What documents are needed for a mortgage loan approval?
Years ago there was actually a no documents loan process for certain types of loans. Those are not applicable in today’s world of mortgage lending. Today we’re providing you with a list of documents that are needed for final loan approval. Some documents are required whether the loan is for a purchase or a refinance; others are pertinent to a specific type of loan.
Documents needed for either a purchase or refinance are as follows:
- Most recent pay stubs, showing a 30-day period
- Past two years W-2 forms and/or 1099’s (if self-employed)
- Signed Federal Personal Tax Returns for past two years
- Signed Federal Business Tax returns if applicable
- Asset statements for a 2 month period, or most recent quarterly statement. This should include any and all of the following and must include ALL pages.
- Checking
- Savings
- Stocks
- Bonds
- Mutual funds
- Money Market
- 401 K’s
- IRA’s
- If the property is or will be held in a Trust, provide Trust documentation
- For Investment properties:
- Lease agreement for rental properties
- Mortgage statement
- Property tax bill
- Homeowner’s Insurance Policy
- HOA or Condo fees, if applicable
- Hazard Insurance (homeowner’s insurance) Policy
- Complete Divorce/Separation Agreement /Property Settlement agreements, if applicable
- School Transcripts and Diploma if you are a recent graduate
- Contact name and phone number for Verification of Employment
For VA loans, the following is required:
- VA Certificate of Eligibility
- Original statement of service or DD-214
For Purchases only, we need the following:
- Ratified Sales contract
- Copy of Earnest Money Deposit AND bank statement showing the check has cleared your account
- Name, address and phone number of landlords for past 2 years if currently renting
- Sales Contract for existing home if selling and vacating to purchase new home
- Settlement Statement from the sale of current residence if vacating to purchase new home
For Refinances only
- Copy of most recent mortgage statement
- Copy of Owner’s Title Policy or settlement statement indicating that you have owner’s title insurance
- Copy of existing Homeowner’s Insurance Policy
Whether you’re purchasing or refinancing a property, you can download a copy of this List of Documents to help aid in your search for a loan. This list will be helpful to both you and your Lender as you work through the processing of your loan.
The answer is YES, you absolutely do! In fact, there are actually some reasons you need a Realtor more today than ever before. Buying and selling a home is such an exciting time in your life. Why try to reinvent the wheel and spend countless hours researching market information or looking for a document that may or may not be outdated? Enjoy your time looking at homes and preparing for a successful transaction by hiring a Realtor to help you along the way.
Any full time Agent has a multitude of subscriptions to websites that assist or help in the home buying or selling process (you should see our username spreadsheet, it is several pages long!). Some of these sites have fees and some of them don’t, but just knowing which ones are useful or even good is a part time job. Your Agent will save you time and energy by using their resources to simplify the home buying or selling process. Agents also have access to the MLS, which has data that you can not find anywhere else on the web. It is up to the minute, Realtor-to-Realtor information about the property you may be interested in, or the neighborhood you may be selling in. Let your Agent give you current, relevant information instead of the outdated listing you may find while surfing the web.
This is what they do all day – they live and breathe real estate. A seasoned Agent knows how deals are being negotiated in certain markets, they know the feel for whether or not a micro-market is hot, whether it is a sellers’ market or not, etc. And this is just the beginning! Having an Agent help you understand how to not just present your offer, but how to make it a winning offer that suits current conditions is vital. This knowledge of the market applies to 6 or 7 different topics within the contract alone that can make or break your offer. Your Agent already knows what others are currently doing in these markets, so why waste time trying to figure it all out yourself?
Realtors know how to sell homes – it’s their job! They know the latest tools to use and what the buyers want. Today, prospective buyers expect professional photos and videos to accompany your listing. Let your real estate Agent handle staging and marketing your home across various channels. Plus, let them screen candidates before you spend your valuable extra time cleaning your home for a showing. Your Agent won’t waste your time showing off your home to someone who is not even qualified to buy it.
A seasoned Agent has attended and negotiated dozens of home inspections. This brings them to a level of experience and knowledge that can only be learned by navigating a variety of challenges and different homes with different issues. If you are selling, they can prepare you to avoid certain hurdles by making the necessary repairs in advance. If you are buying, they can look for potential issues while you enjoy looking at the size of a room and envisioning where your TV will fit on the wall. An expert eye will be looking for water leaks, a yard that may have potential issues or even just the age of the appliances and major systems. Being able to have multiple sets of eyes and different perspectives can really make or break your buying or selling experience.
Your Realtor will have access to the multitude of current documents that are needed along the way. Just making an offer can be a 28 page document! In addition, there are contingencies to attend to and either negotiate and/or remove. There may be notices that need to be provided or documents to receive. A great Realtor will have systems in place to keep track of each and every aspect of not only the contract, but coordinating all the folks that help you buy the home. Do you really want to worry about whether you ordered your termite inspection and who needs it after it is done? What happens if there are termites, and how do you address it to keep you in compliance? A great Realtor will make it all look simple. Just know that on the back end there is a lot going on that you don’t have to worry about. You have enough to take care of with the loan process, packing, and moving. Focus on your new home and let the experts take care of the rest!