough that it won't result in prohibitive monthly payments on your mortgage. You need to determine how much it will cost per month to own your home, including taxes, maintenance, and mortgage payments. You should make sure that your monthly income exceeds these estimated expenses by a significant amount.

Once everything is in order, it comes time to complete the mortgage agreement. Once this is signed, there is typically no going back, so you should make sure that you understand every single term in this long-term agreement.

Can a San Marino, California Real Estate Attorney help?

Buying a home is a very, very important decision, and will probably have lifelong consequences. For most home-buyers, these consequences are positive. If you want to fall into that category, as well, you should not hesitate to hire a knowledgeable San Marino, California lawyer if you have any questions or misgivings.