Market is HOT right now, and housing inventory is extremely low. It is a perfect time to buy a home and stand out from the sea of buyers in a competitive housing market. The best way to do that is to get pre-approved for a mortgage. Basically, that means that a lender has guaranteed you a loan before you even make an offer on the home of your dreams, or even before you see a home you really like! Even though it may sound like there is a lot of paperwork involved in the process, mortgage pre-approval is one of the best things you should consider while house shopping in this market!
What is mortgage pre-approval?
Mortgage pre-approval is a commitment from a lender to provide you with home financing up to a certain loan amount. It is like a stamp of approval that you have the money, credit history, and other related credentials to buy a home up to that price. Lenders will have to do a full review of income, assets, and credit in order to issue a pre-approval.
The paperwork you need to make this happen!
Be prepared to pull out all the files from your home office filing cabinets to earn your pre-approval. Generally speaking, here is the list of the paperwork items you will need to provide:
- Pay stubs from the past 30 days showing your year-to-date income
- Two years of federal tax returns
- Two years of W2 forms from your Employer
- 60 days or a quarterly statement of all your asset accounts, which include your checking and savings, as well as any investment accounts such as CDs, IRAs, and other stocks or bonds
- Any current real estate holdings
- Residential history for the past two years, including landlord contact information if you rented
What’s the difference between pre-approval and pre-qualification?
You should not confuse mortgage pre-qualification and mortgage pre-approval. Pre-qualification is completely based on verbal information you provide to your lender regarding your income, savings etc. It shows how much you “could” potentially qualify for presently, but there is no guarantee. As a buyer, you would need to get officially approved for a loan later on in hopes that numbers do not change.
On the other hand, pre-approval guarantees those numbers to you and means that the lender has already done its due diligence and is ready to loan you that money.
Would pre-approval help you buy a home?
It is obvious that if sellers accept the offer on the home, they expect the deal to go through. But if the buyer is not pre-approved for a loan, this can potentially turn into a complete disaster. If the loan doesn’t get approved, you will likely lose the deal. If you are one of those who loves a security blanket, then you must get pre-approved first. Think about it…sellers will most likely pick you as a buyer who is ready to “rock-and-roll”, because you are the real deal, a sure thing! Sellers do not want to hold their breath praying this deal does not fall through.
Bottom line is while pre-approval may seem like such a pain, it is also the key to a seamless and successful transaction. Why not to do it early? Why not to start shopping for the home of your absolute dreams with a peace of mind?
What is a Mortgage Pre-Approval? Get an Edge When Home Shopping by Cathie Ericson
