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I’m going to share a secret with you. You know the spring real estate market you always hear about? Did you know that the “spring” market really starts in January? That’s right, January, when it’s cold and icy and spring seems like an impossibility. There is usually a flurry of new listings of homes for sale by sellers who have been waiting til the holidays are over. So how is this the start of the spring market? If you start searching for a new home in January, by the time you go through the home buying process…finding a place you love, making an offer, home inspection, purchase and sale agreement, appraisal, mortgage commitment and closing, it’s easy for 60 days to fly by. And suddenly it’s March and the start of spring is at least visible on the page of the calendar.

So why are we talking about this now when you’re still planning the menu for Thanksgiving dinner?

We want to help you be prepared to take advantage of it. Here are a couple of things you can do when you’re using up your vacation days before the end of the year:

Go to www.annualcreditreport.com and get your free credit report.

Start gathering the documents and information on the Mortgage Checklist below. Your lender will ask you for this information when you apply for a loan:

• W-2 forms — or business tax return forms if you’re self-employed — for the last two or three years for every person signing the loan.
• Copies of at least one pay stub for each person signing the loan.
• Account numbers of all your credit cards and the amounts for any outstanding balances.
• Copies of two to four months of bank or credit union statements for both checking and savings accounts.
• Lender, loan number, and amount owed on other installment loans, such as student loans and car loans.
• Addresses where you’ve lived for the last five to seven years, with names of landlords if appropriate.
• Copies of brokerage account statements for two to four months, as well as a list of any other major assets of value, such as a boat, RV, or stocks or bonds not held in a brokerage account.
• Copies of your most recent 401(k) or other retirement account statement.
• Documentation to verify additional income, such as child support or a pension.
• Copies of personal tax forms for the last two to three years.

If you start getting things in order now, you’ll be ready to talk to your bank or credit union or a good mortgage broker to get pre-approved for a mortgage.  Don’t do that too early, though, before you’re really ready to start looking at houses.  Most pre-approvals are only good for a certain period of time before you need to get an updated one.

So when new listings bring an increase in available inventory come the first of the year and other buyers are still in their state of winter hibernation, you’ll be ready to get a head start on the spring market and finding your new home.

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