Hey {first_name},

I hope our emails have been informative for you. I wanted to follow up and give you our next tip which applies to you if you are already pre-approved for a mortgage or if you are preparing to go through the pre-approval process. Today's tip is that we recommend that you do not pay any accounts down.

Don't Pay Any Accounts Down!

I talk to many clients who want to pay down or pay off their debt believing that they ‘look’ better to the lender or underwriter. We recommend that you refrain from paying anything off or down until we review your entire financial situation and credit report. At the beginning of the pre-qualification process we will consider whether it would be beneficial for you to pay down some of your credit balances but we recommend that this be part of a comprehensive strategy to ensure you qualify for the best rates and terms.

There are multiple variables that are involved when qualifying a person for a mortgage and the number of credit lines and the amount owed is only one part.

Sometimes, the cash in your bank account is more valuable than a credit card with a lower balance. Furthermore, the loan program may require you to have the additional cash as reserves to remain in your account and it’s possible to be short on cash if you use it to pay off debt.

The bottom line: we recommend you wait until we conduct a comprehensive review of your situation prior to you making any financial decisions relating to paying down or paying off outstanding loans or debt.

Thanks,