You’ve found a house you love, and you’re ready to schedule your mortgage interview. How can you streamline the process? Here are some important tips to follow.

Choose Your Lender Carefully

Too many people look at 20 houses but only consider one lender. If you’ve worked with someone in the past and you like them, great. If not, shop around a bit. Find a lender that you’re comfortable working with, who will listen to you and take the time to really understand your needs.

Schedule Enough Time

Normally it takes at least an hour with the lender to go over your loan application and the related documentation. Make sure that you have scheduled enough time for this important process.

Get a Babysitter

Loan origination and mortgages are pretty boring topics for adults – but they’re truly stultifying for anyone under 18. Leave the kids at home. If you have small children, get a babysitter. It’s virtually impossible to keep your kinds entertained for an hour while you go over important financial documents. Lenders say that interviews where children are present normally take twice as long. Even worse, you’ll be distracted, and you may miss something important.

Plan Ahead

Be sure to allow enough time for the loan application to be processed. Normal mortgage applications take 2 to 4 weeks. An application for an FHA or VA mortgage usually takes 4 to 6 weeks. It’s possible that your loan will move along faster, but you can’t count on it.

Get Your Records Together

The most common reason for mortgage applications to be delayed is missing paperwork, especially documentation like income tax returns and bank statements. Get all the required information together as soon as possible, and get it to your lender early. One of the best reasons to be prequalified is because it gives you more time to find your paperwork!

Don’t Pack Important Documents

It’s natural to begin packing while you wait for your loan to be approved – but don’t pack those important documents! At any point during the loan approval process, the lender may need additional documents, including tax returns, bank statements, pay stubs, W-2s, etc. If you’re self-employed, this applies to your business records, as well. It’s better to wait until last to pack these items.

Close Early in the Month

Everyone tries to close on the last day of the month, which means attorneys and title companies are almost overwhelmed. It makes more sense to schedule your closing earlier in the month. It will go smoother, and you’ll have everyone’s undivided attention.