Mortgage Pre-Approval Vs. Pre-Qualified: What is the difference?

Pre-Approval Vs. Pre-Qualification

What you should know….

Finding the perfect home can be daunting. There are so many things to consider from the home itself, what the neighborhood is like, to what the city or town is like. 

Plus, you’re trying to do all of this home buying stuff while working, living your life, and figuring out how you’ll transition from where you’re currently living, to your new home.

So when you DO find the home, imagine what it would feel like to miss out on it because it took too long to prepare your offer. Instead of hearing that your offer was accepted you hear “We’ve accepted a different offer.” 

I’ve seen it happen more than it should and it’s all because home buyers aren’t taking the time to prepare to actually look for their home.

Oftentimes when you’re ready to purchase a home most people will begin by scrolling real estate website and finding homes to visit. If you’re smart you’ll find a great realtor who will advise them. 

The fact that you’re reading this article means you ARE smart and you ARE preparing to look for your home. But there’s one vital step that every person who wants to buy a home should do before that very first lockbox is opened up:

Start the pre-approval process.

It’s quite simple and could be the one thing you do that makes all the difference in hearing those lovely words from the seller “Offer Accepted.”

Here are some commonly asked questions about this process. 

What is the difference between pre-qualified and pre-approval?

Pre-qualified is the step before a pre-approval. This is when you bring your finances to a bank and, without digging too deep, the bank lets you know how much you might be able to get a loan for. But it’s not a guarantee, it’s just a baseline and it’s established entirely on what you’ve shared for your financial picture. 

Pre-Approval is a more formal step where the bank require a full mortgage application and your lender will do an extensive financial review, including a credit check, verification of income and other loan payments. You will also need to provide an estimate of the down payment you’ll be able to make.

How much does a pre-qualification cost?

Pre-qualifications are free, they don’t require a credit check and a lender will be able to give you a pre-qualification letter stating that you are eligible to receive a mortgage up to a certain amount based on the information you provided on the pre-qualification application. 

How long does it take to get a pre-qualification letter?

This process takes one to three days and most lenders will provide a letter that is good for 90 days.

NOTE: a pre-qualification letter does NOT guarantee you will receive a mortgage loan, it just begins the process and helps to show home sellers that you’re serious about your offer. 

What is a pre-approval letter?

A pre-approval letter is a conditional letter from a bank and based on the information provided at the time of the pre-approval and again, is not a guarantee. Having a letter with an exact loan amount allows the buyer to look for homes at that amount or lower with confidence that once their offer is accepted, the loan will be approved.

Many buyers will hold off on the pre-approval process because there is a fee for the application and most pre-approval letters are only good for 90 days which means if you don’t find a home and make an offer in that timeframe, you’ll need to repeat the application process and pay the fee again. 

How long does a pre-approval letter take?

As long as you have all your financial documents prepared a pre-approval letter can be ready in minutes or up to 2 days. Typically, if you’ve already gone through the pre-qualification process the only thing that needs to be provided to the bank for a pre-approval letter are the price of the home you want to make an offer on, re-submit proof of your down payment and current assets, and your personal identification documents such as your social security card and drivers license. 

How long is a pre-approval letter good for?

Most institutions will offer a pre-approval letter that is good for 90 days. The reason a pre-approval letter doesn’t last longer is because of the fast changing financial market and how quickly your own financial situation could change.

How do I get pre-approved for a home loan?

• Step one: ask your realtor for mortgage broker or lender recommendations.

• Set up an appointment with a loan specialist.

• Gather your documentation: you’ll need proof of income (current paystubs and past tax returns), good credit, verification of employment (if you’re self employed you’ll need to provide up to 2 years of tax returns with supporting documentation to show your income), proof of your downpayment, proof of other assets like savings accounts and investment statements, drivers license, social security card.

• Approval of you loan is conditional based on what the bank finds in regard to your financial status.

Ultimately, having a pre-qualification letter in hand when you begin looking for homes is the best advice any real estate professional will give you when you start looking for a new home. Pre-qualifications lead to quick pre-approvals which then results in accepted offers.

