So you’ve had some hard times, and your credit isn’t as great as it could be. But you’re past all that now, you’ve learned a lot, and you want to get a fresh start. What better way to do that than by investing in a new home that will be all your own? But there is a problem… after the sub-prime crisis, mortgages are a lot harder to come by than they used to be! So what do you do?

There are still people out there who will make mortgage loans to people with less-than-perfect credit. You can find all sorts of web sites that are still devoted to this purpose – many are even flourishing in the aftermath of the sub-prime mortgage crisis – precisely because that crisis ruined so many peoples’ credit!

But before you jump in and find your own bad-credit lender, it’s important that you fully consider what you’re doing. If you haven’t changed the fundamental behaviors that ruined your credit in the first place, chances are buying a house through a bad-credit lender will not solve any problems. In fact, it’s more likely to create a whole new set!

Bad credit lenders make their money from “high-risk” investments. To put it simply, when you lend money exclusively to people with bad credit, you run a much higher chance of people not paying you back. So to cover that risk, these kind of creditors must use high interest rates. So basically, the people who continue to pay those high interest rates end up covering for the losses caused by the ones who stop paying. It may not seem fair, but that’s just the facts of life in this market. You are going to pay more because your credit says you are high-risk.

So before you get into such a mortgage, you have to ask yourself the hard questions. Why did you get bad credit in the first place? Have you developed the discipline needed to avoid unnecessary spending? If you couldn’t pay your loans when they were at normal interest rates, are you positive that your situation has changed enough now that you could afford a home loan at high interest rates?

If at all possible, it is better to rebuild your credit rather than go through a high-interest lender for a home. It takes time and patience, but in the long run it could save you thousands of dollars in interest. If for some reason you must finance a house through a bad credit lender, at least take the time to shop around and get the lowest possible rate. A site like www.lendingtree.com is useful because it allows you to receive multiple quotes from different lenders at the same time. But remember, it’s usually a bad sign if you feel the “need” to buy a house in a short amount of time. This is one decision that definitely shouldn’t be rushed.

The Federal Trade Commission has some useful advice for repairing credit here.

When you are ready to get a mortgage, bad credit lender or not, make sure you go over all of the fine print. You may even want to consult a real estate attorney to look over the contract.

Whatever you do, be realistic about your circumstances, and purchase within your means. If you can do these two things well, you will be off to a much better start than many of your fellow borrowers!