Mortgage Pre-Qualification

When looking for your first mortgage, the initial step is often a meeting with a mortgage professional. This meeting allows you to communicate about some basics of a potential loan, including your current income and any long-term debts. If you elect to have this meeting before you begin actively shopping for a house, it is called pre-qualification. Pre-qualification allows you to know in advance how much you can afford and the size of the loan you can qualify for. This saves you time and trouble by narrowing your house search to the price range you can afford.

When applying for a mortgage, you will need verification of some basic financial information. This includes bank statements and account numbers, proof of employment and income, and items such as credit card and utility bills to show revolving debt and payment history. You may also need to show information on things like car loans and student loans, as well as balance sheets and tax returns if you happen to be self-employed. Finally, you may need letters verifying that any gift money you are using for a down payment is actually a gift that you will not have to pay back.

Having these items handy even at the initial meeting will speed up your application and help things go more smoothly. After the meeting, you should have a basic indication as to whether or not you will qualify for the loan you desire. You will usually be required to pay an application fee and an appraisal fee, and the mortgage company will generally inform you of whether your application was successful and you are in fact approved for the loan within a few days.