How Far in Advance Do You Need to Apply for a Home Loan?

Sharing the apartment that used to be just for you isn’t easy, and you know it’s time to move when you stuff is bursting out of the closets. To make the transition from renting to owning, you’ll need to pull together a joint financial profile that encourages a mortgage lender to take a chance on you. Although there’s no set amount of time in advance needed to apply for a loan, the sooner you apply, the sooner you’ll be able to purchase a larger living space and move.

Pre-Approval

Most real estate agents require you to provide proof of home loan pre-approval, or pre-qualification at the very least, before showing you homes. To get pre-approved, contact your lender as soon as you have the desire to browse, no matter how far in the future you actually plan to buy a house. A pre-approval — based on your credit reports and verified employment, income, tax returns and down payment availability – tells you how much home you can afford and says to your agent and home sellers that they can expect the deal https://americashpaydayloan.com/pawn-shops-la/ to close when you enter into a sales contract. Although less concrete than a pre-approval, agents and sellers also accept loan pre-qualifications — based on a preliminary review of your credit scores and self-reported income and assets — as proof that you’ll be able to close on a sale. Pre-approval and pre-qualification letters have expiration dates, which vary among lenders, and your loan officer can update your file and provide such letters on the spot as needed.

Price Negotiations

Concentrate your home search in your price range to avoid disappointment. Continue Reading