When meeting with the lender, the consumer must be do the following:
• Always be truthful to the lender
• Have complete copies of last two (2) federal tax returns including all W-2’s on all borrowers
• Have copy of most recent paystub for all borrowers on the transaction
• Have a copy of last two (2) months bank statements on all accounts and any stock/investment accounts
• If refinancing, have a copy of most recent mortgage statement
• If refinancing, bring copies of original documents in regard to mortgage
• Prepare a list of all assets, including names of banks, average balances along with a list of all liabilities, i.e., auto loans, credit cards, 2nd home mortgages. Note the lender can receive this information via a copy of your credit report. But having the information available at the meeting is important.
At this meeting, the lender will be able to approximate, what your debt to income ratio. The final ratio is determined by credit underwriting.
By having this information available, the lender should be able to discuss with the consumer various types of loan programs, which will meet the consumer’s financial position. If you are a new home buyer, it is important that you have money available for a down payment. A new home buyer should not be pushed into any program or loan that is at more than 80 percent of the lendable value of the home.
