Can you afford to buy a home? When you are in the decision-making process about whether it makes more sense to rent or buy, one of the most important pieces of the puzzle is to know how the monthly mortgage payment will compare to what you are currently paying in rent.

Getting pre-approved for a mortgage shows sellers you’re a serious buyer and tells you exactly how much home you can afford. Lenders review your income, credit score, debts, assets, and employment history to determine your maximum loan amount. The stronger your financial profile — and the more organized your documents — the smoother and faster your pre-approval will be.

David John Marotta, CFP®, AIF®, AAMS® is the president of Marotta Wealth Management, a fee-only comprehensive financial planning practice in Charlottesville, Virginia. We had a chance to speak with David about topics ranging from retirement planning to savings to budgeting.

John and Mary plan to buy a home. Their credit is okay, but not excellent. They have some money put away toward a down payment of about 20 percent of the value of the home they want to buy. Meanwhile, Joe and Nancy have excellent credit, but have very little money put aside for a down payment on the home they wish to purchase. Which couple will get a mortgage loan?

Homeownership has always been a treasured part of the American Dream. Almost 63 percent of Americans own their own homes (source). If you are thinking of joining the crowd, you need a solid mortgage lender by your side. If you have already started searching for a good mortgage lender, you already know there is no lack of candidates from which to choose.

Learn how to refinance and lower your mortgage rates with this easy to follow guide.

When you apply for a mortgage loan, one of the most important factors in your payments is the interest rate. To illustrate, consider a home that is worth $284,000, which was the median sales price of a new home in the United States for August 2016 (source). An interest rate of 3.5% over 30 years would cost you $175,100 in interest. A hike of 0.5% on the same loan would cost you an extra $29,000 in interest over the life of the loan.

Shopping for and buying a new home is thrilling. Sometimes it’s also frustrating, confusing, and tiring. But starting well means ending well. The whole process begins with securing a home loan. There are advantages to getting a loan before finding a home. First, you don’t have to worry about finding a home that you can’t get financing for. Nothing is more disappointing than picking out your first home only to learn you can’t buy it. Second, you know what price range to look for. That means you aren’t shopping for less home or more home than you can actually afford. In addition, sellers take you seriously when you have guaranteed home financing already in place. Here’s how to get the home mortgage process underway.

My husband and I started Club Thrifty in 2011 with the goal of earning extra income. We wrote mostly about budgeting and frugality at first, and used the site and our momentum to pay off all of our debts. Over time, I began leveraging the blog to pick up writing work on the side. In 2012, I was able to quit my job to freelance full time. Then, in 2015, my husband was able to leave his full-time job to work on the blog at home.

If you have more debt than you can handle, you may be thinking of getting a debt consolidation loan to ease your financial burden. What is the best way to go about it? How do you even go about getting a debt consolidation loan? This article provides an in-depth look into how to apply for a debt consolidation loan and the different options available.