When you find the home that you can see yourself living in, the last thing you want is to miss out because you couldn’t get your offer submitted in time. Wouldn’t it be terrible if you followed this process of pre-approval, found your perfect home, but then couldn’t get your offer submitted quickly? 

You’ve probably heard this before but it’s really best to have an experience real estate agent on your side. Not only will we provide you advice on how to find that home, but we know how to move quickly when drafting an offer letter and getting your proposal submitted.

If you aren’t sure where to start when it comes to home buying or pre-approvals, let us help you. Our team of Central Florida Real Estate Agents know market well and are prepared to assist you in every step of the process from pre-qualification to closing. 

Just Reduced! Charming & Modern 3-Bedroom Home in Baldwin Park

Just Reduced! Charming & Modern
3-Bedroom Home in Baldwin Park

ONLY $424,000! Open House:
Sat 1/19, 1-3pm 5362 Chatas Ln, Orlando, 32814

This adorable home is nestled in the center of highly sought-after Baldwin Park. Throughout the property, you will find beautiful hardwood floors, crown molding along the foyer & dining room and an abundance of natural light. 

The kitchen has built-in, custom 42-inch cabinetry, granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. There are also high-end lighting fixtures in the living room, kitchen and other common areas.

The bathrooms are adorned with luxury-style finishes, cabinetry and beautiful marble countertops. There is also a large 2-car garage, which is perfect for storage. This adorable home truly reflects charm and luxury!

Best of all, the home is walking distance to all Baldwin Park amenities, including the walking & bike paths, dog park, High Park playground and pool. This provides you the opportunity to enjoy this beautiful community to its fullest.

Click here to learn more about this listing. Or, call Lianna with Sotera Living at (321)446-3509 for a Free Tour!

2/2 for Rent at The Vue at Lake Eola!

Only $2,000 a Month!

Enjoy downtown living at its finest in this gorgeous, modern 2-bedroom 2-bath unit at the Vue! It comes complete with hardwood floors, granite countertops, and beautiful city views. Located on the 25th floor, this unit is also situated in one of Orlando's most sought-after areas to live. Amenities include a gym, basketball courts, pool, clubhouse, concierge and 24-hour security.

Click here to learn more about this listing. Or, call Lianna with Sotera Living at (321)446-3509 to schedule a Free Tour today!

Just Listed! Charming & Modern 3-Bedroom in Baldwin Park

5362 Chatas Ln.
Orlando, Fl 32814
Listed at Only $434,900!

This adorable home is nestled in the center of highly sought-after Baldwin Park. Throughout the property, you will find beautiful hardwood floors, crown molding along the foyer and dining room and an abundance of natural light. 

The kitchen has built-in, custom 42-inch cabinetry, granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. There are also high-end lighting fixtures in the living room, kitchen and other common areas.

The bathrooms are adorned with luxury-style finishes, cabinetry and beautiful marble countertops. There is also a large 2-car garage, which is perfect for storage. This adorable home truly reflects charm and luxury!

Best of all, the home is walking distance to all Baldwin Park amenities, including walking and bike paths, dog park, High Park playground and pool. This provides you the opportunity to enjoy this beautiful community to its fullest.

Click here to learn more about this listing. Or, call Lianna with Sotera Living at (321) 446-3509 to learn more or schedule a Free Tour today!

A Quick Tip on Holiday Entertaining

Recently, I hosted a potluck at 1067 Bennett Road, and through the process, I picked up these helpful hosting tips:

1. Layer together simple holiday knickknacks (like the mini-pumpkins above) to create a lovely centerpiece.

2. Place a fall swath around a simple wooden basket. It makes serving appetizers more festive and fun!

3. Place a bouquet of fresh flowers in front of a mirror (preferably one with dim lighting nearby). This will add an immediate feel of elegance to the room.

Of course, with a built-in wine cooler, gorgeous finishes and abundant natural light, the setting at 1067 Bennett Road made entertaining a breeze!

