Mortgage 101

Answers to all your questions about applying for the mortgage that is right for you.

Since there are so many components to the mortgage process, we have taken special care to organize the most important qualifying steps, lending frequently asked questions, homebuying and mortgage processes below.

We realize that that the information contained in this site could literally take you weeks to research and digest, so please contact us at any time for a personal consultation where we can address your specific needs and questions.

Click on the topic headline to learn more about each section.

The Power of a Pre-approval Whether you’re currently looking for a new home or not, you’ve probably heard the phrase, “Get pre-approved” before. Perhaps it was through a radio or TV ad, on social media, or from your friends or family. What you should know is what...

Interest rates have reached a point that many people never believed would happen. With 30-year fixed rates dipping below 4%, millions of homeowners are in a position to refinance and save significant money. Here are some of the top reasons why you should consider...


Dealing with debt can be overwhelming and straining on your finances. If it is your goal to be debt free in 2020, take a look at our top tips. Set a Firm Budget First and foremost, evaluate your income, debt and expenses, then set a firm budget using those numbers....


How Much Is My Home Worth? Recent news of a positive spring market for home buyers probably has you wondering – what is my home worth and is it time put it on the market? If you’re like most, you don’t know where to begin to determine your home’s value, so here’s some...

Simply put, a mortgage is a loan secured by real property and paid in installments over a set period of time.

The mortgage secures your promise that the money borrowed for your home will be repaid.

Whether you’re a First-Time Homebuyer or seasoned investor, the mortgage approval process can be a slightly overwhelming adventure without a proper road map and good team in your corner.

Updated program guidelines, mortgage rate questions and down payment requirements are a few of the components you’ll need to be aware of when getting mortgage financing for a purchase or refinance.

While this site is full of useful information, industry terms and calculators that will help you research the mortgage approval process in detail, this particular page was designed to give you a thorough outline of the important components involved in getting qualified for a new mortgage loan.

Credit is one of the most important components in the mortgage approval process.

Lenders look at a borrower’s credit score, number of open accounts, payment history, type of credit borrowed and a series of other factors when determining what level of risk to assess to each lending scenario.

Down payment requirements, loan programs, flexibility on income and even interest rates can be impacted by a slight bump in a credit score.

You’re probably curious why we’ve created an entire section about mortgage payments.

However, since a mortgage payment is one of the major side affects of purchasing real estate with a home loan financing program, we thought it would be important to highlight a couple topics and related articles about mortgage payments that may impact your monthly budget.

Interest rates are impacted by a borrower’s credit score, loan term, mortgage program and a series of market factors that are outside of our control. Unfortunately, many advertisers will tease a low interest rate in a marketing campaign for the purpose of creating interest in a specific loan program which may only fit a unique type of qualified borrower.

However, by promoting a lower note rate, with a higher APR, lenders are able to control the flow of the inbound phone call or Internet lead.

Understanding how interest rates work will certainly help relieve a lot of unnecessary anxiety about the home financing process.

Included in this section is a brief description of your mortgage options and ways to get the process started.