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Without seeing the mortgage process laid out, it can be a bit confusing and even overwhelming. This page gives a step-by-step breakdown of what you can expect. For answers to further questions about the loan process, feel free to reach out to one of our Loan Originators.
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Whether you are purchasing or refinancing, this is the first step. You just need you to click the application link, register an account, and answer all the application questions. Submitting an accurate and complete application is key to a smooth transaction.
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Get Pre-Approved (If Applicable)
If you are still shopping for a home, then the next step would be to get a pre-approval letter. Upon completing a preliminary evaluation of your application, we will issue you a pre-approval letter if we determine that you are well-positioned to qualify for a mortgage. The pre-approval letter serves as evidence of our evaluation for home sellers, and it will indicate what purchase price and loan amount you are pre-approved for. You are then ready to submit offers on homes you are interested in.
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If you are either under contract for a home purchase or refinancing, then you are ready to lock in the interest rate. When you lock in an interest rate, you are reserving our offer for a set number of days. We would choose a length of time that is longer than the time we need to close your loan. While you don’t have to lock the interest rate before proceeding further, locking in the interest rate will provide more certainty and clarify the terms of the transaction (the interest rate, payment, closing costs, etc). Locking the interest rate does not create any financial, legal, or other obligation on you.
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Sign the Initial Disclosure Package
Your initial disclosure package will be sent and require your signature as soon as possible. This is a package of documents that are required by federal and state laws and regulations. It also includes the Loan Estimate, which provides a breakdown of the closing costs, interest rate, payment, and more. Until the entire initial disclosure package is signed by all borrowers, we will not be able to proceed with the processing of your loan application. Signing the initial disclosure package does not create any financial, legal, or other obligation on you.
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Around the time we send the initial disclosure package, we will also send a list of documentation required. The sooner this is uploaded, the sooner we will be able to move your loan to underwriting (see below).
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Pay Upfront Costs (If Applicable)
There are two items we could require to be paid for upfront: an appraisal fee and/or condo-related fees. If an appraisal is required, then we have you pay for that upfront and directly to the appraisal management company (AMC). The AMC will not even list the appraisal order until it is paid in full, and we need it listed before an appraiser can accept the job. With regards to condos, we will usually need certain items from the condo association, including a completed questionnaire. They will often charge fees for these items, unfortunately, and they will not start processing them until they are paid for.
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The processor will evaluate your uploaded documents and determine if anything else is needed before submitting your loan to underwriting. If so, you will be notified of the needed items and we wait for those items before proceeding further. If not, we move on to underwriting.
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The underwriter has sole authority to approve loan applications. They will evaluate the items provided and determine if anything else is needed. If so (almost always the case for the initial underwriter review), they will let us know what is needed.
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We rinse and repeat the last two steps until the underwriter approves your loan and gives us the Clear to Close. This leads us to the final steps.
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Acknowledge the Closing Disclosure
You must receive, and acknowledge, the Initial Closing Disclosure at least three business days prior to closing. The Initial Closing Disclosure, like the Loan Estimate, provides a breakdown of the closing costs, interest rate, payment, and more. Signing the Initial Closing Disclosure is the most common way lenders seek to obtain borrower Acknowledgement, and doing so does not bind a borrower to the numbers shown therein or preclude any and all desired/needed changes to the Final Closing Disclosure (the one borrowers sign at the closing table).
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You will either go to a title company’s office or meet with a mobile notary at a location of your choosing to sign the closing documents. Refinance borrowers have a "three-day right of rescission": for the three business days following the final signing, borrowers have the right to rescind their signing and cancel the transaction. There is no rescission period on a purchase transaction.
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Once your loan funds, the transaction is completely finalized. At this point, you are financially and legally obligated to the terms of the transaction. On most purchases, your loan will fund the same day as signing. On a refinance, your loan will not fund until the rescission period has passed.
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Even doing everything we can to simplify the mortgage process, we understand it can be stressful. Just don’t forget to register your account with your new loan servicer to set up payments, otherwise, you are home-free! Check out our Post-Closing FAQs page for answers to questions you may have.
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