Savings Tips for a Down Payment on a Home

While saving for a down payment on your first home may take some time and effort, it does not have to be as daunting of a task as most seem to make it out to be. Follow these tips to help make saving for a down payment on your future home a little more obtainable:

1. Know how much you’ll need for a down payment and set a savings goal
2. Gauge just how much you can afford with a down payment calculator
3. Open a savings account:
   • One way to ensure that you are saving money is by opening a Savings Account—Check out CB&S Bank’s Star Savings.
   • You may even want to consider saving a certain percentage of each paycheck… You can make this easy and painless by utilizing a program to pay yourself first by setting up automatic transfers from your CB&S Bank Personal Account to your CB&S Bank Savings Account.
4. Be sure to keep up to date with your saving progress—Try a Mobile Banking app to do this hassle-free straight from your phone!
5. Be sure to save bonuses/handouts rather than spending them
   • Raises/bonuses from work
   • Tax refunds
   • Birthday, graduation and wedding gifts
6. Be sure to do your research
   • Check your credit
   • Call around and check out different interest rates before making a decision
7. It may also be worthwhile to check with a CB&S Bank Mortgage Services Expert to learn more about alternative down payment options and possible qualifications for low-down-payment programs