Documents You’ll Likely Need
For all borrowers listed on application:
- Recent pay stubs
- W-2 forms from the past two years
- If self-employed:
- Year-to-date profit and loss statement
- Documents to show unpaid accounts receivable
- 1099 forms from past two years
- Bank statements for all your checking and savings accounts
- Statements for all investment accounts, including:
- 401s
- Accumulated cash value from life insurance, if applicable
- Down payment gift letters, if applicable
- Alimony and child support, if applicable
- If you have income from a rental property:
- Documentation of rental income
- Property appraisal report
Tips For Cosigning A Mortgage
If youre committed to being a mortgage cosigner, its best to do lots of research, prepare yourself financially and think about your decision carefully beforehand. Here are some things you should do to become a qualified cosigner to a mortgage:
- Get Your Finances & Credit Ready Dont forget, the two most important elements when trying to qualify as a mortgage cosigner are a solid income and good credit. For the highest chances of approval and lowest rates, be sure you have a steady job, little-to-no debt and a good amount of savings to fall back on.
- Watch Out For Missed Payments Missing mortgage payments is one of the worst things that you or the main buyer can do. It will not only damage your credit but lead to penalty charges and high-interest debt. Moreover, any other properties you own could be at risk if the account goes into default and the lender sues you.
- Figure Out Your Legal Rights & Responsibilities Cosigning a mortgage doesnt just affect your creditworthiness and bank account, it could have an impact on your taxes and estate too. So, it may also be a good idea to hire a lawyer for advice and extra legal protection.
- Request Access To Buyers Mortgage Information Even if you dont own the property, you should know exactly how the mortgage is being handled. Since the actions of the primary buyer can affect you too, its better to have access to their mortgage account in case you need to deal with the payments they miss.
Additional Reading
How Do Lenders Check I Can Afford A Mortgage
Lenders will work out your household income including your basic salary and any other income you receive from a second job, freelancing, benefits, commission or bonuses.
Checking affordability is a much more detailed process. Lenders take all your regular household bills and spending into account, along with any debts such as loans and credit cards, to make sure you have enough left to cover the monthly mortgage repayments.
You May Like: How Much Income For A 250k Mortgage
Bank Statements And Other Assets
When assessing your risk profile, lenders may want to look at your bank statements and other assets. This can include your investment assets as well as your insurance, such as life insurance.
Lenders typically request these documents to make sure you have several months worth of reserve mortgage payments in your account in case of an emergency. They also check to see that your down payment has been in your account for at least a few months and did not just show up overnight.
Loan Application Information Required
The first thing youll do when applying for a mortgage is complete a federally required mortgage application. Regardless of whether the application is in the paper format linked here, an online form, or done verbally with your loan officer, this linked document contains the application with the information youll need to provide, including:
- Full name, birth date, Social Security number, and phone number
- Residence history for at least two years. If youre a renter, your rent payment is needed. If youre an owner, all mortgage, insurance and tax figures are needed for your primary residence and all other properties owned.
- Employment history for at least two years, including company name, address, phone number, and your title.
- Income history for at least two years. If you receive commissions, bonuses, or are self-employed, you must provide two years of bonus, commission, or self-employed income received. Most lenders average variable and self-employed income over two years.
- Asset account balances including all checking, savings, investment, and retirement accounts.
- Debt payments and balances for credit cards, mortgages, student loans, car loans, alimony, child support, or any other fixed debt obligations.
- Confirmation whether youve had bankruptcies or foreclosures within the past seven years, whether youre party to any lawsuits, or you co-sign on any loans.
- Confirmation if any part of your down payment will be borrowed.
You May Like: What Is Typical Debt To Income Ratio For Mortgage
Should You Say Yes To Being A Cosigner
Whether youre about to be a cosigner or youre asking someone to cosign your mortgage, its important to assess the situation and think things over before signing any contracts. Similar to buying a home, cosigning a mortgage is a major financial responsibility, only without the benefits of being the propertys true owner.
Remember, as co-signer, youre also a partial borrower and if the primary buyer cant make payments or defaults, whatever debt and financial consequences that follow will become yours to deal with. Thats why many cosigned mortgages come from financially established parents who are helping their child purchase a home.
The 14 Documents You Must Have To Get A Mortgage
Find out which documents are needed for a mortgage. Mortgages 101
To make your dreams of homeownership come true, youll have to jump through a series of hoops known as the mortgage process. Regarded as lengthy, the application part of the mortgage process requires you, as a borrower, to submit a series of documents to prove everything from your identity to your current income to your ability to pay back the loan. To get your mortgage application approved without any hiccups, its best if you gather everything you need ahead of time, so youre ready when the lender requests information to help get your mortgage loan approved.
