The Mortgage Process
If you are in the market to purchase a home, refinance the one that you already own, or just want to learn how mortgages work, we want to make sure that you have whatever information or tools you need. We employ technology, education, and customer service to help in the mortgage process.
Here is what you can expect in the mortgage process and what we will be doing along the way to assist you.
1. Apply for a Home Loan
Find out what loan product best meets your goals with Homewise Financial, our fast, secure, completely online mortgage process. If you don’t want to work online, let us know and we will contact you to complete the process.
How We Make It Easier
- Apply on your terms: You can apply online, talk to one of our loan specialists, or both.
- Easy document submission: When you apply with us, you will receive access to an online portal that will allow you to upload your documents securely and have them immediately applied to your application so that we receive quick and reliable numbers. If you prefer other methods, we can receive your documents by either e-mail or fax.
2. Exploring Your Options
Once we receive your application and related documents, we will match loan products with your financial situation and help you decide on the best option. We will fully explain the costs, rates, and benefits of each option available to you.
You can use our online mortgage calculator to help assess your budget and available options.
3. Verify Your Information
The next step is to verify the information that you provided. We will review bank statements as well as tax information and then reach out to third-parties such as your employer, insurance agent, and title company to get verifications or other information from them.
How We Make Verification Easy
- Online Portal: Secure and easy to use, our portal allows you to upload documents needed on your time and have them applied to your mortgage loan submission instantly.
- Real-time Updates: We will be in constant communication with you during the process to allow the mortgage loan to keep moving and close faster.
4. Close Your Home Loan
- Convenience: Choose a date and time to close your mortgage loan. In some cases, we either close online or have a settlement agent come to you at home or work to perform the closing.
- Online Portal: With our online portal, you will have access to your paperwork before closing.
Why Choose Homewise Financial?
- Application process is completely online.
- Loan specialists available to answer your questions and help you understand the process.
- As a mortgage broker, we have exclusive access to a vast network of lenders to offer competitive rates and diverse loan programs to suit your goals.
- Personalized experience. We will “hold your hand” through the process to ensure your comfortability with the loan program and process.
Frequently Asked Questions
To determine loan eligibility, the first step is to obtain a prequalification or pre-approval. During a prequalification, the loan officer takes the information that you give them and uses it to assess whether you qualify. A pre-approval works in the same manner except instead of taking the value of assets (funds for closing and down payment), income, and liabilities from the application, the loan officer will obtain bank statements, paystubs and/or W2, credit report, and any other documentation to prove what is on the application. Although it seems like a lot to get started, pre-approvals save time on the back-end as these documents would need to be submitted prior to obtaining a final approval. Loan officers that obtain pre-approvals instead of prequalification typically will have quicker close times.
It’s possible to add the costs associated with getting a new mortgage into the total refinance amount to avoid paying anything out of pocket at closing. However, refinancing to get cash out may result in a longer loan term or a higher rate, and that might mean paying more in interest overall in the long run.
In general, the cash-out amount is calculated by subtracting the balance of your old loan from the amount of the new mortgage loan, although many other factors, such as applicable fees, the type of loan you get and your equity, can affect your final cash-out amount.
Home equity refers to the appraised value of your home minus the amount you still owe on your loan.
The more equity you have, the more money you may be able to get from a cash-out refinance. Many homeowners take cash out to pay off high-interest debt or make home improvements. Try our mortgage calculator to see if you have enough equity to reach your financial goal.
Home equity loans or home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) are usually second mortgages. In other words, they are mortgages that you take out on top of the main mortgage you have on your home. This makes them second liens against your property and therefore more risky. A cash-out refinance is not a second loan; it is a new first mortgage.
As a mortgage broker, we have contracts with several lenders. Some of the lenders that we have contracts with only fund loans from brokers and do not have a retail department. So by choosing a broker, you have access to more lenders and we are able to shop the rate through multiple sources to ensure that you get a loan to best fit your goals and situation.
As a mortgage broker, we do need to share your information to some extent while we submit and close your mortgage loan. Some companies that we share information with include our lender network, title companies, appraisal network, and sometimes real estate agents (if you do not already have an agent). We do not sell or share your information for purposes of future solicitation.
While there are many factors that influence the qualification of a home mortgage, when it comes to your credit score, we generally say that a 600 FICO will qualify. Depending on debt-to-income and payment history, we can sometimes qualify as low as a 580 FICO.