Organize Your Documents & Yourself
Get Pre-Approved
Search for Properties
Write an Offer
Get Loan Approval
Close the Loan
Organize Your Documents & Yourself
Initially you will want to get a feel for not only the price and type of property but also the neighborhood you want to call your future home. Generally speaking most people with decent credit will be able to afford at least (if not more) three times their gross annual salary. So with this in mind, start searching for properties to understand what you actually want to afford. Further, start thinking about where you store all your important financials like tax returns and bank statements.
Get Pre-Approved
Please think about bringing the following with you when applying for your mortgage loan:
- Most recent pay statement with year-to-date totals
- Two most recent monthly bank statements
- Most recent statement on any other asset accounts (401K, IRA, stocks, mutual funds)
- Prior year's W-2 statement(s)
The documents above are required for a Full-Doc loan. There are also many loan programs that require very little documentation. These No-Doc or Low-Doc loans maybe more suited for you and your current situation. As an example, many self employed people choose a No-Doc mortgage.
Search for Properties
To start searching for properties first you must register with www.cogentre.com. This is important because the benefit of registering is that it is free and you will get access to 100% of all Chicagoland listings. Many sites don’t provide access to all listings, especially those requiring no registration.
It is also important that your agent search in parallel to your efforts. Your agent will be able to spot better opportunities quicker. An agent will have property and neighborhood knowledge that will help you find the best deal. If you are searching on your own, you need an agent to help. Our experience leads us to believe that 90% of those who bought without an agent overpaid for their property. Some severely overpay.
After finding some interesting properties you will be on your way to scheduling showings. It is always an amazing experience to go and see properties for yourself versus looking electronically or on paper.
Write an Offer
First and foremost before writing an offer, you need have true understanding of what the property is worth and what you are willing to pay. Writing an offer that is going to “win” starts with having an understanding of the price you may have to pay. Once this has been established, your agent will submit the written offer with the disclosures, the pre-approval plus a few more items. After negotiating the initial offer the result will be an executed offer signed by both parties after they have agreed on price and terms.
Get Loan Approval
Once your loan application has been received the loan approval process starts immediately. Your loan application will be sent to the lender underwriting department for the purpose of verifying credit history, employment history, assets, income, and property value.
Close the Loan
This is the event where actually take possession of the property. Essentially this is where you sign all the paperwork, get funded by the lender and walk away with the keys to your new property. Your attorney will be responsible for organizing all the needed documents to ensure a smooth transaction.
