Finding a loan that fits your home buying needs can be
difficult at times for many first time home buyers. It can be
difficult to find a company that will give you the mortgage you
need at a price you can afford, especially if you have had
less-than-perfect credit scores in the past. Lending
institutions will usually ask that you be pre-approved for
financing before they sit down and discuss a serious mortgage
situation with you. The pre-approval process allows them to
evaluate if you would be a good candidate for one of their
loans, before they spend too much time on your case.

If you are able to get pre-qualified for a mortgage, don’t rush
into just any deal before you weigh all of your options. Even if
you have to take some extra time, be sure to pick the one that
is best suited for you. Shop around and find the best interest
rates that you can receive based on the market and your current
credit situation. You may also want to figure in factors such as
how much of a down payment each lending company requests and
their particular policies or procedures, to help determine which
loan may be best for you.

If you have had your home for a while and feel that it is time
for you to refinance, then you may want to begin looking around
for a new mortgage. To receive a new loan you will need to go
through the same tasks that you did during your first home
buying experience. The best time to refinance is if interest
rates have dropped significantly or if you have drastically
improved your credit scores since you obtained your first
mortgage. By refinancing, you will be able to decrease your
monthly payments, as well as the total amount paid over the life
of the loan.

If you are looking to sell a home, you should get an appraisal
on the property so that you will know how much your buyers will
need to be pre-approved for before you agree to sell the home to
them and stop showing it to other potential prospects. If you
skip this step, you could stop showing your home only to find
out that those whom you had made a deal with are unable to get
the amount of financing they need or any financing at all. This
could severely slow down the process of selling your current
home to get the financing you need for your new one.

Whether you are home buying, home selling, or just refinancing
a current mortgage, knowing the basics of a buyer’s home finance
options will benefit you during the process. Discovering which
loan is right for you and your situation is a key ingredient in
being satisfied with your home buying experience. Finding the
right loan can be a long and time consuming process but, once it
is over, it will be worth all the effort and trouble that you
have gone through to be able to move into the home of your
dreams.

About The Author: Jeff Blackwell is the founder of
http://www.mhamerica.com featuring new and used mobile homes for
sale across America. Jeff Blackwell is also the Designated
Broker for http://www.easylivingsolutions.com a full service
real estate brokerage specializing in mobile homes for sale in
Arizona.

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Understanding the Mortgage Process
Copyright (c) 2007 Clint Wooley
HomeMax
http://www.homemax.org

Once you find a lender you are comfortable with, you will begin
the mortgage process by making an application with the lender.
Obtaining a mortgage to purchase a home is a process, not an
event, beginning with the application and ending with the
closing.

Applications may be taken by loan officers in person, by phone,
or by mail. Different lenders have various preferences, although
most will require original signatures on applications and
disclosures at some point in the process.

You will be expected to provide information about your income,
assets, and personal information at the time of application, and
during the process. Lenders will ask you for documentation to
prove information such as:

W-2 forms for last 2 years

Paystubs to cover a monthly pay period with YTD information

Bank Statements

Drivers License

Contact Information for Landlord or Rental Mgt. Co.

If you are getting a pre-approval, most lenders will only charge
a small credit fee to cover the cost of obtaining your credit,
typically $50 or less. Once you have a house under contract, in
order to move forward with the process, your lender will usually
collect a fee to pay for the appraisal for your home. The purpose
of the appraisal is to prove the value of the home to the lender.
This fee will be from $300 to $500, depending on your market. You
will be entitled to a copy of this report, and you should request
a copy of it electronically (usually in a .pdf format)

It is usually at this point in the mortgage process that you will
be introduced to the Mortgage Loan Processor, who is responsible
for assembling the required documents, verifying them, and
sending the loan package in a prescribed order to be
underwritten. Processors perform a very critical function in the
mortgage process. It is important that you provide all the
documentation requested to your processor or loan officer, so
that they may submit a complete package to be underwritten.

