Getting Ready for a Mortgage in Buffalo: What to Do Before You Talk to a Lender
For a lot of people, the house isn’t the hard part of buying a home — the financing is. On this Daytime Buffalo segment, Nancy Clary and Patrick Clouten of HUNT Mortgage, the lending partners the Enas Latif Team works with every week, walk through where to start if your credit or debt needs work, what not to do once you’re in the loan process, and the documents to gather before your first conversation. Here’s the segment, with the full transcript below.
Originally aired on Daytime Buffalo, WIVB News 4, Buffalo. Segment courtesy of WIVB.
Key takeaways
- Talk to a loan officer before you think you’re ready — whether that’s tomorrow or next year. The worst move is waiting until you’ve found a house to find out where you stand.
- If you have some debt or a lower credit score, start with a real conversation about income, credit, and what a payment would look like. Pay off debt or save more? That depends on your numbers, and the goal is a payment you’re comfortable with and no surprises at closing.
- Once you’re in the loan process, don’t open new credit lines or make big purchases. Check with your loan officer before any major financial move while you’re under contract.
- Gather your pay stubs, two years of employment history, and your asset information. Know where your down payment is coming from — savings, a family gift, a retirement account — because each one needs different documentation.
- A good lender fits the process to you: evenings, weekends, phone or in person, from the first call through closing.
Read the full transcript6 min segment · 4 min read
HostBecoming a homeowner is a dream for many people, but the obstacle of financing can sometimes make it seem unattainable. Joining me now with more on how they can help you achieve your homeowning dreams are Nancy and Patrick from HUNT Mortgage. Hi, you two — thanks for joining me.
Nancy ClaryHi, thanks for having us.
HostI want to start with both of your backgrounds in real estate and how you help homeowners achieve their goals. We’ll start with you, Nancy. I know you’ve been doing this for just a little bit of time.
Nancy ClaryI’ve been with HUNT Mortgage for a little over 30 years — a long time. Prior to that I was a real estate paralegal, so I worked with buyers as they were getting their contracts together. Between that portion of the process and now the financing, I have well-rounded experience to review the different phases of the process.
HostWhat about you, Patrick?
Patrick CloutenI’ve been with HUNT in two capacities for 10 years total — with HUNT Mortgage for seven years now. I began my career in their insurance division, helping people secure home insurance, which is how I ended up on the mortgage side. I made a lot of friends with loan officers like Nancy who have a lot of experience in the business, learned a lot from them, and learned how to tailor each client’s experience to help them through the home-buying process.
HostWhen people are in the financing stage, what should they be paying extra attention to? Everyone’s starting from a different place. Let’s start with someone who has a little debt, maybe some credit issues. What should they look at first?
Nancy ClaryI encourage an appointment — face to face or a phone meeting — to review their income and the credit they have. Maybe their score is a little on the lower side and we have to work on a few things. Maybe they’ve got some debt; many times a buyer will ask, should I pay off debt or save additional funds for the purchase? By having that initial conversation and reviewing what things cost and what the payment would be — a very important piece of this is comfort level. We want to get to their comfort level, so when they’re closing on their new home they’re comfortable with the payment, they’ve used the money they thought they needed, and there are no surprises at the end.
HostWhat about the flip side — someone who’s paid off their debts, their credit score looks good, and they’re saying, this is the right time for me to buy. What should they look out for?
Patrick CloutenMost importantly, as Nancy said, have a conversation with a loan officer first, whether you think you’re ready to buy tomorrow or in the next six months, to get an idea of your price range. Once you’re actually in the loan process, you definitely want to avoid things like opening new lines of credit or making big purchases. Always talk to your loan professional before anything like that, so you don’t get yourself in trouble when you’re under contract.
HostHow do you tailor your work to each client’s situation?
Nancy ClaryIn our initial conversation with a prospective buyer we get a feel for the type of work they do. Depending on their profession, it can be difficult for them to talk during the day, so we make ourselves available evenings, weekends — whatever we need to do to help that particular buyer. We form a relationship with our buyers to help them from day one until closing, and accommodate what they need.
HostWhat’s one message you want our viewers to take away from this?
Patrick CloutenIt’s never too early to have the conversation, whether you think you’re ready to buy tomorrow or next year. You don’t know what you don’t know. That’s why it’s important to talk to somebody up front — if you’re not ready right now, what do we need to do to get there in the next year? The worst thing you can do is wait until you think you’re ready to buy, and then find out.
HostTalk to us about things people can get in order even before they come to you, to make the process as smooth as possible.
Nancy ClaryGather your pay stubs — we’re going to ask about current income. We’ll also talk about employment, what you’ve done for the last two years. We’ll review assets: the money you’ll need for the purchase. Is it your own savings? Money you’re going to continue to save? A gift from family? Are you borrowing against a retirement account? Depending on where the funds are coming from, we’ll talk about what documentation will be required — maybe not today, but what you’ll need during the process.
HostIf our viewers would like to get in touch with you, how can they?
Patrick CloutenWe both have our pages at huntmortgage.com.
HostThank you both so much for coming in. Viewers, contact Nancy or Patrick through HUNT Mortgage, and contact the Enas Latif Team to take the stress out of selling today.
Transcript lightly edited for clarity.
What this means for you
If buying in Buffalo is on your horizon — even a year out — the first call isn’t to look at houses, it’s to find out what you can comfortably afford and what, if anything, needs fixing first. That conversation costs nothing and turns the financing from the scary part into a plan. The Enas Latif Team works alongside HUNT Mortgage on this every week; if you’re not sure where to start, start with us and we’ll connect you.
Buying or selling in Western New York?
Talk it through with the team before you sign anything.
