On Prequalification Themes for VA Mortgages

For those who qualify, including active military, spouses and veterans, use of the VA loan program is enormously beneficial. Coming with special features like no down payment and no private mortgage insurance, VA loans are one of the government's ways of giving back to its service members -- and if you're looking to take advantage of these benefits, one of the first steps will be arranging for VA loan prequalification with your lender.

At Integrity First Lending, we're proud to offer VA home loans to a variety of qualified buyers, including full assistance with prequalification and other initial elements to kick off this process. What is prequalification, why is it important, and what are some vital themes to remember while taking part in it? Here's a basic primer.

VA Loan Prequalifying Basics and Importance

For any VA loan (and most other mortgage types, as well), prequalification is an important first step. With prequalification, you will be checking your eligibility before making the effort to ask for a quote. By getting this step out of the way now, you can speed up the process when it comes time to actually apply for the loan, which is likely what you're here to do in the first place!

Prequalifying is a less intensive process than pre-approval, typically occurring before any formal documents are submitted to lenders or brokers. You can prequalify by phone, or online via secure form, and submitting this information will give you a preliminary estimate of how much the lender believes you would be approved for if you were to apply at their institution.

What Information Is Required for Prequalification?

Prequalifying is based on income verification (in some cases, including self-employment), credit report information and basic property information. If you've owned a home before, that can also be included in order to generate an accurate prequalification figure, but the lender will need at least your name and phone number along with your social security number.

Basic Tips for Prequalification

Here are some basic themes to remember during prequalification:

• Be open and honest with your lender: Lenders specialize in knowing the rules and regulations that govern lending. In order to work with you, they need to know your true financial picture before offering you a formal quote, so being open from the start will speed up this process.
• Ask plenty of questions: If there's anything you're unclear about during this process, don't be afraid to ask. From VA loan limits (which are higher than many realize) to the types of down payment assistance available (beyond what is covered by traditional tax credits), you can get details that could help your buying power.
• Know the difference between prequalification and pre-approval: In general, prequalification means you're checking your eligibility before applying for a loan. Pre-approval is when a lender does an in-depth check on your financial picture, and will be able to offer a formal quote once this process has been completed.

For more on the process of prequalifying for a VA loan, or to learn about any of our VA loans, conventional loans or other mortgage programs, speak to the team at Integrity First Lending today.