“The buyer is pre-approved!”
These words, given to a seller who is juggling multiple offers on their home, are really saying, “This buyer has money in hand and isn’t going to cause issues trying to secure the money later.” It’s gold to a seller and could very well tip the scales in your favor if you’ve put in an offer on a home with a lot of competition from other buyers.
A pre-approval means you’ve completed the most tedious parts of a mortgage loan application already and received approval from a lender. The documentation of your income and credit are done, so when you finally find your new home, the lender can go straight to work on appraisals, inspections and other house-specific tasks.
Can you apply for your loan after you’ve made an offer on a home? Of course, you can. But making an offer with your pre-approval in hand? Here are four reasons that’s a great idea for you as a buyer.
- Shop with confidence.
There’s no stress wondering if you’ll be approved for a mortgage for that house you just fell in love with. No one enjoys that rug-pulled-out-from-under-you sensation of a great home slipping away because the mortgage didn’t materialize. And when you’re pre-approved, you hold the negotiating power! You know how high of a price you can afford, and you know that your pre-approval is attractive to a seller. - Spend more time seeing the RIGHT homes.
If you have a solidified upper and lower cost limit, you and your real estate agent can focus in on only those homes you could potentially buy. That’ll save you time and frustration. Your real estate agent can use that information to narrow listings to only those in your price range, so you aren’t sent listings for homes that you will end up loving but not able to afford. And you won’t spend time touring a home that you can’t afford. It’s a more efficient way to shop! - Gain an edge among other prospective buyers without pre-approved offers.
Compared to a buyer who hasn’t been pre-approved, your offer may seem more solid to a seller. A pre-approval shows a seller that you’re serious, committed, and they aren’t going to be let down after accepting your offer only to have to start from square one when your loan doesn’t come through. So, if it comes down to two similar offers, and yours is the one that’s pre-approved, you may have a better chance of the seller choosing your offer. - Close faster.
When you’re pre-approved, a lot of the upfront paperwork and credit checks have already been completed, so you can get moving quicker. A pre-approval can shorten the time between offer acceptance and closing—something you AND the seller will appreciate.
Consider getting pre-approved as soon as you’re ready to start your home search. Getting approved is one of the longest (and most stressful) parts of getting a mortgage, so the more work you get done before shopping, the more you’re going to enjoy your shopping experience.
How do you get pre-approved? Just apply for your loan! The Kirtland FCU Home Loan team will collect the necessary documents and information, run credit checks, go over loan numbers with you and more. So, when you find your perfect home, all you need to do is make the offer!
And with Kirtland Federal Credit Union, you can apply for your mortgage loan any time, day or night, at KirtlandFCU.org/HomeLoan!
Or, if you prefer, just swing by the Home Loan Center at 6700 Jefferson NE, Ste D-1 to get started in person.
Let’s move!
