First Time Homeowner Question about Lenders--Dallas

What do you want to know?

You could just go sit down with your bank and they should have a mortgage specialist you could talk to. Not all lenders are created equal, but just do a quick google search and you should be able to find something.

FYI, I'm a first time home buyer under contract and going through the application process now. I'm in Houston, by the way.

Call Wells Fargo. You ultimately may not use them, but they can show you what you qualify for, $ needed to close and interest rates. And it's no-hassle and free. I called them when I was thinking about buying and they sent me a 'Good Faith Estimate' along with down payment info and such. I ended up using someone my realtor recommended.

I did a 30 year FHA with 3.5% down at 4.75% interest and I have a 720 credit score. I ended up buying a $200k house and needed $16k at close with down-payment, prepaids and closing cost. I had to do an FHA because I'm self employed and show little to no income and my debt-to-income ratio is all whacked-out. You may get better rates if you do a conventional...I'm not sure how much better though.

Here's what I recommend. If you think you are ready to make a purchase in the near future, find a realtor in the area. Find one that specializes in first time home buyers or the area of interest. Look at the listing agents in the area you are targeting and call one. Or go to open houses on the weekend. Talk to the realtor, but never tell them you don't have a realtor! They will harass you if leave a number on their sign-in sheet.

Once you have a trusted realtor, they will be able to guide you to a trusted mortgage broker. That's essentially what I did.