As for getting pre-approved, it is the one a thing buyers absolutely must do once they decide to buy and, here again, visiting in person with a local lender—establishing that relationship is very important. Here’s why pre-approval is a must.

1. There is no need to waste your time, or the seller’s time if you can’t get financing and most realtors ask that a pre-approval letter be submitted with the offer. The reason for that is because once the seller accepts the offer, the house is off the market.
2. Getting pre-approved lets you know how much house you can afford. Buyers often overestimate or underestimate how much they can afford, and once you get pre-approved, you know what your limits are. Who knows, you may be able to afford more than you thought!
3. Your lender will let you know how much money you’re going to need for down payment and closing costs.
4. Based upon your credit, job history and other factors, you will know what interest rate you will pay and how that will affect your monthly payment.

A lot of these things we as realtors can tell you, but we can’t lock in an interest rate, check your credit or make a loan commitment. I hope this makes things a little clearer as to why the first thing you, as a buyer really needs to do is get pre-approved and why you should use a LOCAL lender.