Are you tired of living in a rented house or apartment? Do you want to purchase a house, condo, or some other dwelling of your very own? Owning your own home is a big step for many people. But in order to make sure that you're able to obtain this goal, you're going to have to get a loan that can cover the cost of your home. Getting a loan isn't always an easy process, but it can be made easier if you follow a few basic steps. Some things that you should do include:

Get your credit report: There are many websites and apps out there that will check your credit score and show you your full credit report. You'll get the best rate on fixed interest home loans if your credit score is high. If your credit score is low, scrutinize your credit report closely to see if there might be a mistake. Sometimes, an item gets filed to the wrong report. It's possible that one or more of the overdue items on your report belongs either to a person with a similar social security number or with a similar name as the one that you have. These items aren't always easy to remove from your credit report but they should make your credit score go up once they are expunged from your record.

Figure out how much house you can afford: When applying for fixed interest home loans, the bank or other financial institution will let you know how much house they think that you can afford. As a rough rule of thumb, the typical affordable monthly payment is usually calculated as about 1/3 of your net income. If you have student loans or you simply can't live without certain subscriptions, it's possible that your ideal mortgage payment is going to be less than what the bank tells you. Use an online mortgage calculator to figure out how much house your monthly mortgage payment translates into.

Have the down payment ready: Depending on what type of fixed interest home loans that you're applying for, the financial institution in question may not accept a down payment from just anywhere. For instance, the rules for some types of home loans may mean that the money in your account has to remain untouched for a certain number of days before it can be applied to your down payment. Although annoying and seemingly nonsensical, this is to help prevent other people from using home loans as a way to launder money.