First Time Home Buying - Where to Start? {Mortgage Approval Documents}

First Time Homebuying - Mortgage Approval Documents
 
One of the most critical parts of buying your first home (or any home) is the Mortgage. Unless you are fortunate enough to have the cash to purchase the home outright, you will need a mortgage to complete the purchase. To make this process as easy and straight forward as possible, I always recommend "doing the work upfront". Have the following documents ready, when you meet with your Mortgage Professional and not only will s/he be impressed, but the entire meeting will go much more quickly and be less stressful.
 
Documents to have ready:
If you are an employee (ie. anyone not self-employed):
 1. Two current paystubs.
 2. A "Letter of Employment" (if you call payroll or Human Resoures, they will likely have a standard form) verifying your start  date, position and annual or hourly earnings (if hourly also include the amount of hours per week).
 3. The last 2 years Notice of Assessments if Overtime or Bonuses are required for qualification or if you are Part Time / Contract.
 

Everyone:
 4. Down Payment Verification (DON'T FORGET THIS!)
  You will need:
 A Gift Letter if a family member is gifting you the downpayment (i.e. parents, sibling, grandparents, etc.)
  (If you need a form "gift letter", contact us, we'd be happy to provide one for you.)
 
OR  Three Months Bank statements if you have saved the downpayment. Lenders want to know where the money is coming from, and 3 months bank statements show that it is coming from YOUR account. The name on the account must match the void cheque you will provide.

OR  Investment Account Statements if the downpayment is coming from your R.R.S.P., G.I.C. or other form of investment
 
 5. A Void Cheque from the account the lender will take payments from.
 
If you are Self Employed (Business For Self)
 
 1. The last 2 or 3 years of your T1 General
 2. Articles of Incorporation (if appropriate)
 3. Business License (if appropriate)
 4. The last 2 or 3 years Notice of Assessments (showing your are NOT in arrears of your tax obligations)
 
This is by no means an "exhaustive" list, but by having these basic documents ready, you will make the mortgage approval process much smoother.
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