Your Lake of the Ozarks Mortgage Lender: understanding the mortgage process

Friday, July 23, 2021

5 Ways to Help Speed Up the Mortgage Process

One of the biggest investments you will ever make in your life is purchasing a home. To get there, you are going to have to go through the mortgage approval process. The mortgage process can often feel like a long and daunting event, but it does not have to be. While there are always aspects of the mortgage process that cannot be controlled, there are so many things that you can set the pace for. Team Lasson wants to help you purchase your Lake of the Ozarks Vacation home, and we want to help you get everything in order as fast as possible. This real estate market has been busy, to say the least, so anything that you can do to help speed it up on your end is going to be very helpful.

1. Review Your Credit Report

The first big hurdle in the mortgage approval process is your credit score, which is a big determining factor in your mortgage. A low credit score could affect your interest rate, costs or even cause your application to get denied. Before you start the Lake of the Ozarks home loan process, be sure to review your credit report. Make sure you are aware of what your credit score is. Talk to your mortgage professional about correcting any mistakes that may have been made on your credit report and if there are any ways you can improve your score before you take the next step in the home buying process.

2. Have Your Documents in Order

Your credit score is just one of the factors that a Lake of the Ozarks mortgage lender will take into account. Your lender is also going to need documentation on your income, assets, and monthly debt payments. Your debt-to-income ratio also plays an important role in the mortgage approval process. You can improve your chances by paying off some debts prior to applying for a mortgage loan. Talk this over with your mortgage lender at the Lake of the Ozarks first. However, if that is unrealistic, just ensure you do not take on any new debts while going through the mortgage process.

3. Get Pre-Approved

This can speed up your mortgage process exponentially. When you have a pre-approval letter in your hand while house hunting, you are essentially saying “this is how much my lender is willing to lend me right now.” This means that your lender has reviewed your information and has decided that you would be approved based on some initial basic information about your financial status.

4. Finalize Negotiations Quickly

This will be done with your real estate agent, but it can really slow down the buying process if both parties aren’t communicating quickly. There will be a variety of negotiations that happen between the buyer and seller, and as you get these notifications from your agent, it’s important to respond quickly and not let these things sit around for too long. Properties are selling quickly these days, and it’s important to keep this process moving - there are plenty of other buyers ready to swoop in.

5. Have the Home Appraised

The home appraisal plays a critical role in the mortgage approval process. A mortgage lender is not likely to lend more money than what the property is worth. If the appraisal determines that the property is not worth the asking price, you will either have to renegotiate with the seller, bring in additional funds at closing or find a different property.

Don’t Forget to Stay In Touch

When you are in the process of purchasing a home, one of the most important things you can do is stay in touch with your mortgage lender at Lake of the Ozarks. We want to help you close on this home as quickly as possible, but if there are delays in communication, this can slow things down.

If you are ready to buy a home at Lake of the Ozarks, we are ready to assist! This has been an amazing time to buy and refinance homes - and if you are looking for a good rate, it may be worth it to do it now. You can visit our website to submit an application or learn more about our company, we look forward to working with you, and helping you close as fast as possible!

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Michael Lasson

Senior Loan Officer

NMLS #: 493712

4655 B Osage Beach Parkway

Osage Beach, MO 65065

Direct: (573) 746-7211

Cell: (573) 216-7258

e-Fax: (866) 397-0318

Email: mlasson@fsbfinancial.com

Website: www.YourLakeLoan.com

**The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily represent First State Bank of St Charles’s positions, strategies, or opinions.

Friday, February 24, 2017

Understanding the Steps for Mortgage Processing

Trying to close on your home can be frustrating. The lender and title company need a lot of documents from you and answers to a lot of questions. Thankfully, the best mortgage lender at the Lake of the Ozarks is here to help you understand the behind the scenes process, so you're able to be proactive and make sure deadlines are met. So what does the lending process look like? Keep reading to find out.

Pre-Approval

First things first, you need to understand that a pre-qualification and a pre-approval are NOT the same thing. A pre-qualification is based off of unverified information and is a rough estimate of what you could qualify for. A pre-approval requires a credit check and financial and employment verification, which provides a more solid approvable loan amount. Once you know this, you can start shopping for your dream home at the Lake of the Ozarks!

Processing

You have found the home of your dreams, worked out an agreement and the contract has been signed. Once your Lake of the Ozarks mortgage lender has the completed purchase agreement, they will begin processing your loan application for approval. They'll look into your credit, employment, and financial history in more detail to come up with a loan estimate. This is not an approval or denial, but a statement of terms and estimated fees.

Loan processors will also look into property information. An inspection and/or appraisal will be ordered to determine that the value of the property covers the loan request amount. If it's determined that the value of the property doesn't meet or exceeds the requested loan amount, the loan may be denied. This doesn't necessarily mean that the deal falls through though, it just means that the purchase contract may need to be revised if all parties agree to move forward.

A title search will also be ordered to make sure there aren't any outstanding liens or judgements on the property that may hinder the underwriting process. This process also brings to light any easements or encroachments that may pose potential ownership issues in the future. The data collected during a title search helps to reduce risk of title problems and brings peace of mind to the buyer.

Underwriting

This is the decision-making step. The underwriter reviews all documentation from the loan processor to make sure the borrower and property match eligibility requirements. All information is double checked for accuracy and red flags. Once they've thoroughly gone through everything, they will either approve or deny the loan. The underwriter may give an approval with conditions such as requiring further documentation on a specific item on your credit report. This happens often and can continue to come up until all conditions are satisfied. Once all conditions have been met, the underwriter can approve the loan.

Closing

Your loan is approved! Now the lender will provide you with a closing disclosure to review and return completed at least three days prior to closing. This document is extremely important because it is an overview of the monetary aspects of the closing, so review it carefully! Once the lender receives this back, they can begin processing the loan documents to be sent to the escrow company for your completion. The escrow company then sends the closing packet back to the lender for final review. Once the lender approves the documents, they will wire funds and give instruction for recording the vesting deed and deed of trust. It's official - you've closed!

A lot of these steps go unseen by the buyer until something is needed by the lender or underwriter, but we feel that it is important for buyers to understand the process so they are prepared. While we hope that all closings go smooth and have very few catches, we know that things happen and there are no guarantees. You can trust that we will guide you in the right direction for all of your Lake of the Ozarks home financing needs.

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