Writing Your Offer
The first thing you should do is figure out how much money you have available for the purchase.
You need to have a idea about your down payment because it affects how you write your offer to purchase a home. You are required to put your down payment information in the offer, but different loan programs have different rules which also affect how you write your offer. This is important when dealing with FHA and VA loans.
If you ask the seller to pay all or part of your closing costs, you need to know that your loan program allows what you are asking. For smaller down payments, lenders allow the seller to pay less closing costs than for larger down payments. Certain loan programs will allow a seller to pay specific types of costs, but not others.
Your down payment also affects your ability to qualify for a loan. With a small down payment, lenders are fairly strict about having you conform to their underwriting guidelines. With larger down payments, they will tend to make allowances to the rules.
