Are the schools good? How much garage space do we need? Is there a neighborhood pool?
If you're looking to buy a house, chances are you've asked those questions and many more.
But before you get far into house hunting, there's another kind of hunting you have to do: document hunting.
Applying for a mortgage means providing information about your identity, employment, finances and the home you’re hoping to buy. Tracking everything down ahead of time makes the application process a lot easier — and help avoid a frantic search for a two-year-old W-2 when you’d rather be thinking about your new house.
Here are 29 things you may want to have handy when you apply for a mortgage. FYI, not *everything* on this list will apply to every borrower, and your lender may request additional information or supporting documents depending on your situation.
Everyone Applying for the Loan
First, you’ll need some basic information for each borrower. Much of this is probably easy to find, but employment and address histories can take a little more digging.
Have these ready:
- A copy of a government-issued ID for each applicant
- Social Security number for each applicant
- Your Radiant member account number*
- Address history for the last two years
- Work history for the last two years
- Names, addresses and phone numbers for current and former employers
- Your position, title and the type of business for each job
*Not a Radiant member yet? That’s OK. You can apply for membership and become a member before your loan closes.
Your Income and Finances
Your lender needs a clear picture of your income and assets, so this is where you’ll probably do most of your document gathering.
You may need:
- Paystubs covering the last 30 days, showing year-to-date and current-period earnings for each applicant
- W-2 forms from the past two years for each applicant
- Proof of Social Security or pension income, if applicable
- Proof of alimony or child support, if you’re using that income to qualify*
- Additional documentation if you’re self-employed, which may include personal and business tax returns, profit and loss statements, and business balance sheets
- Account statements from other financial institutions, if you want those assets considered for qualifying
- Statements for deposit, investment or retirement accounts
A quick note on alimony and child support: You do not have to disclose alimony, child support or separate maintenance income if you do not want that income considered when determining your ability to repay the loan.
Your Current Home (if you own one)
Already a homeowner? You’ll want to gather some information about your current property and its expenses.
That can include:
- Your property tax bill
- HOA or condo dues
- Your homeowners insurance policy
- Information about any liens on the property
Having these documents handy helps provide a more complete picture of your current housing obligations.
And if you rent?
Renters have a much shorter list. You may be asked for:
- A copy of your current lease agreement
- Your payment history for the past year
And yes, this is one of those rare occasions when having a boring, uneventful record of paying rent every month is pretty exciting.
Where Your Down Payment is Coming From
Your lender will also need to document the source of the money you plan to use toward your home purchase.
Depending on where those funds are coming from, you may need:
- Bank statements
- Retirement account statements
- Investment account statements
- Documentation of any gift funds you’ve received
If some or all of your down payment is coming from a gift, let your lender know. There may be additional documentation needed to show where the funds came from.
The Home You Want to Buy
Finally, there’s the star of the whole process (no, it's not you): it's your new home.
Once you’ve found a property, be ready to provide:
- The home’s purchase price
- The amount you want to borrow
- Estimated homeowners or condo association dues, if applicable
- The type of property, such as a single-family home or condo
- The property address
Measure Twice, Cut Once
A little preparation goes a long way.
You don’t necessarily need to have every document on this list sitting in a perfectly organized folder before you start a mortgage application. But gathering the information that applies to you ahead of time can save you some scrambling later.
And remember, every mortgage application is a little different. Depending on your income, employment, assets, the property you’re purchasing and other details, additional documentation may be needed along the way.
The good news? You don’t have to figure it all out by yourself.
Radiant’s mortgage team can help you understand what you’ll need, answer questions along the way and help you move from “I think I’m ready to buy” to “When do I get the keys?”
If you've made it this far, you may find it helpful to read about some of the hidden costs of buying a home.
