The Home Buying Process

Your roadmap to a stress-free mortgage experience

Step 1: Pre-Approval

Your home buying process should always start with a Pre-Approval prior to beginning your home search. The Pre-Approval process provides you the borrower with the ability to know your price range and the projected monthly payment associated with your price range.

Step 2: Home Search

The next step is to partner with your agent and search for the right home for yourself and your family. Once you find a home and want to make an offer, the Pre-Approval process you completed is paramount to both you and the sellers so you can be confident with your submitting an offer and they can be confident in accepting your offer to purchase their home.

Step 3: Loan Prep

After ratification of your purchase agreement, JBL Lending, LLC will work with you to finalize your loan application and submit your loan to the lender. We will work with you to collect any additional documentation needed in order to submit your loan for underwriting.

Step 4: Underwriting

Once your loan is submitted we will work together with your settlement company and the lender to process your loan, order the appraisal if needed and gather additional documents requested by the underwriter.

Step 5: Final Approval

After everything has been completed and your loan has been final approved, we will work with the lender and your settlement company to schedule the time for your closing and provide you with the closing disclosure at least 3 days prior to your scheduled closing.

Important Questions

  • Yes, it may be possible to speed up the process. Consider these tips below:

    • Become pre-qualified or pre-approved for a loan to help the process move faster. A pre-qualification is a better indication that you are a solid buyer, but only a loan commitment from the lender is a guarantee that you will be approved.

    • Obtain a loan commitment, which is guaranteed under pre-set conditions.

    • Check your credit history and resolve any issues. Be able to explain any other questions about your credit that arise.

    • Make sure you have all the documents you need before applying, including personal identification, income verification and tax returns, employment history, and insurance commitments.

    • Respond promptly to any requests from the loan officer to eliminate unnecessary delays.

  • Each lender requires slightly different financial records—this will depend on the type and amount of the loan you are applying for. However, there are some basic records all lenders will request.

    These include:

    • Income records (i.e. pay stubs for the previous 30 days, the last two years of tax returns, 2 to 3 months of bank records for each of your bank accounts, and any other additional documents that prove your income).

    • You will also need to furnish information about your current debts such as account numbers and monthly payment information.