Understanding Timelines: How Long Does the Mortgage Process Take?
When you’re ready to buy a new home, you likely want to start the process as soon as possible. However, patience is crucial to the home-buying journey. Fortunately, good things come to those who wait. We’ll explain how long the mortgage process takes and the timeline you can expect for each step.
How Long Does the Mortgage Process Take?
The mortgage process can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a little over a month to complete (typically 45 to 60 days). The timeline will vary for each person and sale, so there’s no exact timeline to follow. However, when you break down each step and how long it typically takes, you can get a rough estimate of what the overall timeline looks like.
Understand the Timeline for Each Step
So what are the steps to buying a home and securing a mortgage? We’re simplifying the process and will go over the five steps that often take the longest.
1. Getting Pre-Approved & Setting the Budget
One of the best things you can do to speed up the process is to get pre-approved. Not only will this help you secure a loan once you’re ready to sign for a home, but it also allows you to shop the market knowing exactly what you’ll be approved for. In every conversation, we highly recommend getting pre-approved both for peace of mind and time savings.
During this stage, it’s also helpful to have important documents organized and a clear idea of your finances and budget. This will allow you to have everything ready to go for your realtor and loan office, streamlining the process.
Discover Your Home Budget with Our Mortgage Calculator!
[Calculate Your Mortgage]
2. Find Your Home
Often, the longest part of buying a home is actually searching for a home that will work for you. Some people can get stuck in this stage, waiting to come across the perfect home. However, it’s important to remember two things:
- Unless you’re building your home, the perfect home likely doesn’t yet exist.
- You’ll want to take some time to explore your options thoroughly, but the process shouldn’t take several months or years.
With the right realtor, you should be able to narrow down your options and have an offer accepted within 10 to 15 weeks.
3. Apply for a Mortgage
Once you’ve found your house, it’s time to officially apply for your mortgage. If you’re already pre-approved, you have a jump start on this process. But during this stage, you’ll want to:
- Consider the loan term
- Decide the type of mortgage loan you want/need
- Get the best rate and discuss options to lock in the rate
- Work with a trusted, experienced mortgage lender (like the team at Chris Doering Mortgage)
- Figure out the details on the down payment
In general, this process and approval should take about a week.
4. The Underwriting Waiting Period
The longest waiting period between finding a home and actually closing on it is the underwriting process. During this stage, an underwriter will evaluate you and your finances to determine how much of a risk it is for the lender to lend to you.
This is the time when you’ll want to be very careful about your purchases, not opening any new credit cards or taking on any new debt (like a car purchase), to avoid delaying this process any further. On average, the underwriting process can take anywhere from two to four weeks.
5. Closing the Deal
You’re finally at the finish line, and it’s time to close on the home! During this stage, you’ll want to handle closing costs and figure out escrow if it was required for the purchase. Normally, realtors, lenders, and all other parties involved will schedule a “closing day,” so all documents can be signed and finalized. In most cases, these final steps take no more than a week. And at the end, you’ll have keys in hand!
Mortgage Is Made Easy with Chris Doering Mortgage
No matter your timeline, Chris Doering Mortgage is there to help you each step of the way. From pre-approval to ensuring everything is set on closing day, our experienced team keeps everything on schedule. We’ll happily answer any of your questions, explain the reasons behind certain timelines, and advocate for you to find the best mortgage deal possible. Apply with us today!