Before you even begin looking at property, you should get a Pre-Approval Letter from a lender. We make the process quick and painless, and give you an official letter approving you for a specific amount for your loan.

This way, you’ll know exactly how much you can borrow so you’ll know the price range for your new home.

Plus, in today’s hyper-competitive real estate market, you need a Pre-Approval Letter if you want the seller to even consider your offer. If you wait until you’re ready to make an offer, you’ll be too late. Do this now!

This is the fun part, where you work with your professional real estate agent to find a home you would like to buy.

Make a list of your “must haves” and your “nice to haves” and tell your agent – the more flexible you are, the better your chance of success. Your agent should set you up with automated searches based on your criteria, as well as personally notifying you of properties you might consider. And trust your real estate agent when they tell you that you need to move fast.

There are dozens of buyers for every property that comes on the market, and when something that fits your criteria comes up, you need to drop everything to go see it and make a decision.

Actually, in today’s market, you’ll probably have to make several offers before you finally get one accepted! Again, trust your real estate agent if they tell you to make your best offer first instead of leaving some negotiating room.

The majority of homes in Hawaii are currently selling above asking price. But that doesn’t mean all of them – your real estate agent can give you advice on your offer.

If the property you want is expected to be very popular, you’ll want to consider every option to make your offer the most attractive one: consider things beyond price, such as the closing date, waiving contingencies, including an “appraisal clause”, and paying some of the seller’s closing costs.

This is another area where your agent can give you a lot of guidance. Price, of course, is the biggest area of negotiation, but there are a handful of other key terms that are typically negotiated.

Once you’re under contract (“in escrow”) on your property, you need to officially apply for your mortgage. We can handle this with a simple online application, or we can fill it out over the phone and then have you sign the application.

We’ll take your specific situation and goals and get you the very best loan rates and terms available from every lender who is proven to close loans in Hawaii.
As a mortgage broker, we get wholesale rates from all the lenders, ensuring you the very best possible rates. We’ll present you with the best loan options available for your personal situation.
Rates can change daily based on financial market conditions, but once you choose your loan, we will “lock” it until your scheduled closing date

No matter what some companies claim in their advertising, federal law requires certain documents in order to provide a loan. We promise to make the documentation process as clear and simple as possible.

Every lender has to “underwrite” each loan. This is where they review all of the documents and facts, and approve the loan – or sometimes ask for more information. The more complex your financial situation is, the more likely they will ask for more information.

A critical part of underwriting is to get an independent appraisal from a licensed appraiser, to determine the fair market value of the property. Each loan is based on a specific “loan to value” ratio (such as 80%), and the property needs to appraise at a value that keeps the loan within that ratio. In today’s hot market, you may have to agree in the Purchase Contract that you’ll make up any difference with additional down payment if the appraisal comes in lower than the purchase price.

Hawaii is a “Good Funds” state, which means that we must fund the loan at least 2 business days before the closing date.

You’ll need to sign several documents ahead of time; this is usually done at an Escrow company, but if necessary your Escrow company can arrange for a mobile notary to come to you for document signing.