First, never spend more for a home than you can afford. Home ownership should be a joy, not a financial millstone around your neck. So, start by determining how much you are comfortable paying each month. Remember not to stretch; the market is full of foreclosures because people stretched. 1,000 rent payment because you can deduct taxes and interest from your taxable income thereby reducing the taxes you have to pay.

Note that while this range is a good ballpark, you should speak with a lender and get accurate numbers so you know what actual costs are. Also, on condos you have monthly fees and you should include these into the comfortable payment calculation. Knowing that price of home you can afford, I recommend than looking for a home that will meet your lifestyle and is a good investment. If you love a private backyard, then a single family home. With the type of home decided, look at appreciation rates in the areas that will match your lifestyle and choose the best investment. You have many choices to talk with someone about all of the above questions that you have. You can contact your local bank and the mortgage specialist there should be able to help you with most of the answers to your questions.

You can also try contacting a mortgage broker who will be able to assist you with all of the answers to your questions. Your third option is to contact a HUD counseling agency in your area. They should be able to help you or direct you to someone who can answer all of your questions as well. If you have children schools should be one of your top concerns and also home functionality should be your other top function. Sit down and make a list of what you need out of your home. For example if you have a family of 5 then a home with 2 bedrooms will probably not be a good idea. If you have 3 teenage daughters a home with only 1 bathroom will probably not be a good idea either. Sit down beforehand and figure out your budget so that you can continue to live the lifestyle that you enjoy and are accustomed to.

There are an array of real estate calculators available: RealEstate ABC Calculator Suite A group of five calculators weve programmed for our users. Mortgage Payment Calculator Calculates mortgage payment and creates amortization tables. Qualifier Calculator You input your income, debt, down payment, and calculate what price home you can afford. Range of Purchase Calculator Determine your purchase range with a minimum and maximum payment under different down payment scenarios.

This calculator lets you know. Hughs Calculator Suite A group of three simple calculators programmed in the early days of the web by a guy named Hugh. Mortgage Payment Calcultor Calculates mortgage payments. Payment Calculator Calculates mortgage payments for three different scenarios at once. Principal After X Years Perhaps you plan to sell this home in five years and want to know what your mortgage balance will be at that time. Principal Prepayment Calculator This mortgage calculator tells you when your normal payoff would be and when it would be if you paid a specific extra amount each month.

Prepayment Analysis Calculator Suppose you want to pay off your mortgage in a specific period of time. In the last 12 months, I almost always negotiated having the seller discounting the price of the home.

Because otherwise you will have to pay the closing costs with cash. 9,000 might come in very useful. If you want to use a simple mortgage calculator, I have one on my website.

Just google an online loan calculator.

You can play with the terms all you want.