Speak to a home mortgage lender in Americus, Ga.:  http://www.afmlc.com

Financing your new home and closing the purchase

The financing (loan) and closing process includes the following steps.

• Complete the loan application. The lender may require a loan application fee.
• The lender begins processing your application.
• The lender obtains a credit report on you and verifies your employment and assets such as checking and saving accounts.
• The lender gives you a "good faith estimate" of your costs to obtain a loan and/or a Truth in Lending Disclosure Statement listing your costs.
• The lender orders an appraisal of the property you are buying. Ideally, the appraisal will equal or exceed the purchase price. If it is less than the purchase price, you and the seller must renegotiate the price.
• Assuming there is no problem with the appraisal, the lender evaluates your application and supporting documents, and approves the loan.
• You, your Realtor, and often your lender go to the closing attorney's office and close the purchase. The attorney guides you through the process of reviewing documents and signing them. Closings typically take from 15 to 45 minutes.
• The seller signs a deed tranferring the property title to you.
• Your lender provides funds to the closing attorney who, in turn, pays the seller for the property and pays the Realtors for their services. (Within days the attorney will record the deed at the court house.)
• You receive a copy of the documents you sign including a two-page "settlement statement" which shows all of your costs for buying the property.
• You shake hands, take your closing documents and your keys, and go move into your new home.