What does mortgage pre-approval mean?
Mortgage pre-approval is a commitment from a lender to provide you with home financing up to a certain loan amount—basically, the stamp of approval that you have the money, credit history, and other credentials to buy a home up to that price. If you are serious about buying a home, you will need a pre-approval letter from a lender to make an offer.
How to get pre-approved for a mortgage: What you will need
Be prepared to offer up a reasonable amount of paperwork to earn your pre-approval. In general, the paperwork you’ll need to assemble for your lender includes the following:
- Pay stubs from the past 30 days showing your year-to-date income
- Two years of W2 forms from your employer
- 60 days or a quarterly statement of all of your asset accounts, which include your checking and savings, as well as any investment accounts such as CDs, IRAs, and other stocks or bonds
- Residential and employment history for the past two years.
- The lender will require your authorization to access your credit report.
Ready to get your pre-approval? Start here!