Applications & Processing
Who does what
Your main contact is a loan officer. They may work for a bank or a credit union that lends its own money, or for a mortgage broker, who can place your loan with any of a number of lenders and looks after you along the way. With a broker, the lender is the company that provides the funds. Either arrangement can work well. It is reasonable to ask your loan officer how they are paid.
The application
Mortgage applications use standard forms, and most lenders now let you complete them online. Everything you put down will be verified and used to qualify you, so take the time to answer accurately. If you are unsure how to answer something, ask your loan officer before you guess.
Documents
This is where the file you started in step one comes out. Expect to provide:
- Two years of W-2s from your employer, or two years of tax returns if you are self-employed
- Recent pay stubs
- Recent bank and money market statements (the lender will tell you how many months)
- Brokerage, mutual fund and retirement account statements
- Proof of other income, such as alimony, trusts or rental income
- Credit card statements
- Auto, boat, student and other loan statements
- A driver’s license or other government ID
- A copy of your green card or visa, if you are not a US citizen
- Statements for any existing mortgages, if you are applying for a home equity line or an additional mortgage
Your lender’s list may differ a little from this one, and theirs is the one that counts.
Underwriting
The lender’s analyst, called an underwriter, goes through your numbers and verifies your documents to confirm that you can repay the loan. Once you are in contract on a property they evaluate the property as well, through the appraisal and the title report. Some lenders, more often on commercial or unusual loans, also have a loan committee that reviews the underwriter’s conclusions.
Questions are bound to come up during underwriting, and that is normal. Return your loan officer’s calls and emails promptly, since a request that sits for a few days on your end can push a closing date. Check in with them from time to time even when nothing has been asked of you. And copy us when something changes, because the purchase contract has financing deadlines that we are watching for you.
The last step is funding.