Mortgage Loans

[superturnip]

Pre-approval letters - how valid are they? I received one from Lending Tree after faxing in the standard documentation (2 months pay stub, 2 year tax return, 2 months bank statements, invesments, etc.)

I was told that we are pre-approved for well over what we are asking for. My concern is that I contacted Quicken - they pulled lower credit scores than myfico (Lending Tree's matched exactly) and the officer said that we did not qualify for the 80/20 loan that we need.

We have found a few houses we like and I don't want to run into problems getting a loan locked in. My lending tree rep assures me that everything is pre-approved and we are good to go.

Has anyone had issue with getting pre-approved and then running into issue locking in the loan they were approved for? Our financial, employment, and credit status will not have changed since we were pre-approved. 

[OneMortgageGuy]

A pre-approval letter is good for the realtor and builder but other then that it can be used to help start a fire or wipe your butt. Just remember when you sign a contract for your new home look for the clause that show if you get turned by a lender you get your escrow money back.

Keep in mind that Lending tree sells your information to brokers and they have there own brokers that work for lending tree. Not all brokers suck but most don't want you to shop cause they want your money. For now a 680 going full doc can get an 80/20 but who knows... Things change all the time!

Just shop around and take good notes!!! Use the notes to make sure everything is the same as the broker said it was going to be!

Good Luck!

superturnip wrote:

Pre-approval letters - how valid are they? I received one from Lending Tree after faxing in the standard documentation (2 months pay stub, 2 year tax return, 2 months bank statements, invesments, etc.)

I was told that we are pre-approved for well over what we are asking for. My concern is that I contacted Quicken - they pulled lower credit scores than myfico (Lending Tree's matched exactly) and the officer said that we did not qualify for the 80/20 loan that we need.

We have found a few houses we like and I don't want to run into problems getting a loan locked in. My lending tree rep assures me that everything is pre-approved and we are good to go.

Has anyone had issue with getting pre-approved and then running into issue locking in the loan they were approved for? Our financial, employment, and credit status will not have changed since we were pre-approved. 

[MidnightVoice]

If I remember, pre-approval means you might well get it, pre-qualified means you can borrow $XXX,XXX dollars for a house with XX% down, and the X's are defined in the pre-qualification, as is the length of time the prequalification is valid (usually 3 months I think).

[superturnip]

My bad - my letter says I have been PREQUALIFIED - with 80/20 loan amounts spelled out on the form. Does this mean I am getting the loan - I just need to pay attention to the interest rates on the date I lock in?

The reason I am asking this questions is that I do not trust these loan companies - and I don't want to get excited - then pissed - if we can't get what they prequalified me for...

[Eagle1]

My understanding is a prequal is a cursory look at your finances/ credit based on info you provide, and a preapproval is a commitment to lend you said amount following a more scrutinized look at documentation by the underwriters. The prequal is not a commitment.

[FICO_Focused]

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Eagle1 wrote:
My understanding is a prequal is a cursory look at your finances/ credit based on info you provide, and a preapproval is a commitment to lend you said amount following a more scrutinized look at documentation by the underwriters. The prequal is not a commitment.

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If it came in the mail it is based on voodoo.

Rob

[MidnightVoice]

I moght have them backwards 

[fused]

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 OneMortgageGuy wrote:

A pre-approval letter is good for a fire or wipe your butt

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I'm confused! 

[jaguls66]

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fused111 wrote:

_____________________________________________________________________________

 OneMortgageGuy wrote:

A pre-approval letter is good for a fire or wipe your butt

______________________________________________________________________________

I'm confused! 

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Make sure you wipe your butt, then set it on fire, not the other way around.

[lotusraee]

Some people have different programs then others. Being a direct Lender I have found that my porgrams are better than any broker's. If you are doing a CONV loan we actually initially use an automated system that underwrites our files prior to the UW signing off. Once they receive your info they should run it through this system to make sure you will be approved. Underwriters won't typically look at a file unless it has been ran first. As long as the information they input to run the system and get the file approved matches up to all the supporting documentation you should be fine. My personal opinion stay away from Lending Tree because alot (not all) of the companies that use them just do what I call the bait n switch technique. They tell ya something good to get you in the door because they know that others are competing for your business. What state are you in? Email me some details on the loan and I can offer you some more advice