Get Pre-Approved

Buyers with a mortgage pre-approval have a distinct advantage when they are ready to deal. An approved mortgage establishes a shopper's buying power. To speed the process and strengthen their bidding position, many home shoppers check their credit report and get pre-approved for a mortgage before looking for a house.

Advantages to Pre-approval

  • Pre-approval will determine the maximum you can spend on a house before you shop, so you know what price range to target. Many shoppers aim too high, bidding on a home that they later learn is beyond their means because of unforeseen debts or other financial factors.
  • A pre-approved loan is the equivalent of a cash offer. Sellers are more likely to accept such a secure bid over other, simultaneous bids for which financing is still pending -- even if those bids are higher.
  • The contract you sign upon submission of your bid allows a finite period in which to find a mortgage -- typically 30 days or less. If you fail to secure financing within that period, the seller may drop your bid. In the meantime, another buyer may offer the seller a higher bid -- or even a lower one -- and bump you out of the picture. Some contracts allow the seller to find a mortgage for you if you miss the deadline, possibly with no consideration of the terms and how they affect you.
  • Pre-approved buyers can rush the closing if the seller is in a hurry to deal. Pre-approval gives buyers bargaining power.

Want to strengthen your bargaining position? Get prequalified. Want your offer to stand out in a case of multiple offers for the same house? Get prequalified. Look at it from the seller's perspective. If you had 2 offers on the table for your house, one from a fully prequalified buyer and the other from an "I'll get around to that soon" buyer -- to which offer would you devote the most attention? Even if the prequalified buyer's offer was $1000 less, would you take the chance on the buyer that perhaps may not be qualified? When it comes to a seller evaluating offers, "a bird in the hand..." definitely applies.

To have one of our home loan experts in your area provide a FREE prequalification, please fill out the following information:

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