Pre-Qualification
The most important thing you can do is to speak with a loan officer PRIOR to looking for a home. A loan officer will evaluate your financial situation and establish a loan amount for which you qualify. By doing this prior to starting your home search you avoid wasting time and will have a realistic idea of how much home you can afford.

Pre-Approval
Once pre-qualified, we recommend that you upgrade to a pre-approval/credit approval. A pre-approval or credit approval differs from a pre-qualification in that you actually go through the processing/underwriting process of obtaining a loan. Once pre-approved or credit approved you wil be issued a loan commitment, subject to the underwriter's review of satisfactory contract of sale, and an acceptable appraisal report on the property that you have chose to purchase. Having a pre-approval in-hand while searching for a home will add leverage to your negotiations with a potential seller, and the seller will take your offer more seriously than an offer from a buyer who is not pre-approved. Also, the real estate agent will know they are dealing with a qualified buyer.

Selecting A Real Estate Agent
Once pre-qualified, you should choose your real estate agent, using the same caution as when you chose your lender. AmeriCapital Financial can refer many experienced, professional and successful agents from different geographic areas. When choosing a real estate agent make sure they are experienced and have a working knowledge of the area and price range you are seeking.

Loan Application
The best way to apply for a loan is via a face-to-face meeting with your loan officer. Your loan officer will explain the loan process from beginning to end and will complete the application and all required disclosures. The loan officer also collects all the required documents. For details of the required documentation, see "Documents Needed to Apply for a Loan." If you are experienced in buying/selling homes and have applied for mortgage loans in the past, you can save time with a mail out application.

Processing
Loan processing is the procedure of preparing your completed loan application for formal submission to the underwriter. This entails ordering the credit report, real estate appraisal, and verifying account and job information. The loan processor becomes your day-to-day contact and will inform you about the status of your loan application. In order to expedite the processing of your loan it is vital that you give prompt attention to the processor's requests. Our processors are experienced and well trained to analyze the loan files, and anticipate the documents that will be required early in the process. AmeriCapital strives to provide excellent service in order to make your loan process as smooth as possible.

Loan Underwriting
Once the loan processor has received all of your documentation, your loan is ready to be submitted for underwriting. The underwriter will review the information that the processor has gathered and make a determination to grant you the loan, ask for more information, or decline the loan. Please note that the more complete information that you provide, the easier your loan approval process will be.

Loan Closing
After your loan is approved it is forwarded to the closing department. This department prepares the legal documents required for closing. The documents are then forwarded to the title company and a closing is set. The closing, or "signing of the papers," is performed by the title company. The title company acts as an "escrow agent". The funds for your purchase are placed with the title company. Once you and the seller have executed all of the necessary documents, the title company will disburse the funds to the seller and you will be the proud owner of your home!