You have found the home of your dreams. Will you be paying with cash or credit? Of course not, you’ll likely finance the property with a mortgage –a financial instrument that offers great tax benefits to property owners.
The reality is, shopping for mortgage financing should begin way before you begin to even look for a house. Shopping early for a mortgage is a street-smart move. Don’t miss the chance to get a jump-start on the financing portion of the home buying process.
Find a licensed mortgage professional you can trust who is represents a reputable mortgage lender. Request a pre-approval from the lender which will require the applicant to provide a gaggle of documents used to verify one’s creditworthiness. But don’t skip this step: A pre-approval is a valuable bargaining chip when you begin to bid on a house.
A Mortgage Checklist is comprehensive and extensive. The paperwork, when crosschecked by mortgage underwriters, documents who you are, your assets, your credit score and your income level.
The Mortgage Application Checklist
There are four general categories that contain most of the required paperwork when applying for a mortgage.
Personal Identification/Legal Documentation – Verifies if you are who you say you are.
- Driver’s License
- Passport
- State ID
- Military ID
Income Documentation – Verifies current and previous income to determine the applicant’s income stability. The documents used to verify income will differ depending upon one’s employment status: i.e. is the applicant self-employed, or an employee?
- Paystubs, or 2 years of entire federal tax return (Form 1040), if self employed
- 2 years W2’s, updated as required
Credit Documentation – Documents the applicant’s willingness to pay back their debt.
- Credit Report
Asset Information – Verifies the applicant’s assets to determine income, and reserves levels.
- 3 -6 months of Bank Statements
- Quarterly statements for Keoghs, IRAs, 401K’s, ETC.
It is always best to begin the home buying process by organizing your financing options in advance. The above mortgage application checklist provides a sound springboard as you reach for homeownership.
Contact us today to see how we can help you finance the home of your dreams!
