How to Prepare for Your First Meeting with a Lender

Nowadays, buying your first property goes hand in hand with taking on a mortgage. The below article can help you to meet with your mortgage broker or lender.

If you have been flipping through property websites then you will likely have noticed that house prices aren’t cheap. This isn’t because the quality of houses is low, but simply because that’s just the price you have to pay to enter the home-buying market.

Are You About to Meet with a Mortgage Lender?

If this means taking on a mortgage to get started, Advanced Title Company has prepared the following post with some great information about getting ready to meet with a mortgage lender or broker and how you can make your meeting a successful one.

Ensure the Past Is Correct

The first thing which any lender, be it mortgage or even a credit card, is going to do when you apply is to check your credit score and review the report which comes with it. This information helps each lender to get a clear picture of what your financial history is like, including any applications you have made, loans you have taken out, and a snapshot of your repayment history. For many lenders, if your score isn’t high enough then they won’t even consider reviewing your application in full. The last thing which you want to happen is to sit down with a lender and be stuck trying to explain an inconsistency which you don't understand. Lenders aren’t interested in stories, they only want to see facts on their screen. You can prevent this from happening to you by requesting a copy of your own credit report and spending some time reviewing the information contained in it. Look out for any of the following particular items:

• Any instances where your name is misspelled
• Credit applications you didn’t make
• Addressed you haven’t lived at or used for correspondence
• Debts which don’t belong to you

Any of the above issues can work to reduce your credit score and effective creditworthiness. If you notice any of these or any other discrepancies with your credit file, be sure to investigate it with your credit reporting agency and have it cleared up before you meet with any type of lender or broker. Available only prior to settlement, title insurance Grand Junction, CO incurs a one-time fee and provides you with financial security over the lifetime of your title ownership. To find out more about how title insurance in Grand Junction, CO can benefit you, speak with an expert today at Advanced Title Company by calling (970) 255-7677.

Prepare Your Current Financials

With your credit past correct you can start to prepare your current financials. After all, each lender will want detailed information about your current financial situation so that they can get a solid idea of how likely and capable you are to maintain your mortgage repayments. The best way to provide this information to them is by way of a budget. When creating this budget, be sure to include all of your income streams, no matter how small they are, and match them against your outgoing expenses. If you have large expenses which you are preparing for, include these as pro-rata outgoings in your monthly expenses. Once you have this planned out and you are confident that it accurately reflects your current financial position it’s time to accompany it with substantive documents, such as:

• Proof of your income by way of pay stubs or tax statements
• Credit card or other debt statements
• Any proof of consistent savings which you can provide

Apply When the Time Is Right

Each time that you meet with a lender and they check your credit file, even if it’s just to review, a record is taken and this can work against your credit score. Because of this, it’s important that each time you apply for any line of credit, you are in the best position possible. For example, if you expect to receive a large bonus in the coming months which you will use to clear one or many credit cards or other debts, consider waiting until these have been cleared. This will be fewer liabilities which you need to include on your application. Similarly, if you don't’ have any debts and plan to use this bonus for your down payment, consider waiting until the money is in the bank and you can show this amount as savings, which can bolster your application.

Title Insurance in Grand Junction, CO Can Protect You

Before you sign any purchase agreements, speak with an expert at Advanced Title Company today by calling (970) 255-7677 to learn about how title insurance in Grand Junction, CO can benefit you. Available only prior to settlement, a one-time fee can provide you with a thorough title search and financial protection against ownership claims made against your new home.