Do you have a space like this in your home? Or, are you dreaming of one? Click below to learn more about this property, which is now on the market!

1067 Bennett Road

Planning to list your home? Consider hosting a potluck. It is a unique way to announce that your home is for sale. 

Call Sotera Living Lifestyle Real Estate at (407) 725-9660 or email Lianna@SoteraLiving.com for more tips on listing and staging your home for sale.

Upscale 4-Bedroom Baldwin Park Home JUST REDUCED! $646,900

Also Offering 3% Buyer's Agent Commission

Just Reduced!  Nestled in the heart of Baldwin Park is this must see beautiful 4-bedroom 4 full bath home walking distance to all of the amenities of Baldwin Park where you can live, work, and play all within the community.

Downstairs offers an office/den that can be used as a bedroom. The large dining/living room opens to the kitchen, perfect for entertaining. First floor full bathroom has been renovated with beautiful upgrades. The living room features a gorgeous natural quartzite stone accent wall.

To highlight some of the upstairs features, there is a large second living area, two bedrooms with a 'jack and jill' bathroom, and a master bedroom with beautiful tray ceilings and a large en-suite bathroom with a jacuzzi jetted tub.

The home features a beautiful full length front porch with gorgeous Travertine flooring. Spend your Sunday mornings sipping coffee overlooking the park and enjoy your dinner and cocktails al fresco!

Call Lianna with Sotera Living at (321) 446-3509 to learn more or schedule a Free Tour today!

Under Contract in 4 Days!!

This $1.25 Million Baldwin Park home was sold after just 4 days on the market…will your home be next?

Call Lianna at (321) 446-3509 or email Lianna@SoteraLiving.com to find out how to stage, list and sell your home in the Central Florida market.

Just Listed! Luxury Pool Home in Baldwin Park

Breathtaking
4-Bedroom Home Nestled in

Baldwin Park

with tasteful upgrades throughout

As you enter the home through a beautiful wrought-iron privacy fence, you will find a gorgeous combination of new hardwood and Travertine flooring. Also on the lower level is an office, master suite, media room and family room which are all tastefully upgraded with modern finishes.

The gourmet kitchen features brand new quartz countertops, a 6-burner gas stove with a double oven, all new appliances and a handmade tile backsplash. As if it couldn't get any better, there is also an outdoor kitchen with a built-in Napoleon stainless steel gas grill.

While outside, you will also find an in-ground pool with a brand new pool/spa heater and sliding glass doors that become completely invisible when fully opened. Even the 3-car garage is fully upgraded, with fresh paint and a newly refinished floor.

Other high-end upgrades include LED lighting, 3 new AC units, a new GE washer/dryer, a new master bedroom closet, Venetian plaster finishes in the powder bath, plantation shutters and a Thor 133 Wine Cooler. Enjoy all of this in beautiful, sought-after Baldwin Park!!

Call Lianna with Sotera Living at (321) 446-3509 to learn more.

Ready to list your own home? Email lianna@soteraliving.com or call her directly at (321) 446-3509.

Sotera Living Thanks Mach Media for Capturing Our Lifestyle Vision

At Sotera Living, we value the intricacies of life — like a bouquet of fresh Lilac or a well-made Caramel Macchiato. It’s the little things that make it more memorable and sweet.

We also value the unique sense of style we see coming to life in Central Florida’s upscale neighborhoods, such as Baldwin Park, Winter Park and Thornton Park. That style inspires us to add more touches of luxury to our own homes and to create an experience for our clients that they will remember for years to come.

“When you can create an experience, you have a client for life,” says head broker and owner Lianna D’Angelo.

After spending years in Florida real estate, Lianna knew she wanted a brokerage focused on cultivating and nurturing relationships with the people who matter most: her clients. She also envisioned a lifestyle brand, one that would motivate others to create the home of their dreams.

When the time came for us to convey that message clearly, however, we needed a little help. Thankfully, we found just what we were looking for in the strategic branding and marketing communications agency Mach Media.

