The Mortgage Payment That Lets You Sleep at Night

The mortgage payment you qualify for is not always the payment you should choose.In this episode, I break down how I look at debt-to-income ratio, why your maximum approval should not become your budget, and how I help buyers find a payment they feel comfortable living with.We talk about target payment, comfortable payment, maximum payment, student loans, credit-card debt, cash reserves, and why putting more money down is not always the smartest move.The goal is simple.Buy the house without becoming house poor.Show NotesA lender might approve you for a $4,000 payment.That does not mean $4,000 should become your budget.In this episode, I explain the three payment numbers I want every buyer to know before they start shopping:Your target payment.Your comfortable payment.Your maximum qualifying payment.I also break down why debt-to-income ratio matters, what starts to concern me when DTI gets higher, and why I want to look at your complete financial picture before deciding how much house makes sense.We cover:-How lenders calculate DTI-Why qualifying income is different from the income you think you make-Why student loans create so much confusion-Why I ask buyers to send me actual houses instead of using generic payment estimates-How taxes, insurance, and HOA fees change the real monthly payment-Why credit-card debt is creating problems for buyers-Why paying off debt might help more than putting extra money down-Why I like buyers to keep cash reserves after closing-Why your first house does not need to be your dream house-How I think about homeownership, retirement, and long-term wealth-After more than two decades in mortgages, I have learned one thing over and over:-The biggest mortgage you qualify for is not the goal.-The goal is finding the payment that lets you own the house, keep saving, build wealth, and still sleep at night. Schedule your free consultation- http://schedulewithkeithgo.com  Send me a message - [email protected]