If you’re in the process of buying a home, don’t buy anything else…not a car, not furniture, not jewelry. Don’t buy anything of significance!

Why? Because your ability to buy a home is affected by your credit scores and your debt ratios. Once you’ve been “cleared” to buy a home by a mortgage lender, you don’t want to mess it all up by subsequently changing your debt ratios. You can buy these things AFTER you’ve closed the purchase of your property.

Here’s a true story…I once had a client named Charlie. Lots of people went to enormous efforts to get Charlie qualified for a loan and to find him a great home in his price range.

A week before the closing, Charlie bought a car…and a crappy car at that. Nonetheless, it changed Charlie’s debt ratios and he was no longer qualified to purchase the home. All we could do at that point was to wish Charlie “good luck” living in his crappy new car.

Car dealers, furniture stores, jewelers, etc. are generally much more forgiving of debt than a mortgage lender is going to be. The mortgage lender is governed by federal regulations – there’s only SO MUCH they can do if you can’t control your spending.

If you'd like to talk to me about this or any other real estate subject, just call me or contact me below. I'm available to help you achieve real estate success in the Louisville market.