For most people, finding a home is the easiest part of home buying.  Financing usually causes the greatest amount of stress.  Knowing the finance process can reduce stress. 

1.      Pre-approval.  Start smart.  Know what you can afford, know what your payments are likely to be and become familiar with your loan options.  All this happens during the pre-approval process.

2.      Application.  This can happen as the same time as your pre-approval.  For most home loans, there are many, many pages of loan documents to be filled out.  It's tedious.  However, you are asking for a loan of several hundred thousand dollars.  Lenders have a right to close all loopholes against fraud and lawsuits.

3.      Submission.  Once you have found a property, agreed on the price and terms with the seller, passed the inspection process and gotten the home appraised, you are ready to submit the home to a lender.  If you have chosen to limit yourself to a single lender rather than use the services of a broker representing 100's of potential lenders, submission will happen as each document is ready.  If you are enjoying the services of a broker, he will finalize "shopping" your loan at the last minute to ensure you get the best rate and terms.

4.      Locking rates.  This can take place at time of approval or at submission, depending on your lender. 

5.      Conditions.  Unless your application was faulty in some way, you will receive conditional approval from your lender.  There's always something a lender wants, whether it's your latest paystub, one more bank statement or an explanation of why you were late on a payment two years ago.  Normally, conditions are easily met.  Occasionally, they can be deal killers.  At that point, your loan officer and real estate agent may recommend taking your loan package to a different lender, depending on how time permits.

6.      Loan Docs.  After conditions have been met, the lender will draw loan documents.  They will send you a copy of the final documents a day or two before you sign for you to review.  Make certain your loan officer has an opportunity to review them for errors. 

7.      Signing.  Escrow will phone and make an appointment for you to sign all final documents, primarily the loan docs.  This is not closing.  Closing happens after the lender releases funds.

8.      Final Review.  Once you have signed the loan documents, someone else at the lender's office will review the documents for errors.  It's possible to get "prior to funding" conditions.  These can be frustrating, especially if they could have been foreseen at the beginning of the process. 

9.      Funding.  When the lender is satisfied, they release the loan funds to escrow.  The seller receives their money and the transaction is recorded.