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Buying a home takes preparation. A great first step is to figure out how much home you can comfortably afford. Since monthly payments spread the cost of a mortgage loan over an extended period, it's easy to forget the total expense. For example, if you borrow $200,000 for 30 years at 6% interest, your total repayment will be around $431,680, more than two times the original loan.
You repay a mortgage loan in a series of monthly installments over the term, a process known as amortization. Over the first few years, most of the each payment is allocated to interest and only a small portion to paying off the principal. By year 20 of a 30-year mortgage, the amounts allocated to each equal out. And, by the last few years, you're paying mostly principal and very little interest.
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Get prequalified and take the first step in owning a home. A mortgage application is the lender's way of evaluating your credit-worthiness and determining whether to take the risk of lending you money. Although it can be an intimidating document, you'll be ahead of the game if you keep good financial records. You'll especially want a complete list of your investments, including money in your retirement plans.