Name change & buying a house

We just bought a house and it's such a freaking hassle even without a name change, that I would probably wait. But you could maybe contact a realtor and let them know what's going on and see what they say?

We bought our house last year, and there are a couple of different times your name and identity will need to be verified. #1 when getting pre-approved (and, yes, do this instead of just getting pre-qualified). #2 when actually getting approved. #3 before closing. (And possibly more times that I can't remember, but at least those three)!

It could be tricky if your name changes partway through the process, but you never know - it might not be an issue at all! I'd ask a closing agent or real estate lawyer for their professional advice!

Congrats on getting ready to make the big leap into homeownership

I'm thinking the single most important thing regarding your name when you actually buy your home is the way the title is prepared. You can certainly buy it in your maiden name, but then you'll need to file to have the title changed to reflect your name change. How this happens is likely different in different states & municipalities (e.g., how big a hassle it is, how much it will cost, etc.). Also, I think how long it will take and how much of a hassle it will be to change your name will also vary by location. We live in So Cal. It was about two weeks until daughter was able to get the certified copy of her marriage license from the Orange County court, once she had that changing her name with Social Security was a piece of cake. However, currently the DMV in CA is SO SCREWED UP that she couldn't even get an appointment there until April (3 months after the wedding) and there have been news reports that people who applied for their license renewals last September STILL don't have a copy of their new license. So, she, honestly, has NO IDEA when she'll have a new license with her married name on it. Of course, their bank wants to see a new license before they change the name on their accounts.... She was able to file to have her passport reissued in her new name with just a copy of the certified marriage license, but she's still waiting to receive that. The order of things is likely to depend a lot on how long it's going to take for you to change all the documents that you'll need to have updated...and that's going to depend on where you are located and how things work there. Good luck!

We haven't gotten married yet but I bought a house almost 4 years ago. Even as smooth as everything went (bank wise) it was still a headache. I would say, if you can get your name changed on EVERYTHING before buying, go ahead and change it, but if not, I'd wait until after. There are already so many moving parts and that's just an extra place for things to get clogged.

Have you found a house yet? If you find a house and have an offer accepted before your wedding then I would wait. If you're not actually going to start looking until after your wedding, then change your name. I had my name changed within probably 3 weeks, and that was with mailing away for my new SS card, which took 2 of those weeks. Buying a house can take months just to find one, then it'll likely be another couple of months to close.

As for your question about changing your name while buying a house, it's understandable to have had concerns about managing both tasks simultaneously. While it may have added a layer of complexity to the paperwork back then, it's likely that you found a way to navigate through it successfully, driven by your determination and excitement for the future.