Should you talk to a mortgage professional before house hunting?

Absolutely! It's important to speak with your mortgage professional to get pre-qualified before you even start looking for a house. By calling Kevin before you start house hunting, you can go into the home-buying process with more certainty.  Kevin can help you determine how much of a monthly mortgage payment you can comfortably afford, and how much of a loan he can get for you. He does this by considering your income and debts, your employment and residence situations, your available funds for down payment and required reserves, and credit score.  It's literally a short phone conversation with minimal paperwork.  

Kevin will then provide you with a letter known as a Pre-Qualification Letter that states the maximum amount that you could borrow.  The letter tells both the realtor and the seller that Kevin and his team are working with you to find the best loan to meet your needs and that he's confident you'll qualify for a loan.

This will give you leverage when you find a house that meets your criteria, and decide to make an offer.  To the seller, the fact that you took the time to get pre-qualified indicates that you're a serious buyer with the financial backing to make the deal.  And, being pre-qualified gives you the confidence to know you can follow through on your offer. 

You can always use the calculators available on our site to get a rough idea of how much of a mortgage you can afford -- but it's important to speak with Kevin in order to get more accurate numbers along with the Pre-Qualification Letter.