Getting Preapproved: What Does It Take to Qualify?

A mortgage preapproval is one of the most important steps before you begin seriously shopping for a home — but it’s also one of the most misunderstood.

What exactly does a lender look at? What documents will you need? Does getting preapproved mean your loan is guaranteed? And how early should you start?

In this workshop, we’ll walk through the major pieces of a mortgage preapproval: your credit profile, income, employment, monthly debts, and the funds you expect to use for your purchase.

We’ll talk about how lenders document different types of income, what debts are considered when evaluating your application, where your down payment and closing funds can come from, and why the word “pre” in preapproval matters.

We’ll also discuss why getting preapproved before you find a home can uncover questions while you still have time to address them — and why the most useful preapproval is built around a payment you’re comfortable with, not simply the largest loan you can qualify for.

The goal is to take some of the mystery out of qualification so you know what to expect before you apply.