New Year’s Plan to Get Fiscally Fit on Buying Your First Home

So buying a new home tops your list of New Year’s resolutions. Follow these steps to get fiscally fit. As you picture the big moment – the one where you pull up to your dream home in your moving truck, sprint up and unlock your front door – you probably understand there’s something you need to do first. You need to get your finances in shape.
Just like those who make resolutions to run a marathon, making this big investment starts with a plan. Runners know that if they run a certain distance each day, it gets them closer to accomplishing their goal.
“The same is true, in many ways, when it comes to buying a home,” says Eric Hamilton, president of Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance. “Before taking on a loan, many home buyers find they need to build their ‘financial muscles’ and establish ‘healthy’ money habits.”
By following a few tips to reach financial fitness goals, you, too can achieve the goal of home ownership.
Do those daily sprints
People who reach their fitness goals begin with a look at their current habits and then make a plan to replace them with better ones. The same is true for homebuyers. First, look at the spending choices you’ve been making, and review three to six months’ worth of bank statements. Consider what is necessary and what needs to cut back. The goal is to trim the fat in your budget so you can use the extra money to reduce your debt and increase your savings.
Crunch your debt
Take