Byrd Group Realty, Inc.Byrd Group Realty, Inc.

Helping You Open New Doors....

C: 770-823-5786 | O: 770-632-1112
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Deciding How Much House You Can Afford

Your lender decides what you can borrow but you decide what you can afford.

Lenders are careful, but they make qualification decisions based on averages and formulas. They won’t understand the nuances of your lifestyle and spending patterns quite as well as you do. So, leave a little room for the unexpected – for all the new opportunities your home will give you to spend money, from furnishings, to landscaping, to repairs.

Historically, banks use a ratio called 28/36 to decide how much borrowers could borrow. An approved housing payment couldn’t be more than 28 percent of the buyer’s gross monthly income, and his or her total debt load, including car payments, student loans, and credit card payments, couldn’t be more than 36 percent. (In Canada lenders apply similar formulas to determine how much a buyer can afford. The Gross Debt Service ratio, or GDS, is not to exceed 32 percent of the buyer’s gross monthly income, and the Total Debt Service ratio, or TDS, is not to exceed 40 percent of the buyer’s total debt load.) As home prices have risen, some lenders have responded by stretching these ratios to as high as 50 percent. No matter how expensive your market though, we urge you to think carefully before stretching your budget quite so much.

Deciding how much you can afford should involve some careful attention to how your financial profile will change in the upcoming years. In the long run, your own peace of mind and security will matter most.

Testimonials

Our Real Estate Agent, Tonya Byrd, Was Phenomenal!

Our real estate agent, Tonya Byrd, was phenomenal! Day or night she was very responsive to emails and calls. She was willing to go above and beyond to find homes in the neighborhoods we desired. She is very knowledgeable of state real estate laws & codes. She gave sage advice based on her own home-buying & renovation experiences. I highly recommend Tonya.

Alan and Chloe Oram

Thanks to Tonya We Have Our Dream Home!

Thanks to our realtor, Tonya Byrd at Keller Williams Realty, we have our dream home! She went over and above to make sure of that, even going door-to-door to check for potential sellers in a neighborhood we fell in love with. We can’t thank her enough for all her hard work and dedication. She literally pounded the pavement for us! She’s the absolute best and we strongly recommend her for any real estate need’s you might have!

Paul and Tammy Pardee

Closed On Our Dream Home With Tonya’s Help In 6 Months!

We are 1st time home buyers who missed 2 years of looking and not able to find anything under our budget with long criteria. We met with Tonya in 2016 October and closed on our dream home with her help in the next 6 months. Ours was a difficult closing of a bank owned foreclosure house with extensive loops of trouble where Tonya has been diligent and researched on our behalf to be a success. Tonya was always frank and… Read more “Closed On Our Dream Home With Tonya’s Help In 6 Months!”

Peter Lang and Julia Cing

Tonya Was More Than Accommodating During Our First Home Buying Journey!

Tonya was more than accommodating during our first home buying journey. She worked tirelessly for months, making herself available at all times of the day to answer our questions. She has even been helpful well after we bought our home. I highly recommend Tonya as a realtor!

Glen and Leslie Kettering

Hands down, the absolute best experiences buying and selling!

We previously bought with Tonya and now had the same pleasure selling with her. Hands down, the absolute best experiences buying and selling. From beginning to end she was helpful in every facet of our selling experience. She was in constant contact with us; keeping us informed of what was going on. Tonya also made sure all arrangements or appointments were handled accordingly. Our experience was made as stress-free as possible thanks to all the hard work Tonya put into… Read more “Hands down, the absolute best experiences buying and selling!”

G Kett.

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