Applying for a VA loan, whether for an IRRRL or for a purchase, your official application submitted to your lender will open up a floodgate of required disclosures. And as a matter of fact, today there are more loan disclosures than ever before in large part to new regulations. It’s easy to glance through this rather stiff collection of information but not only are the disclosures an attempt to explain exactly what you’re getting into, it also protects the lender and ensures the loan was followed exactly as required.
Many of these, okay, most of these documents contain language you may never before used but you’re still asked to sign or initial them where indicated then return to your VA lender. If you don’t return the requested documents your loan won’t close. It’s that serious. But whatever you do, don’t just consider the information presented as nothing more than boilerplate.
How do you lock in your rate and what happens if it expires? What if the closing costs aren’t the same as originally disclosed? How much are the finance charges and do you understand the APR? When is your payment considered late? What happens then? There is too much to describe here but the point is to read and understand what you’re signing. This is some serious stuff and if you have even the slightest bit of confusion call or email your loan officer or processor. Get clear. No surprises.