Before we even begin the mortgage process at Greenway Mortgage Funding Corp, we always emphasize to buyers that you can’t be a bystander.
Yes, we’re here to answer your questions and we handle the vast majority of the busy work, but you have to be actively involved. The more involved you are, the more prepared and less stressed you’ll be throughout the process.
The first step of being involved is becoming educated about the five general stages of the mortgage process. Here’s a high-level explanation of what you can expect from beginning to end.
1) Pre-Approval
During this critical stage, we’ll determine your purchasing power based on your income, credit profile, income and financial assets. However, it’s important to keep in mind that just because you’re pre-approved for a $300,000 mortgage, it doesn’t mean you should borrow $300,000. We’ll go over other costs to consider, both upfront and over the life of your loan.
2) Application
This is when you complete and submit a formal application for a mortgage loan. We’ll collect all relevant information, fill out the application and make sure all disclosures are issued and signed.
After you apply for the loan you’ll receive a Loan Estimate, which provides an approximation of your closing costs and a summary of how your loan will be repaid.
3) Processing
Processing involves preparation of your file by the mortgage company for underwriting. During this step, we do a lot of verifying. We validate all documentation and information you’ve provided, including your employment. We order an appraisal to confirm the property’s market value. We order your credit report to verify your ability and willingness to pay debts.
4) Underwriting
During underwriting, we determine whether you’ll be eligible for a mortgage. The characteristics of your loan file are reviewed to make sure they fit Greenway Mortgage’s guidelines and all work done during the processing phase is reviewed and validated. Once approved, a mortgage commitment will then be issued.
5) Closing
People who have been through this process might tell you that you’ll feel like you’re signing your life away. While that may be an exaggeration, there’s no getting around the fact that mortgages involve a lot of paperwork. That’s why we always recommend hiring an experienced real estate attorney to explain every document. The lender will put together the closing package, and the settlement agent will handle the closing of title and disbursement of funds.
One common source of confusion is the amount of documentation required to approve and process a mortgage. In the next post, we’ll explain why so much documentation is needed and offer suggestions that can make documentation less of a headache.
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We're here to help you. Call (732) 626-9827 or email info@go.greenwaymortgage.com today!
