@Anonymous wrote:Hello, we received a 90 day pre approval through the automated underwriting and I just have a few questions.
1)After the 90 period is up my loan officer explained that they would have to pull credit again. I have a $200 charge on my credit card that brought utilization from 25%-29% on that single card. Wondering if I should pay that off right away or hold onto my cash. (My overall utilization from Fico 3B report was at 34% when the lender pulled credit) This is up to you. Since you haven't found a place yet to buy hold onto your cash and make your normal monthly payments. Just as a side note, you could increase your score if you paid your balances to less than 30% and even less than 9% of your credit limit if possible without affecting the cash you need to close.
2) I wasn't asked for bank statements. The LO just pulled credit, and we provided W2, 1099 and Tax returns. When will they ask for bank statments and what specifically will they be looking for on these? Are there any purchases I make or anything I shouldn't be doing between now and putting an offer on a house? Do I need to stop going to Chick Fil A 3x Per week? Since you don't have a purchase contract yet, they won't ask for bank statements. When you have a P&S contract, you will need to supply 60 days of bank statements. They want to make sure your EMD clears and they are checking to see if there are unusual deposits or payments for debts you didn't disclose. They don't care about your Chick Fil A habit!
3) I've read stories on here about having manual underwriting that went south. Would I still have to go through manual underwriting if we were automatically approved? A underwriter still has to review and approve your loan but this is standard for all mortgages.
4) We were thinking about selling some stock to have an extra buffer of cash on hand at closing - Just in case something happens. Is this allowed or a no-no? My husband has a separate 401k that he won't be touching, but this is stock option through work...It's okay to sell stock. The processor or underwriter will probably ask where the $$ came from and you just tell them (with a Letter of Explanation if they ask). Not a problem. EDIT: before you do anything though - ask your LO to make sure you follow whatever guidelines they have in place.
Thank you all, sorry this message is long. I know I could have easily asked these quesitons to my loan officer, but I didn't want him to think I was trying to be sketchy. I just want to make sure I'm doing everything correctly.
Sounds like you are ready to go shopping! I hope you find a home that is just what you want for you and your family. Remember - have fun shopping! 
