This one is for Shane the Mortgage man, I need help putting the pieces of the puzzle together

[USSVOYAGER]

OK folkes here's my deal. I've been checking my Transunion quarterly and as of September my TU was 731 (it was 749 in April this year but foolishly I ran a cc up to max and even though I paid on time the bal was too high) so I'm working towards a 760 score. My current cc accounts are consistantly running about 1% and not late. My history shows only 1 late (31days) 4 years ago, I have two steady jobs 80 hours/week seven days/week ( 4 years on one job, three on the other), I gross approx 70000.00/year (net almost $4000.00/month) I have abpprox $20000.00 saved towards my house and I dont owe any long term or short term loans.

So pretty much I believe I am ready to buy my house, I know where I want to live, what my max budget is, and my target date to move in, I have an excellent rent record for the past two 1/2 years from the same land lord.

Here is where I need help with my next step. Come January I start house hunting and I know what I am looking for. I really would preffer to pay down as small an amount as possible and if possible get 1st  time buyers assistance ( I live in Florida), so do I go conventional or FHA? How do I pick the right person to pre approve me? How do I select or know if I am working with the right mortgage company? These are some of the questions that makes the 1st time home owner feel overwhelmed.

Appreciate any help I can get

Cheers

[BrianB_The_Loan_Professor]

The lowest down payment will be FHA you can look up the max loan amounts in your area at the following link https://entp.hud.gov/idapp/html/hicostlook.cfm

FHA only requires 3.5% down - it does add 1% for an upfront PMI but the monthly is still a little better than if you put 5-10% down on conventional in most cases (with your scores it may be less for conv. PMI?rare that we deal with scores in the high 700's anymore)

The best place to look is to friends and family - see who has recently done a loan and find out who they used - If they do not have anyone then find 2-3 and talk to them - In most cases you will find someone that is easy to talk with and that knows their stuff - here is where most first time buyers go wrong - they try and get the lowest rates and lowest costs and assume this is the best person to work with - if the transaction becomes a major headache then the added costs may have been well worth it - I hear a lot of horror stories of how the numbers changed and werent what they were initially promised - beware of the person that only tells you what you want to hear -

If you know when you want to start shopping plan on getting started 2-3 weeks ahead of time - this will allow time for you to gather all documents needed - deal with any issues that may need to be dealt with and keep your credit fresh enough it shouldnt expire mid transaction (reports are good 60-90 days depending on lender)

Good Luck

Brian