From the time one of our clients receives a business cards or letter in the mail from a Sotera Living agent, we aim to inspire. With the support and creativity of Mach Media, we can definitely say that our branding collateral achieves that goal.

“Mach Media helped me develop a brand that is meaningful and not just something that screams real estate,” says Lianna.

From day one, our Mach Media Consultant, Kim Bratanata, showed an understanding of the unique role we play in the market. She also shared our focus on relationship and the client experience.

“They were proactive and wanted to know me as a person, what my vision is, what makes me excited, what makes me uncomfortable,” says Lianna.

Also, thanks to Mach Media, clients of Sotera Living can now search for upscale rental properties across Central Orlando directly from our website — via our own built-in search platform which features hot-on-the-market, high-end rentals across the Central Florida area.

At Sotera Living, we treat every client like our best friend, even a member of our own family.

We love building up the community of Orlando and immersing ourselves fully in the neighborhoods we serve, connecting closely with local businesses, restaurants, coffee shops and artists.

To that end, we are thrilled to invest in a company like Mach Media, which not only helped us define our brand but positioned us well in the market and freed us up to do what we do best: making sure our clients get most out of the biggest investment of their lives, their home.

Sotera Living Offers New Listing Package for 2018

Why SPRING Is The Perfect Time to List Your Central Florida Home

Despite the summer season coming upon us it is still a Seller's Market. Now is the time to take advantage of the upward trend. Home Prices in Orlando have increased an average of 2.5% in the past 12 months!

As if it couldn't get any better, Sotera Living is offering a 4.5% commission rate on our Total Listing Package (Normal rates in the area are 5-6% at a minimum.) 

Also, buyers who purchase within 30 days of signing on with us will receive an agent commission credit of $1,000.

Call Lianna with Sotera Living at (407) 725-9660 to learn more or schedule a FREE Market Evaluation on you home today!

The Music Is In Her: Lianna D'Angelo Commissions a Piece from Local Artist Ginae Scott

When local Orlando artist Ginae Scott is hired to create a new painting, she usually starts by choosing a color palette. Or, she develops a general concept of the work: the shapes, the forms and the tone.

But that was not the case with Lianna, our head broker at Sotera Living.

"Normally, when I approach a canvas," says Ginae, "I might have the general [idea] in mind but rarely the entire painting."

However, when Lianna commissioned Ginae to create a custom piece for the bedroom in her new home, it was like music to Ginae's ears, literally! In just moments of talking with Lianna about a potential painting, Ginae got an instant artistic vision.

By the way, if you have ever been on the 3rd floor of Florida Hospital's Cancer Center, you might have stumbled upon Ginae's work yourself. One of her largest abstract pieces is brightening the lobby area there.

Earlier this year, Lianna met with Ginae in her Baldwin Park home to discuss listing it on the market. Ginae remembers Lianna exploring the property first and soaking in each painting one by one, room after room. Having recently moved herself, Lianna was inspired to ask Ginae to do a large commission for her bedroom.

Of course Ginae was thrilled and said "Yes!"

Also, as Lianna was admiring Ginae's work and discussing the color palette in her own home, (chock-full of silvers, golds, and shades of bronze) Ginae got a full-on vision of the work she was to create. It came to mind instantly, unlike ever before.

"Lianna, do you like music?" asked Ginae.  "I love music!" said Lianna. "Why do you ask?"

Ginae went on to explain the concept that had flashed before her eyes. It was a large abstract piece, full of rich, vibrant colors, feminine floral accents and punctuated by musical notes in the background. To Ginae, it was nothing short of divine inspiration - a perfect embodiment of Lianna's lively personality.

"Some things [and people] are just so beautiful, they create a sense of music everywhere they go," said Ginae. "That's Lianna."

For Ginae, capturing Lianna's unique energy into a painting meant thinking outside the box and using new techniques, such as mixed media. Lianna's painting was created using both paint and pieces of vintage music paper. If you look closely, you can see the notes blended behind various brushes strokes, creating subtle complexity.

