First-time homebuyers’ workshop at Columbus-Lowndes Library
Prospective first time homebuyers' learned about buying a home at a workshop led buy a Citizens National Bank mortgage originator.
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – In today’s housing market, people can feel lost in a sea of unknowns.
Knowing how and where to get a mortgage may seem daunting, especially for those who have never done it before.
At the first-time homebuyers’ workshop in the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library, an expert was there to teach and answer questions about purchasing a home.
A sense of stability as a residence, as well as an investment, are at the heart of homeownership said Melissa Duncan, an attendee and outreach coordinator for the library.
“Owning a home would give me a sense of just permanence and ease,” Duncan said. “When you think about the amount of money that goes into renting a place that is not yours, that I have put all of this money and investment into. I’m never going to see that that money is gone, that money goes to someone else now. Whereas when you own a home, you literally get to see the fruits of that labor over time.”
Duncan emphasized that having a good credit score is paramount to getting a mortgage.
“If you’re a first-time home buyer, the absolute most important thing is getting your credit score in order,” Duncan said. “I feel like a lot of people might be a little bit afraid to ask because it feels like a very, it feels like a common sense thing, like, oh, I should already know about building my credit score. I should know about this, that, and the other. But you literally don’t know what you don’t know.”
She also stressed that patience and setting realistic expectations will yield positive results in the long run.
“Manage your expectations and have a lot of patience because it is a marathon, not a sprint,” Duncan said. “You’re going to have to put in a lot of work on the front end in order to have that success on the back end.”
The workshop speaker, Brandi Bingham, shared encouraging words and offered her support.
“Homeownership is attainable for anybody,” Bingham said. “If you don’t know where to start, give me a call and I’ll be glad to get you to where you need to be.”
The data from the 2023 census reports, that nearly three-quarters of Mississippians own a home, the sixth highest rate in the nation.
