You must be pre-approved if you are seriously in the market to buy a home on Kauai.

In today’s real estate market, many sellers will not even consider an offer that is not accompanied by a pre-approval letter.

What is a pre-approval?

A pre-approval is different from a pre-qualification. With a pre-qualification, the lender relies on information provided by the buyer to estimate how much the borrower could qualify for. With a pre-approval, the lender verifies the borrower's information and documentation to determine exactly how much it would be willing to lend to that borrower.

Getting pre-approved will help you identify what you really can afford, and will put you in a better position to make a serious offer when you do find the right house. This means not losing a home you fall in love with because you were not pre-approved!

A pre-approval is based on ACTUAL income, credit, and debt history, and will let you know what you can afford.

Generally speaking, the documents to get pre-approved are the same documents that you would need to get a mortgage. Depending on the bank or mortgage company, documents like:

* Pay stubs.

* Last 2 years' W-2s.

* Last 2 federal returns.

* Two months' worth of bank statements of all types of accounts.

* Your credit report.

It is important to note, a pre-approval is not a loan commitment, but it helps speed up the underwriting and loan approval process - and puts you in top position when you are ready to make an offer on your perfect Kauai home!