Congratulations on your way to buying your first home! To make your journey smooth and hastle free, do take care of a few things mentioned below.

Get Pre-approved

This is the first and foremost thing that you need to do before you start reaching the real estate agent’s door. Having pre-approved doesn’t guarantee you the mortgage but it is a step big enough to make your home purchase quick. Even your agent’s first question will be the same. Seller take those buyers seriously who are pre-approved. 

Your search will be filtered with pre-defined budget and you will not waste your time on homes which are beyond your pre-approved budget.

Do not open any new credit card lines until your loan has closed and funded

• Lenders now employ tracking systems that notify them when new credit accounts are opened.

• New accounts can impact your Debt-Ratio/Qualification.

Understnd the Importance of your Mortgage Commitment Date

• In your contract, your mortgage commitment date specifies the date that your financing needs to be approved by.

• After this date, your deposit may become non-refundable.  

Liquidation of Funds Needed For Closing

• Pay particular attention to conditions that require you to liquidate funds from Retirement, brokerage accounts etc.

• Underwriters need to track and approve the liquidation prior to issuing final approval on your loan.

• If this step is put off too long it could delay your clear-to-close.