You May Like: What Is A Good Home Mortgage Rate
Could I Get Rejected For A Mortgage Because Of My Bank Statements
Mortgage lenders can reject your application based on what they see in your bank statements.
Usually, theyll just need to clarify something with you or get some additional information, but depending on the issues, it could potentially be the difference between getting accepted or rejected.
Here are the key things to look out for on your bank statements that could negatively affect your mortgage application:
- Bounced payments and cheques
- Large deposits that are unaccounted for
- Evidence of excessive gambling
- Evidence of being overdrawn for long periods of time
- Evidence of paying off a payday loan or other forms of undisclosed borrowing
- Its also advised to avoid any large purchases in the months leading up to your mortgage application as it can be a red flag for some lenders
And it goes without saying that if you cant prove your income streams or your deposit with your bank statements, then you wont be approved for your mortgage.
What Do Mortgage Lenders Look For In Your Banking History
Below are the basics of your mortgage affordability and the key things lenders will look at in your bank statements.
- Confirm your income
Your mortgage lender will want to confirm the source, frequency and value of your income from your bank statements that contain your salary or other income sources.
Theyll also cross-reference your cashflow figures to your mortgage application, your latest P60 and 3 months of payslips.
- Confirm your regular outgoings
Underwriters will look at any direct debits, financial commitments or regular spending habits from month to month in your bank statements to help calculate whether your mortgage is affordable.
- Verify your source of deposit
Your mortgage lender will want to confirm that your house deposit originates from your own funds or from a disclosed and verified source. If they see that its appeared in your account as a lump sum within the last few months and you havent disclosed this, theyll need to ask questions.
Its ok to get your deposit from a close family member, but you need to disclose this as a gifted deposit to your mortgage lender.
And you may also need to provide a signed gift letter from the person helping with your deposit, confirming that its not a loan and that they wont own part of your home.
Note: Gifted deposits are fine from close family, but when theyre from distant family members or friends, banks need to do extra checks to verify the source and legitimacy of the funds.
Also Check: What Credit Score Is Needed To Get A Mortgage Loan
Apply For Mortgage Preapproval
Preapproval is the process of learning how much a lender is willing to lend to you. When you apply for a preapproval, lenders take a look at your income, assets and credit, and tell you how much they can lend you. Theyll also determine your interest rate. A preapproval is different than a prequalification. Prequalifications are less accurate than preapprovals because they dont require asset verification. Make sure you get a preapproval instead of a prequalification. Getting preapproved for a loan is a good idea because it gives you an accurate idea of how much you can afford to spend on a home. This will help you narrow your property search, and it also makes you more appealing to both sellers and real estate agents.
If Your Deposit Is From Savings
If we need to see the deposit in your bank account statements, well let you know in your Decision in Principle.
The number of bank statements well need depends on the location of your savings account:
- Within the UK and European Economic Area well need to see 1 statement.
- Outside of the UK and EEA well need to see 3 months of statements.
- If we do not need to see your deposit, we wont ask to see any bank statements.
You May Like: How Does A 5 1 Arm Mortgage Work
Prepare For Your Closing
Youre nearing the finish line just a few more things to do to prepare for your closing. Prior to closing youll receive a Closing Disclosure, or CD, from your lender showing the actual terms of the agreement and your final costs. Review these closing documents and if any questions arise, ask your lender.
Youll also make arrangements for your down payment and closing costs. Plan to bring a cashiers check, photo ID and proof of homeowners insurance with you to your closing.
Spending Expenses And Debts
On top of your income, your lender will also want to understand your financial liabilities. After all your bills are paid, how much is left over each month to put toward a new mortgage payment? You’ll be asked to list out all of your debts, as well as expenses like child support and alimony you may provide.
Recommended Reading: What Is The Longest Mortgage Term Available
Get Your Approval Letter
Once you find the best mortgage solution for your needs, you can see if youre approved online. If you are, well send you a Prequalified Approval Letter that you can use to begin house hunting. If you want an even stronger approval, you may want to consider contacting a Home Loan Expert and applying for a Verified Approval.
Tested. Trusted. Top-rated.
