Once you do find that magic mortgage rate, you’ll probably be wondering how long it’s actually good for.

If you’re not asking that question, you should be because rates aren’t set in stone unless you specifically ask them to be.
By that, I mean locking in the mortgage rate you negotiate or agree upon with the bank/lender so even if rates change from one day to the next, your rate won’t.

Otherwise, you’re merely floating your mortgage rate, and thereby taking your chances. Without a rate lock, it’s really just a quote.

Think of a quoted mortgage rate like a stock price – until you actually buy/sell it, the price is subject to change. So until you lock, rates may worsen or improve.

Rates can generally be locked in for anywhere from 15 to 90 days or longer, with shorter lock periods cheaper than longer ones.

At some point in the mortgage process, you’re going to be searching for a mortgage calculator to figure out your proposed payment.

You can see how monthly payments on mortgage loans are truly calculated using the real math, or you can simply find a payment calculator that does all the work and tells you nothing about how it comes up with the final sum.

Just make sure you use a mortgage calculator that considers the entire housing payment, including taxes, insurance, HOA dues, and so forth. Otherwise you’re not seeing the complete picture.

There is a lot more that goes into a mortgage than just the principal and interest, and taxes and insurance can be quite costly depending on where you buy. Budget accordingly!

As the name implies, refinancing simply means obtaining new financing for something you already own (or partially own, like real estate).

It’s kind of like a balance transfer where you move your loan from one lender to another to get better terms, except it’s a mortgage payoff.

If you currently have a rate of 6% on your mortgage, but see that refinance rates are now 4%, a refinance could make sense and save you a lot of money.

You’d essentially have one lender pay off your existing loan with a brand new loan at the lower interest rate.
There is also the cashout refinance, which allows you to tap into your home equity while also changing the rate and term of your existing mortgage.

So if you currently owe $200,000, but your home is worth $500,000, you could potentially take out $100k cash and your new loan amount would be $300,000.

Your monthly payments may not even go up if interest rates are favorable, and you’d have that cash to use for whatever you wish.

Be sure to use a refinance calculator or payoff calculator to help guide your decision, and consider the loan term, otherwise known as your expected tenure in the property.

Like I mentioned in the related question above, be sure to factor in all the elements that go into a mortgage payment, not just the principal and interest payment that you often see advertised.

It’s not enough to look at P&I, you have to consider the PITI.And sometimes even the “A,” which stands for homeowners association dues.

If you don’t consider the full housing payment, including property taxes and homeowners insurance (and maybe even private mortgage insurance) you might do yourself a disservice when it comes to determining how much you can afford during the home buying process.

Whether you have an escrow account or not, mortgage lenders will qualify you by factoring in taxes and insurance, not just your monthly mortgage payment.

This depends on when you close your home loan and if you pay prepaid interest at closing. It can actually be pretty complicated.

For example, if you close late in the month, chances are your first mortgage payment will be due in just over 30 days.
Conversely, if you close early in the month, you might not make your first payment for nearly 60 days.

That can be nice if you’ve got moving expenses and renovation costs to worry about, or if your checking account is a little light after getting the mortgage squared away.

It depends what type of mortgage you’re attempting to get, and also what down payment you have, or if it’s a purchase or a refinance.

The good news is that there are a lot of mortgage programs available for those with low credit scores, including VA loans and FHA mortgages.

For example, the FHA goes as low as 500 FICO, Fannie and Freddie 620, and the USDA and VA don’t technically have a minimum credit score, though most lenders want at least 620/640.

If you’re in good shape financially, a poor credit score may not actually be a roadblock.

But you can save a lot of money if you have excellent credit via the lower interest rate you receive for being a better borrower.

Simply put, loan rates are lower if you’ve got a higher credit score.

Speaking of credit scores, FHA loans have very accommodative credit score requirements. We’re talking scores as low as 580 that require just a 3.5% down payment.

That’s pretty flexible. Of course, conventional mortgages can be had with just a 3% down payment, though a 620 credit score is needed.

FHA stands for Federal Housing Administration, a government agency that insures the mortgage loans to help low- and moderate-income borrowers achieve the dream of homeownership.

