Welcome to Our Home Refinance Center!
If you are looking to refinance your existing mortgage, you’ve come to the right place!
Your first step is to schedule a telephone call or face-to-face meeting so that we can get an understanding of your goals and objectives. We will then typically follow up with our custom spreadsheet detailing multiple loan options – unless your situation requires the steps below to be completed first. From there we will take the appropriate actions to guide you through the process. However, if you’d like to jump right in now, you can proceed to Step 1.
Step 1: Complete Application
A completed application will give us the information we need get started. The interactive application can be completed online or on your mobile device. When you click on the application link, you will select “Buy a Home or Refinance” and then start entering the information. You can start and stop the application as needed but do not walk away from your computer for more than a few minutes without saving your work as it will not be saved.
Please be sure to complete the entire application and follow directions carefully. Also, please be sure to read through all the following Steps to eliminate surprises and provide for the smoothest loan experience possible. The mortgage business has become highly regulated and detail oriented so its best to be informed and prepared.
Step 2: Needs List
Documents we will need for your refinance: You may send these to your contact person at Equitable Mortgage Group via the Secure Transfer link on their email signature or via the mobile or desktop app you used to apply.
Click here for a list of documents we will need:
Please send us the items below. Some of the items requested will not apply to you:
- Last two years’ complete personal tax returns (1040’s). Be sure to include K1’s if you have them.
- Last two years’ W2’s
- One month’s worth of most recent paycheck stubs
- Name and contact number for your HR Department for Verification of Employment (VOE)
- Last two months of complete asset statements – checking, savings, retirement accounts, stocks, bonds – all pages including blank pages. If you prefer not to do this, call your loan officer to discuss any potential workarounds.
- Current mortgage statements, property tax bills and evidence of homeowner’s insurance for all properties owned – including Lease Agreements if you own rental property. It is important you understand that your homeowner’s insurance premium may need to be paid – depending on your renewal date and the date of the first payment on your new loan. Additionally, if your coverage is not sufficient, it may need to be increased.
- 12 months of cancelled checks proving timely rent payments. If you don’t write checks, alternative proof is acceptable.
- Copy of current lease if you are a renter. If you are not on a month to month lease, please inform us as soon as possible.
- Copy of recorded Divorce Decree or Marital Separation Agreement as applicable.
- Social Security Award Letters and/or pension income documents, as applicable.
- We may need the Terms of Withdrawal from your 401k – proving you may access those funds in the event of a hardship. This is very important if we are using retirement money to meet your “cash reserve” requirements.
- If you are self-employed: Self-employed is defined by having 25% or more ownership in your company and/or any side-businesses: We need a year-to-date Profit and Loss Statement and current Balance Sheet. We will also need a Profit and Loss Statement for the prior year if you have not filed your income taxes with the IRS. We also need your complete business tax returns as applicable.
- Please provide us the contact information for your HOA if you are a condo or PUD owner.
- If there is an illegal unit (in-law, granny, etc.) we need to know immediately as not all lenders will allow illegal units.
- Has the property been listed for sale in the last 12 months? If so, you must let us know as the rate you may have been quoted will likely change.
- If you have any areas of your home under construction, please let us know right away. Bathroom countertops, drywall, roofing etc. These items will need to be completed before a new loan closes and ideally before the appraisers visits the home. DO NOT start new construction or remodel projects before your loan closes.
- Is your property and/or asset statements in a Trust? If you property is not in a Trust, it should be. If you would like a referral to a great Trust Attorney, let us know.
Step 3: Loan Submission and Conditions
Click Here for an Overview of the Loan Process:
- We will send you initial disclosures for your signature. These are rough drafts and will be corrected and/or updated throughout the process electronically. You can expect to sign multiple sets of electronic disclosures, LE’s (Loan Estimates) and CD’s (Closing Disclosures).
- Make sure you have Carbon Monoxide Detectors installed in your home before the appraisal appointment. Also, make sure the water heater is double-strapped. It is important you understand the roughly $500-600 appraisal cost is your responsibility.
- Condo owners:
- Condo owners need to understand that the HOA will be charging them anywhere from $100-$500 to provide the required “condo docs” – CC&R’s, Questionnaires etc.
- Condo owners may or may not need an HO6 Policy of “Walls-in” insurance… it depends on whether the Master HOA Policy covers you or not.
- We then submit your loan to the lender for approval. They will respond with a list of “conditions” you need to provide. These requests for “conditions” will continue throughout the loan process.
- The final docs will be sent to the Title Company for your signature and then back to the lender for funding.
- Once the lender reviews the final docs, they will fund your loan and you will go on record with the County.
- THE most frustrating aspect of the loan process for many of our clients is “documenting large deposits” on their bank statements. The level of detail required to paper-trail the large deposits and transfers between accounts is simply ridiculous and painstaking.
Step 4: Prepare for Closing
Click here for a list of documents we will need:
- Expect to be asked for more documentation up until closing.
- Let us know if you have any travel plans before closing.
- Make sure all funds to close come from accounts that you have provided to us.
- If you have a spouse or other person on Title who is not on the loan, there will be a number of documents that they need to sign – make sure everyone will be at the signing appointment.
- A second credit report will be pulled before your loan funds. As a result, to avoid changes to your loan approval status, we advise you don’t use credit cards, buy cars or other large purchases without checking with us first.
- The lender will call your employer the day the loan funds to ensure you have not quit your job or given notice that you are quitting. If your employer is not responsive, it could delay the closing.
- VERY IMPORTANT: If you have your mortgage on some sort of Auto-Payment system, you will need to turn it off at the appropriate time and you will need to setup the new Auto-Pay once you close on the new loan. Also, DO NOT make EXTRA payments towards your principal on your existing mortgage without checking with us. If your loan balance is less than expected, it could trigger delays and added expenses.
- It is important you understand that all refinance transactions come with between 3 and 4 days of overlapping interest. As a result, you may receive a small refund after closing.
- If you are keeping a line of credit or second mortgage in place, it will need to be subordinated by your existing lender and they charge roughly $300 to do so. This charge is your responsibility. It is also important you understand that we cannot control the speed of that lender providing the subordination paperwork.
Step 5: Post Closing Information
Where do you send your first payment? The closing documents you signed with the Title Rep or Mobile Notary have a First Payment Letter with instructions on where to send your first payment. The first payment date is also on your Note.
Your loan may be sold to a large bank or other reputable institution and potentially sold a few times. This is normal in the mortgage industry.
As always, we are here to answer all of your questions and help you with any challenges that may arise. All of our contact information can be found under the Contact Us page on our website. It is our policy to have an on-call representative.
Finally, and as always, if you have a family member, friend, co-worker or neighbor who is looking to buy or refinance their mortgages, we would love the referral!
Thank you!