Once all the required documentation is assembled, it will be sent
by courier or sometimes faxed to be underwritten. The
Underwriter’s job is to review and make a loan decision based on
the information and documentation provided and make certain that
it is within the underwriting guidelines set up by the lender.

Usually there will be some conditions to be met for a “final”
loan approval. It is important to remember the complexity of this
process and not be frustrated or angry if the processor or loan
officer ask you for additional information, sometimes just days
before closing is scheduled. Sometimes these requests will seem
ridiculous, or asking for information that doesn’t seem
pertinent. Keep in mind that the Underwriter is simply trying to
do their job, and has checklists they must follow.

Once all the conditions have been received and sent to the
Underwriter for review, they will be “cleared.” After all
underwriting conditions have been cleared, the file will be
considered “Clear to Close.” At this time it will be sent to
the closing department, where documents will be generated for
your closing. These documents will usually be sent by email to
the attorney or closing agent.

Once your closing is scheduled, it is important to be in contact
with your lender and the closing agent. They will inform you of
any additional documentation that may be required for closing,
and inform you of the amount of money you will need to pay at
closing. Funds for closing will be wired from the lender to the
closing agent directly, and disbursed at closing. Closing
sometimes happens in a room with all parties present. You have a
right to request that your loan documents be signed in private,
due to the personal nature of the documents you will be signing.
Once these documents are signed and you receive copies, the
mortgage process is complete, and you are officially a home
owner. Congratulations!!!

———————————————————————
Clint Wooley is co-owner of Sunscape Rentals
and Sales, and HomeMax.org, a helpful source
for information, tips and articles for first
time home buyers. HomeMax offers free
Realtor referrals and Lender referrals.
HomeMax Case Managers will help guide
you through the home buying process.
http://www.homemax.org

—

I can prove it.

First let%rsquo;s define what we mean by the =ECbest rates=EE and the
financial value that we can attach to shopping for the best
rates. The best rate is the best mortgage rate available for
you by any lender.

The advent of super mortgage brokers and the Internet has
forced the mortgage industry to become very competitive. Each
lender has his best rate and most of the time it%rsquo;s within 0.06%
of the rates of major banks. Shopping with a mortgage broker
makes this easy.

The financial impact of getting a better rate of 0.06% on a
100,000$ mortgage is 1028$ over 25 years or 41.12$ per year.
That is not what I call super savings!

Something better than the Best Rate

Dr. Milevsky at York University (Toronto, Canada) published a
stunning report. He compared two mortgage strategies between
1950 and the year 2000 and found that:

=EF 88% of the time one strategy was better (money saved)
=EF the average savings was 22,000$ on a 100,000$ mortgage
amortized over 15 years.

Now we%rsquo;re talking. Saving 22,000$ in 15 years, that%rsquo;s 1466.66$
per year. It%rsquo;s not hard to see that choosing the right mortgage
strategy is a LOT more important than simply shopping for a
better rate.

The real conclusion of the study is not that one mortgage
strategy is always better. It%rsquo;s not! The lesson is that
choosing a strategy is very important.

[Note: the conclusion of this study is applicable for Canadians
and Americans. The interest rates during 1950 and 2000 are very
similar and the different strategies are available in both
countries.]

What should you do?

Selecting the best mortgage strategy is not as simple as
calling around for the best rate. You need to:

=EF analyse your situation and your long term objectives
=EF analyse the current interest rates and where they are likely
to go in the next 10 to 15 years.
=EF choose the best strategies based on that information

I suggest that you take the time to find a mortgage broker that
does more than shop the mortgage rates for you, but a broker
that will take the time to set up a plan to save you money over
the entire life of your mortgage. Once you have found a good
broker, ask him to present you with 3-4 strategies and his
recommendations.

It could save you a lot of money.

About The Author: Gregory van Duyse, AMP =F1 is an Accredited
Mortgage Professional in Canada and has written a series of
articles on choosing the best mortgage strategies (hypoth=CBque).
Visit: http://www.informezvous.com

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