They are commonly utilized by first-time home buyers, but available to just about anyone, unlike VA loans, which are reserved for veterans and active duty military only.

One downside to an FHA loan is that mortgage insurance is required, regardless of down payment.

Here you’ll need to consider home values, how much you make, what your other monthly liabilities are, what you’ve got in your savings account.

And what your down payment will be in order to come up with your loan amount.

From there, you can calculate your debt-to-income ratio, which is very important in terms of qualifying for a mortgage.

This is a fairly involved process, so it’s tough to just estimate what you can afford, or provide some quick calculation.

There’s also your comfort level to consider. How much home are you comfortable financing?

And don’t forget the property taxes and insurance, which can make your housing payment much more expensive!

That brings up a good point about getting pre-qualified for a home loan.

It’s an important first step to ensure you can actually get a mortgage, while also determining how much you can afford. Two birds, one stone.

A more involved process is a mortgage pre-approval, where you actually provide real financial documents to a bank or mortgage broker for review, and they run your credit.

Real estate agents typically require that you be pre-approved if you want to make a qualified offer.

Oh yeah, here’s an important one. Are you actually eligible for a mortgage or are you simply wasting your time and the lender’s?

While requirements do vary, most lenders require two years of credit history, clean rental history, and steady employment, along with some assets in the bank.

As mentioned, getting that pre-qual, or better yet, pre-approval, is a good way to find out if the real thing (a loan application) is worth your while.

However, even if you are pre-approved, things can and do come up that turn a conditional approval into a denial letter, such as an undisclosed credit card, personal loan, auto loan, or pesky student loans.

It’s not 100% until it funds.

There are probably endless reasons why you could be denied a mortgage, and likely new ones being realized every day. It’s a funny business, really.

With so much money at stake and so much risk to lenders if they don’t do their diligence, you can bet you’ll be vetted pretty hard.

If anything doesn’t look right, with you or the property, it’s not out of the realm of possibilities to be flat out denied.

Those aforementioned student loans or credit cards can also come back to bite you, either by limiting how much you can borrow or by pushing your credit scores down below acceptable levels.

That doesn’t mean give up, it just means you might have to go back to the drawing board and/or find a new lender willing to work with you. It also highlights the importance of preparation!

In short, a lot of them, from tax returns to pay stubs to bank statements and other financials like a brokerage account if using assets from such a source.

This process is becoming less paperwork intensive thanks to new technologies like single source validation, but it’s still quite cumbersome.

You’ll also have to sign lots of loan disclosures, credit authorization forms, letters of explanation, and so on.

While it can be frustrating and time consuming, do your best to get any documentation requests back to the lender ASAP to ensure you close your home loan on time.

And make sure you always send ALL pages of documents to avoid unnecessary re-requests.

In short, a mortgage broker is a knowledgeable individual who can guide you through the mortgage process, and do so by shopping your loan scenario with any number of lender partners, instead of just one.

They are middlemen that connect mortgage lenders to borrowers, as opposed to you working directly with a retail bank/lender.

If you’ve been denied in the past, or have a tricky scenario, a mortgage broker could be just the ticket to get that loan approval.

They may also provide a more personal experience if you want a hands-on approach as opposed to say a call center or big bank.

There are a lot of home loan options, including fixed-rate mortgages and adjustable-rate mortgages, along with conventional loans and government loans, such as FHA and VA.

While most homeowners just default to the 30-year fixed, there are plenty of other loan programs available, and some may result in significant savings depending on your plans.

For example, a 5/1 ARM might come with an interest rate 0.75% below a 30-year fixed, and it’s still fixed for the first five years.

You might want to start with the fixed rate vs. ARM argument, then go from there.
If you’re comfortable with an ARM, you can explore the many options available.

If you know fixed is the only way to go with a home loan, you can determine whether a shorter-term option like the 15-year fixed is in your budget and best interest.

Also consider the FHA vs. conventional pros and cons to ensure you’ve covered all your bases if trying to decide between those two loan types.