Getting Prequalified Is A Simple Way To Ease Into The Process
If youre curious how much you may qualify to borrow, getting prequalified can be a valuable step in the home-buying process. Its quick and easy to do, and depending on the type of prequalification, may not affect your credit report. Youll need to provide some basic financial information, such as debt, income and assets. With this knowledge youll be able to answer: How much house can I afford? Or crunch your own numbers to estimate your monthly payment, affordability and more.
Lets get you closer to your new home.
Prequalification helps you see how much you might be able to borrow.
Recommended Reading: How Do You Refinance Your Mortgage
Your Land Title Registry Offices Role
Land title registry offices are part of your provincial or territorial government. These offices register official property titles. They have processes to make changes to a propertys title.
You, your lawyer or your notary must provide your land registry office with all the required documents. Once it receives the documents, your land registry office removes the lenders rights to your property. They update the title of your property to reflect this change.
Documents Youll Need To Apply For A Mortgage
- Social Security numbers, or individual taxpayer identification numbers for all borrowers.
- Home addresses for at least the past two years.
- Your most recent paystubs covering at least 30 days of income
- Your most recent W-2s , or if self-employed, 1099s or K1s
- Your most recent Federal Tax Returns , including all pages and all schedules. Note: if you are self-employed, you may need to provide both your personal and business tax returns.
- Two to three-months of statements for each of your accounts: Checking, savings, IRA, 401K, credit cards, etc.
- Information on other consumer debt accounts such as car loans or leases and student loans
- Social Security award letter or pension award letter, if applicable
- Year-to-date profit and loss statements and/or balance sheets, if self-employed
- Gift letter if you are using money from parents or relatives to help cover down payment or closing costs
- Landlords name, address & phone number, if you rent
- May also need to show rent/utility payments to document payment history if needed
Depending on the type of home loan you are applying for, and your individual circumstances, you may also need:
You May Like: How To Remove A Cosigner From A Mortgage
How To Prepare For Your Application
Before applying for a mortgage, contact the three main credit reference agencies and look at your credit reports. Make sure there is no incorrect information about you. You can do this online either through a paid subscription service or one of the free online services currently available.
You can check you credit score with one of the three main credit ratings agencies:
Are Photographs Of Documents Accepted
Youll usually need the original documents of ID like your passport and driving licence, but you should be able to provide copies of other evidence. Generally speaking, the copy should be a photocopy or PDF . The lender or your local bank branch may be able to help you make copies.
The same goes for submitting mortgage applications online. Youll usually need to scan in your evidence or upload PDFs, but some online providers may accept clear photographs.
When making copies, always make sure all the information is visible, such as account numbers, sort codes, addresses, names, company logos and figures.
The good news is that your mortgage broker will double-check with you that you have all the right documents before you apply to the lender, and will remind you if anything is missing, so with their help you can get your application right first time.
Let us match you to your perfect mortgage adviser
Read Also: When You Sign A Mortgage You Are
List Of Documents Needed When Applying For A Mortgage
When getting a mortgage, its critical that you submit correct and accurate documents. Each document is verified by your loan officer, and any incorrect information will cause a delay in the approval of your loan. Here is a list of the mortgage application 14 documents youll need to apply for a loan:
Why Does A Mortgage Lender Need To See Your Bank Statements
The simple answer to this question is to make sure you can genuinely afford to repay the mortgage youve applied to take out.
Although mortgage lenders want to give you a mortgage and win your business, they need to ensure you wont default on your repayments and leave them out of pocket.
And they also need to ensure that the loan they give you meets the FCAs regulations with regards to lending eligibility and anti money laundering criteria.
Whether or not youll be accepted is a numbers game with complex risk scenarios and affordability calculations that are undertaken by mortgage underwriters behind the scenes. But we will just focus on what you need to know for your application.
Recommended Reading: Can You File Bankruptcy On A Second Mortgage
Locking In Your Interest Rate
Since interest rates fluctuate frequently, things can change between the day you apply for your loan and the day you close. If you want to protect yourself against rising interest rates and ensure that the loan terms you used to build your budget are locked, you might consider locking in your rate with your lender when you fill out your loan application.
A rate lock, also known as a rate commitment, is your lenders assurance that the interest rate and discount points are guaranteed until the rate lock expiration date. The lender will provide the terms of the rate lock to you in writing, including the agreed-upon interest rate, the length of the lock and any discount points you choose to pay. Learn more about discount points
Of course, if you believe that interest rates will decrease in the near future, waiting to lock your rate may make sense to you. In the end, its a personal choice when to lock your rate. The rate must be locked prior to the lender preparing your closing documents. Talk to your lender about the choice that best suits your needs and your preferences.