Whether you are buying a home, working with a contractor to build a home, or putting on the hard hat yourself with a DIY home construction loan, chances are you will need financing. When applying for a home loan, here are the common documents you will need to help ensure a smooth loan process.

Home Loan Document Checklist

These are the documents you will need for almost all home and home construction loans.

• Completed loan application: Most lenders, like GreenStone, offer an online application tool in addition to a paper loan application. We recommend speaking with a financial services officer before applying to go over approval details and discuss your plans.
• E-consent form: Opting into E-consent will allow GreenStone to send notices, documents, and disclosures to you electronically.
• Two most recent tax returns, including W-2s: At GreenStone, we require your two most recent tax returns, including your W-2s. We will evaluate your two-year historical average.
• Pay stubs from the past 30 days: To confirm your income and current employment status.
• Two most recent monthly bank statements: To verify your liquid assets and confirm the source of your downpayment.
• Most recent investment statements: GreenStone requests your most recent statement from each of your IRA, 401K, retirement, or other investment accounts. This information will document any additional liquid assets.
• Purchase agreement: A legally binding document, signed by the seller and purchaser, documenting the details of the sale/purchase of the real estate. If the transaction is a purchase, GreenStone will require a fully executed purchase agreement.
• Photo Identification: For your safety, to be approved for a loan, you must provide an official form of photo identification. This can be a driver’s license, a state-issued ID card, or a passport.

Additional Documents Needed for a Refinance

If you are refinancing a piece of land or a home, you will need the documents listed from the checklist above, along with your:

• Most recent winter and summer tax bills: As part of the evaluation of your ability to repay your loan, lenders consider your real estate taxes. At GreenStone, when refinancing, we ask for your most recent winter and summer tax bills.
• Insurance declaration page indicating annual premium: We take into account your homeowner’s insurance premium to ensure all expenses are factored into the feasibility of loan repayment.

DIY Home Loan Document Checklist

If you are building your dream home as a “do-it-yourself” project instead of fully contracted, you will need all the documents listed from the home loan document checklist, along with the following documents:

• Your building plans: GreenStone requires an outline of your building plans, including the dimensions of each room and floor plan. Some lenders also require stamped blueprints.
• Dwelling specifications form: Your lender will ask for a plans and specifications form that outlines the design of your home. The form will also specify what type of materials you will be using throughout the entire house.
• Bids from contractors for the entire build: While you may be planning to build portions of the home yourself, it’s important to plan ahead in case there is a bump in the road. GreenStone may require bids from contractors to complete the work in case you are injured or can no longer finish the project yourself during the designated timeline.
• Signed and notarized sworn statement: A sworn statement is a construction document that lists the contractors and suppliers that provide material or labor for a project. It includes information about who is owed money and how much they are owed.
• Dwelling under construction insurance (builders risk insurance): Most lenders, including GreenStone, require you to secure builder’s risk insurance to protect against things like theft of building materials or weather-related structure damage during construction.
• Construction agreement or builder contract: If you are working with a contractor for portions of your home construction, you will also need to provide a construction agreement or builder contract so your lender can review the details and timeline of the project. GreenStone requires a construction agreement signed by both you and the builder(s). If you are working with more than one building company, you will need to provide an agreement for each one.

Knowing what documents to provide when applying for a home or construction loan can be overwhelming. Our local team of lending experts are ready to assist you! Before applying, reach out to your local GreenStone branch, to have a member of our team walk you through the approval process, or get started with the loan application process here.