Mortgage Loans: Get Preapproved

In today's market it pays to get pre-approved for a loan before you begin shopping. You'll learn how much home you can afford and you'll be ready to move fast when you want to make an offer.

What's the difference between pre-qualification, pre-approval, and approval?

• Pre-qualification - is an informal process using simple income and debt calculations to determine the price range of home you could purchase. This is the first step when considering buying a new home. Information is given verbally - no documents or verifications are necessary. No costs are involved and calculations can be done with a loan officer or on your own using our online calculators. Mortgage Qualifier
• Pre-approval - is an application for a mortgage without actually having found a house. Pre-approval is free, fast, and unlike the pre-qualification, includes a review of your credit history. This gives you a more firm commitment from us about how much of a loan you will qualify for, which will then help you find the right property. Pre-approvals will have a fully automated option on-line, starting in 2004.
• Approval - Once a property is found, an application is completed and a deposit of $300 is submitted to process the application and lock a rate, if desired. All formal verification of income, debt, and property information are completed.