Set Your Budget

I know…the dreaded B word, but if you’re crystal clear on what your budget is, this process will be SO MUCH EASIER. You’ll want to meet with a lender to determine final numbers, but take some time to determine what monthly payment feels comfortable for you and your family at this time. As a rule of thumb it is recommended that your mortgage not exceed more than 1/3 of your take home pay. Before you lock yourself into that, I will tell you that there are exceptions depending on your season of life. A few things to consider:

Are you at the front end of your earning potential? If so, you might want to push on your budget a bit. This would be for young professionals like attorneys that just graduated law school. Their entry level pay has a lot of room to increase over the coming years, so it might make sense to over extend just a bit, knowing you can grow into the monthly payment.

Are you at the end of your earning potential? If so, you might not want to push on your monthly budget. This would be for anyone on the back end of their career OR with a fairly fixed income.