When it comes to firsttime home buyer loans, a little research can save you thousands of dollars over the life of your mortgage.

A wise consumer selects a mortgage lender prior to shopping for a home. You see, firsttime home buyer loans can end up costing you a lot more than you bargained for if you shop for your home first.

What often happens is you fall in love with a beautiful home that is on the outside range of what you can afford. And because you have invested interest in this particular piece of real estate you're more inclined to go into a loan situation you can ill afford.

To make sure you can realistically afford your mortgage payments, it's best to understand all the potential costs upfront before you fall in love with that dream home that is really outside your financial comfort zone.

It will take some research and comparison shopping in order to find both the best lender and the best in first time home buyer loans.

The loan package best suited to your needs will offer you terms you can handle now and in future. It's important when looking for firsttime home buyer loans you take into account your future plans. For instance, are you planning on starting a family? If so, it's important to consider the potential reduction in your family finances if you or you spouse decides to take some time off to raise the child(ren).

Further, if you have poor credit, you'll be required to pay a higher rate of interest than those who have a good credit rating.

When it comes to first time home buyer loans, the amount of your down payment will also be taken into account when your interest rate is calculated. Think of it this way, the larger the down payment, the better the interest rate. So, before locking yourself into one of the firsttime home buyer loans currently on the marketplace, you'll want to consider the advantages of contributing a decent down payment. This will keep both your interest rate and your payments much more reasonable.

Among the options for first time home buyer loans are variable rate and fixed rate mortgages. The first fluctuates over the course of your mortgage and the later keeps payments the same.

Another factor to consider is your debt to income ratio. In other words, the amount of money you bring in opposed to the amount that goes out. When determining your debt to income ratio you must take things like car payments, student loans and credit card balances into account.

There are programs available to assist firsttime home buyers in obtaining a loan. Talk to your lender and do some research of your own to discover the best option for you.

Remember, when shopping for first time home buyer loans no question is stupid. It's very important that you understand the ins and outs of any mortgage loan prior to signing on the dotted line.

Paul Jesse is a retired government employee and author of numerous financial and home business articles. For more informative articles visit his site. http://www.sheamarketing.com/Firsttime-Home-Buyer-Loans