That depends on a lot of factors, including the purchase price of the home, the type of loan you choose, the property type, the occupancy type, your credit score, and so on.

I can tell you that there are still zero down mortgage options available in certain situations, including for USDA and VA loans, and widely available 3% and 3.5% down options as well.

In short, you can still get a mortgage with a relatively small down payment, assuming it’s owner-occupied and not a vacation home or investment property. Just make sure you can afford the higher monthly payments!

Good question. The answer coincides with down payment and/or existing home equity, along with loan type.

Basically, you want to be at or below 80% loan-to-value to avoid mortgage insurance entirely, at least when it comes to a home loan backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

That means a 20% down payment or greater when purchasing a home, or 20%+ equity when refinancing a mortgage.

However, the FHA is sticking it to everyone regardless of down payment, so if you get an FHA loan, mortgage insurance is unavoidable.

And even if mortgage insurance isn’t explicitly charged, you can argue that it’s built into your interest rate or closing costs if you aren’t at 80% LTV or lower.

This is yet another reason to come to the table with a larger down payment if at all possible.

The choice is yours when it comes to points, though it does depend on how the lender or broker defines points. Are they discount points or a loan origination fee?

In either case, you’re going to pay something when you take out a mortgage to ensure the salesperson and/or company gets paid. It’s definitely not free.

Of course, these points can be paid directly and out-of-pocket, or indirectly via a higher mortgage rate and/or rolled into the loan.

This is part of the negotiation process, and also your preference.

This is an easier mortgage question to answer, though it can still vary quite a bit.
In general, you might be looking at anywhere from 30 to 45 days for a typical residential mortgage transaction, whether it’s a mortgage refinance or home purchase.

Of course, stuff happens, a lot, so it’s not out of the ordinary for the process to take up to 60 days or even longer.

At the same time, there are companies (and related technologies) that are trying to whittle the process down to a couple weeks, if not less. So look forward to that in the future!

A Closing Disclosure is a five-page form that provides final details about the mortgage loan you have selected. It includes the loan terms, your projected monthly payments, and how much you will pay in fees and other costs to get your mortgage (closing costs).

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are large companies that guarantee most of the mortgages made in the U.S. Together, they are also known as the government sponsored enterprises (GSEs). Historically, they were private companies operating with government permission and under government regulation. In late 2008, following the financial crisis, the U.S. government took over operations at both companies.

Loan guarantees from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reduce risk for lenders who make loans and investors who might purchase them. This makes loans more affordable and contributes to the availability of 30-year fixed-rate loans. Loans that are not eligible for Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac guarantees are typically more expensive.

Loans guaranteed by the GSEs are known as conventional  loans. To qualify, these loans must meet certain criteria. Some requirements are established by government regulation (for example, maximum loan amounts), while others are set by the companies.

“TRID” is an acronym that some people use to refer to the TILA RESPA Integrated Disclosure rule.

It is very risky to purchase a home for more than the appraised value.

First, get a copy of the appraisal
The appraisal is a professional opinion as to the value of the home you want to purchase. Appraisers have to follow rules in arriving at the value of a property, and lenders are not allowed to interfere with the appraiser’s judgment. The lender is required to send you a copy of the appraisal. If you haven’t received a copy, ask your lender for it.

A good next step is to ask the seller to reduce the price on the home
You can often use the lower appraised value to negotiate a reduction in the sales price of the home. The appraisal is strong evidence that the price was above the market value of the home.

If the seller won’t reduce the price on the home, you may want to cancel the sale
Consider consulting an attorney about your options. Depending on the terms of your purchase contract, there may be costs associated with cancelling the sale.  However, these costs are likely small compared to buying a home that isn’t worth what you paid for it.

Private mortgage insurance is designed to safeguard the lender in the event you cannot pay back a loan. Typically, lenders will mandate that you take on the insurance cost if you are unable to make a down payment of 20% (or more) of the purchasing price.

Costs can vary substantially for the insurance, but you can generally expect them to add up to more than $1,000 per year and be built into the monthly payment for your mortgage. It’s possible to forgo the insurance after enough equity has been accrued on the property.