Services

Prequalify

Prequalifying happens before the actual loan process begins. Your lender will gather information about
your debts and income, and then make a determination about how much you will be able to afford to
spend on a home.

Before you start shopping for a home it's a good idea to know how much you can afford. When
refinancing your loan on an existing home – prequalifying can help you decide if you refinancing is a
good choice.

Application

The loan process begins with your application and occurs after you have found a property or if you have
decided to refinance your existing home loan. You fill out the mortgage application for a loan program
and then supply the required documentation and paperwork used for processing. At this time fees and
down payment options are discussed. Your loan officer will give you a GFE and TIL – Good Faith
Estimate and Truth-In-Lending Disclosure within 3 days – these document estimate costs and itemize
rates for the loan

Processing The Estimated Loan

The application package will usually be submitted to an automated underwriting system which will give
the lender the documentation necessary for your loan approval. In other cases the lender will manually
underwrite your application.

The processor reviews the documentation and credit reports, verifying your payment history, debts, and
employment. If there are collections, late payments, or other debts the processor may request a written
explanation. The processor will also review the appraisal and check for any property issues that could
affect the loan approval. The process puts together the application for lender's underwriter.

Underwriting

The underwriter of the lender will be responsible for determining if the application put together by the
processor then meets the lender criteria. Sometimes more information will be required and the loan
will be suspended until the further documentation is provided.

Upon underwriter approval, the lender will issue a conditional commitment to lend, title insurance will
be ordered, and they will work with you to meet all of the conditions to lend and then schedule a closing
date. Some of the conditions to lend may be credit issues, income or property issue that have arisen
during the processing.

Closing

Once all of the conditions are cleared the lender will issue the full loan. At closing time, the lender is
going to “fund” your loan by giving the closing agent a cashier's check, wire or draft – the closing agent
will then disburse the funds, and transfer to title of the property. Closing take place in different places
depending on what state the property is in – some states require it to be in an attorney's office, while
others use title and escrow companies. You might be able to close in your house.