After you have figured out how much you want to pay out of pocket, the next thing to check off on your home buying to do list is to research loan officers. Clearly, there are some who will do a much better job than others, so choosing your loan officer wisely will go a long way in the long haul. You want to be sure that you will be working with someone who will do an accurate job in prequalifying you. While this might sound easy, this task can turn out to be one of the toughest parts of the mortgage process.
You would think that any loan officer would require to be licensed, however this is not the case. Many people do not realize that a loan officer that is working for a bank does not need to be licensed at all. His or her only requirement is a simple background check. As you can see, almost any one can do this, which means there are a lot of loan officers out there that are not as qualified as they should be. Since loan officers do not require a license, it is especially important to research their qualifications.
The best place to start is to check your loan officer’s qualifications on the National Mortgage Licensing System (NMLS) consumer access website: http://www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org. This website will allow you to see the loan officer’s work history, and you can see how many years of experience the loan officer currently has completed. With this information at your disposal, you can be sure that you will be working with a loan officer that is best for you and will know what they’re doing. This part of the process can not be stressed enough, as it is important to know about who you are working with.
That is why we hope you choose The Truth About Lending for your financing needs. We are licensed and have over 25 years of experience in residential lending.
