Mortgage Pre-Approval

While both pre-qualification and pre-approval help you estimate how much home you can afford, mortgage pre-approval is considered a more “official” step. For pre-approval, the lender verifies your information by pulling your credit report and credit score and reviewing financial documents (versus collecting basic information from you alone for pre-qualification).

In order to apply, you’ll typically need the following information:

• Residence history for the past 2 years
• Employer name(s), job title and dates of employment for the past 2 years
• Current pay stubs covering a full, 30-day period
• W-2s for the past 2 years (and 1099s and K1s, if applicable)
• Federal tax returns for the past 2 years (all pages and schedules) and business tax returns (25 percent or more ownership), if self-employed

Once you’ve gathered the necessary documents, it’s time to choose a trusted mortgage expert near you.

After choosing a lender, you can apply online or schedule an in-person appointment to start the pre-approval process. Once you’re pre-approved, your mortgage lender can share your pre-approval letter with your real estate agent or builder, giving you the competitive edge when house shopping.

After you’ve been pre-approved for your mortgage, work with your real estate agent to explore the type of home you want and decide where you want to live and which features are must-have and wish list items.

Make sure to set your budget (within your pre-approval amount) before shopping to avoid overspending. If you’re not comfortable determining a budget on your own, your Bell Bank Mortgage loan officer can help you crunch the numbers.

Try our online calculators that take into account additional mortgage costs, loan information and your state and federal tax rate to help determine your maximum budget.