From Loan Estimate to Closing Day (and Keeping Your Home)

1. Tanyakan kepada setidaknya tiga pemberi pinjaman untuk Estimasi Pinjaman, misalnya bank, koperasi kredit, dan perusahaan hipotek. Pemberi pinjaman harus mengirimkannya dalam waktu tiga hari kerja setelah Anda mengajukan.
2. Ajukan dalam waktu singkat, misalnya dua minggu. Skor kredit menghitung beberapa pemeriksaan kredit dari pemberi pinjaman hipotek yang dilakukan berdekatan sebagai satu permintaan saja. Tergantung pada skor, jendela waktu tersebut adalah 14 hingga 45 hari.
3. Pastikan setiap estimasi sesuai dengan jenis pinjaman, jumlah pinjaman, dan uang muka yang sama, agar Anda bisa membandingkan secara adil.
4. Bandingkan suku bunga, poin, APR, pembayaran bulanan, biaya penutupan, dan kas untuk penutupan.
5. Tanyakan kepada setiap pemberi pinjaman untuk menjelaskan biaya apa pun yang tidak Anda pahami. Anda bisa bertanya, "Bisakah Anda menurunkan biaya ini atau menyamai tawaran lain ini?"
6. Di halaman 1, periksa apakah ada penalti pembayaran di muka (biaya untuk melunasi pinjaman lebih awal) atau pembayaran balon (pembayaran yang sangat besar yang harus dibayar di akhir). Kebanyakan pembeli sebaiknya menghindari keduanya.

Suku bunga hipotek berubah setiap hari. Kunci suku bunga menahan suku bunga Anda untuk waktu tertentu, seringkali 30, 45, atau 60 hari, selama Anda menutup tepat waktu dan tidak ada perubahan dalam aplikasi Anda. Mintalah kunci tersebut secara tertulis.

Bahkan dengan kunci, tarif atau biaya Anda dapat berubah jika:

• Anda mengubah jenis pinjaman atau besaran uang muka Anda,
• penilaian (perkiraan profesional nilai rumah) lebih tinggi atau lebih rendah dari yang diharapkan,
• Perubahan skor kredit Anda, atau
• Pemberi pinjaman tidak dapat mendokumentasikan sebagian penghasilan Anda, seperti lembur atau bonus.

Tanyakan pada pemberi pinjaman Anda: "Berapa lama kunci saya? Berapa biaya untuk memperpanjangnya jika penutupan tertunda?" Perpanjangan bisa mahal.

The lender must give you the Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing. (In the DC area, closing is often called settlement.) Use those days to compare it with your latest Loan Estimate, line by line.

Which costs can change

• Cannot go up (unless something in your application or loan changed, or your rate was not locked yet): fees paid to the lender or mortgage broker, such as points and origination fees, fees for required services you were not allowed to shop for, and transfer taxes.
• Can go up, but by no more than 10% in total: recording fees, and fees for required services when you chose a provider from the lender's list.
• Can change by any amount: prepaid interest, homeowners insurance, escrow deposits, and services the lender does not require.

An escrow account is money your servicer collects with each monthly payment to pay your property taxes and home insurance for you. At closing you usually put some money in to start it.

If a fee went up more than the rules allow and nothing changed, you are entitled to a refund of the extra amount. Some changes also give you a new three-day waiting period: the APR on a fixed-rate loan goes up by more than 1/8 of a percentage point, a prepayment penalty is added, or the loan type changes, for example from fixed to adjustable.

Closing-week checklist

• Compare the Closing Disclosure with your Loan Estimate: loan amount, rate, monthly payment, points, fees, and cash to close.
• Ask the lender about every difference before closing day.
• Set up homeowners insurance. Lenders require it.
• Confirm how to pay your cash to close by calling a phone number you already trust.
• Do a final walk-through: visit the home to check that it is in the condition you agreed to.
• Bring a photo ID. If you need an interpreter, arrange one ahead of time, or bring someone you trust.
• Do not sign anything you do not understand, and never sign blank pages. Keep copies of everything.

Fewer work hours, a layoff, or a medical bill can make it hard to pay. The most important step is to act early. Foreclosure is the legal process a lender uses to take and sell your home when you stop paying the mortgage. Generally, the foreclosure process cannot start until you are more than 120 days behind. Use that time.

1. Call your servicer as soon as you know you might miss a payment. The phone number is on your monthly statement.
2. Ask about loss mitigation options, such as a repayment plan, a forbearance (a short pause or lower payments), or a loan modification (a lasting change to your loan terms).
3. Send a complete application quickly. If your servicer gets it before the foreclosure starts, the servicer generally must review it before it can start the foreclosure.
4. Call a HUD-approved housing counselor at 800-569-4287. They can help you with the application, often for free.
5. Open every letter from your servicer and from the court. If you miss a deadline, you can lose some options.

Hello, my name is [your name]. My loan number is [loan number]. My income dropped on [date] because [reason]. I want to keep my home, but I may not be able to make my payment due on [due date]. What loss mitigation options do I have? Please send me an application and tell me every document you need and the deadline. May I have your name and a reference number for this call?

Local help

• DC: call the Foreclosure Prevention Hotline at (202) 265-2255. After you get a notice of default, you can use the DC Foreclosure Mediation Program, where you and your lender meet with a neutral mediator. Legal Aid DC and the DC Bar Pro Bono Center offer free legal help to people who qualify.
• Maryland: call the homeowner assistance hotline at 1-877-462-7555. Maryland also has foreclosure mediation for people who live in the home. You must ask the court for it within 25 days after you receive the court papers that start the foreclosure, and there is a fee. Maryland Legal Aid helps people who qualify.
• Virginia: call a HUD-approved counselor early. Legal Services of Northern Virginia helps people who qualify.

For more steps when income drops, see When Income Stops: Your First 30 Days.