Also, on the top right hand corner of the piece, you can find two small symbols of Japanese script, one of them representing the concept of grace, something Ginae saw in Lianna the first time she met her. What Ginae describes as Lianna’s "bubbly vision" for the smaller things in life is what ended up giving the painting a life of its own.

"She has such a passion and vision for the things she does that it is almost musical," says Ginae. "With Lianna, even something small becomes big and important."

Below you can see photos of the painting, aptly titled "The Music is In Her."

Also, to learn more about Ginae or see more examples of her work, visit her online portfolio at https://www.ginaeleescott.com.

Or, to learn more about Sotera Living's listing services, in addition to staging and design, contact Lianna at lianna@soteraliving.com or by phone at (321) 446-3509.

From High-Rise Rental to Full Remodel

Meet Sotera Living’s New Director of Design

Most people would look at a 1940’s home in the middle of urban Orlando and keep on walking. But most people are not Kassandra Bittner, and most people do not have realtors like Lianna D’Angelo by their side to fuel their imagination.

After years of “throwing money away” on rent, Kassandra was ready to invest. So, when Lianna brought Kassandra to tour her current home, she could instantly see the potential.

“It was a lot of space for a house that was built during that time,” says Kassandra.

However, it wasn’t until Lianna suggested a home renovation loan that Kassandra was even aware it existed.

“Thanks to Lianna, I was able to do a fantastic renovation on a single woman’s budget,” says Kassandra, who has a natural flair for design. “Immediately, I knew what to do…knock down a wall, carve out a larger master bedroom, etc.”

Home renovation loans allow home buyers to invest in older homes they might otherwise ignore. As long as the framework is there, the only limit is your imagination. Orlando is filled with properties from the 1920’s, 30’s, or 40’s that just need a little TLC.

How big of a remodeling budget does a renovation loan provide?

Let’s say a house is valued at $200,000 and needs anywhere from $30,000 to $40,000 in renovations. A buyer may obtain a loan that includes the home price, as well as the additional money needed for renovation.

Imagine a 1940’s home with 2017 cabinetry, tile or crown moulding.

It’s where old world charm and modern finishes meet. And it’s available to almost any home buyer.

However, as Kassandra cautions, taking on a home renovation project of this size is not for the faint of heart.

“It was a full-time job just to manage the contractors. My parents thought I was insane for taking all this on at one time. But, being the quasi-millennial that I am, I wanted to do it all and get it done right.”

However, not everyone has the desire (or time) to manage their own home renovation. Thanks to Kassandra, they don’t have to!

Later this year, Kassandra will join Sotera Living as a design and renovation consultant. She will partner with Lianna to take the home buyer all the way from the initial home visit to the final renovation reveal. The Sotera Living team will manage every aspect of the loan application process, while Kassandra will manage all aspects of design and renovation.

It is a “one-stop-shop” approach to home buying, designed to give each client the home of the dreams, as well as one that will deliver a return on investment.

“As long as you have the gumption and patience to get through it,” says Kassandra, “We are going to get you exactly the home you want. And it’s going to be fantastic!”

So, if you have a desire to invest in the Orlando area and are curious what your own remodel could look like, give Sotera Living a call at (407) 725-9660 or email Kassandra at kassandra@soteraliving.com.

Time to Save Homeowners! Don't Forget to File Your 2018 Homestead Exemption

If you bought a home last year and use it as your primary residence, don't forget to file your homestead exemption.

For Orange County residents, the deadline to file is March 1st. However, the county makes it easier than ever to file. It takes less than 20 minutes and can be done in-person, online or through the mail.

Here's how:

Visit the Orange County Property Appraiser's website. Fill out the application online or print and mail it in by March 1st. It's that simple, but it can save you a lot!

Note: You can also file in-person at any Orange County satellite office. Click here for locations and hours.

Also, don't forget to bring your closing information to your accountant. There are some possible tax savings available to you, so don't miss out! Click here to access a booklet from the IRS created specifically for homeowners for 2017. In it, you will find everything from approved deductions to mortgage interest credits and what records to keep on-hand ever year.

To a happy new year and tax season,

The Sotera Living Team