How to Fill Out a Home Loan Application

The standard loan application is a long form, but with just a little time and information you can get it completed.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Online Mortgage/finance Services

1. Gather the following items: your Social Security number, information on current and previous employers and residences, most recent pay stubs, copies of credit card and loan statements, copies of bank statements and asset information (stocks, pension and retirement funds).
2. Begin filling out each relevant line of the form, providing requested information.
3. Leave Section I, Type of Mortgage and Terms of Loan, blank.
4. Fill out Section II, Property Information and Purpose of Loan, with available information. (Fill in the subject property address only after you have an accepted offer on a property.) If no property has been selected, just fill out the purpose of the loan (purchase or refinance); type of property (primary, secondary or investment); names in which the title will be held; how the title will be held; and source of down payment (typically cash for purchases).
5. Fill out Section III, Borrower Information, with personal information: name, Social Security number, phone, age, years in school, marital status, number of children and their ages, and present and previous employers.
6. Fill out Section IV, Employment Information, with your current and previous employment information.
7. Use your pay stubs to fill out Section V, Monthly Income and Combined Housing Expense Information.
8. Use your bank statements, asset information and credit card and loan statements to fill in Section VI, Assets and Liabilities.
9. Leave Section VII, Details of Transaction, blank. Most likely you won't know this information.
10. Answer the questions in Section VIII, Declarations; sign and date.
11. Sign and date where noted at the bottom of the third page in Section IX, Acknowledgement and Agreement.

Tips & Warnings

• Leave lines blank if they don't pertain to you or your situation.
• Only fill in information about credit cards that have a balance on them, because these are the only numbers that are considered when calculating your debt-to-income ratios.
• If you have more liabilities to list than there is room for on page two, put additional liabilities information on the last page.
• When two people are applying for the same loan, the primary money earner is typically the borrower, not the co-borrower; but the order won't affect your application.