While mortgage pre-approval is not required to make an offer on a house, getting pre-approved is highly recommended if you are planning to buy.

Pre-approval gives you a better idea of the loan amount you can get, the fees associated with it, and allows you to better budget for your future home.

In addition, sellers and realtors will be much more likely to accept an offer from someone with pre-approval.

Usually, yes.

However, there are criteria you must meet to refinance your home, depending on the type of mortgage you have and the type of refinance you want.

For most types of mortgages, you’ll need to have:

• Owned and occupied the house for at least 7 months
• Had a mortgage on the house for at least 7 months
• No late mortgage payments in the last 6 months
• 1 or fewer late mortgage payments in the past 12 months
  

For conventional mortgages, often you can refinances as soon as you’d like as long as you use a different lender.

If you need specific advice on refinancing your own mortgage, talk to one of our MCU Lending Sales Specialists.

A conforming loan is determined by guidelines set by agencies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which are backed by the federal government.

Conforming loans tend to have lower interest rates because there is a larger secondary market for them, which means you'll have lower monthly payments and spend less total over the life of the loan.

Conforming loans are highly standardized, since they must meet federal requirements. While it's always good to take time to consider any financial decision, federal requirements limit the likelihood that you'll be subject to unusual lender conditions.

Conforming loans are more likely to have protections backed by the federal government built in for when you face setbacks, such as an economic recession.

Conforming loans are more difficult to obtain for borrowers with low incomes, no or low credit scores, and higher debt-to-income (DTI) ratios.

A nonconforming loan is literally any mortgage loan that doesn't meet the requirements for a conforming loan—should've known! This doesn't mean they're less advantageous; for example, commercial properties are often financed with nonconforming loans.

Nonconforming loans tend to have more variety, which means you might get more flexibility since you may not be held to the stringent requirements of conforming loans. For instance, you might be able to afford to buy in a more expensive area or buy a type of home that isn't eligible for a conforming loan.

Nonconforming loans are inherently available to more borrowers, and some lenders even offer nonconforming loans specifically as solutions for a borrower with no or low credit, low household income, or even a past bankruptcy.

Since these loans are more accessible, they are also more expensive. Any lender will tend to charge more for borrowers that pose a higher risk, so you'll pay a higher down payment, higher interest rates, and potentially higher fees.

Though a conforming loan is often the first choice, nonconforming loans can offer flexibility and increase the likelihood of your loan application being accepted.

There are a lot of factors that go into determining mortgage rates. Most of these factors are outside of your control—for example, overall economic growth and the interest rates set by the Federal Reserve.

However, there are things you can do to ensure you’re getting the best rate you can on your mortgage:

• Focus on your credit score
• The higher your credit score, the more likely you’ll qualify for a lower mortgage rate.
• Save up for your down payment
• More money down will shrink your loan-to-value ratio, meaning you’ll likely qualify for better rates on a smaller mortgage.
• Find the type of mortgage that’s right for you
• Our MCU Lending Sales Specialists are always here to help.
• If you are a first-time home buyer, there may be programs to help make your mortgage more affordable. MCU can help with those too!.

There are a few ways to set up your mortgage payments:

1. Set up automatic payments through the MCU website or app
2. Make a payment by visiting your MCU branch
3. Send a check by mail each month