Mortgage Matters

A mortgage professional shares everything consumers need to know about mortgages and the loan process.

Residential mortgage loan officer Gutiérrez promises to demystify the loan approval maze, and she holds true to her word in this lucid debut work. There’s not much missing in this book: personal finance, home ownership benefits, the basic steps to mortgage approval, the mortgage market, types of loans and the loan application process, the importance of credit scores, homeowner insurance requirements, and more. If that isn’t enough, also included is a chapter entitled “Answers to Your Most Common Questions” that identifies at a glance the key questions borrowers should ask (with authoritative answers to go with them). Another chapter walks the reader through every section of the Uniform Residential Loan Application. Some sections of the book depart from the ordinary to touch on areas that may be neglected in other sources. For example, Chapter 9, “Managing Expectations,” lays out 39 specific steps in the typical loan process/purchase transaction, covers turnaround times, and offers insider tips about purchase contracts. Chapter 11, “Challenges Affecting the Immigrant Community,” highlights the “additional systemic challenges to homeownership” that face foreign nationals, nonpermanent resident aliens, and other non–U.S. citizens. Perhaps of less interest to the mortgage seeker and more appropriate for industry professionals is the appendix, which offers a substantial look at some of the challenges facing the mortgage industry; still, the quick refresher on the 2008 financial crisis in this section is as good as any. Throughout the book, Gutiérrez provides solid advice, helpful tips, and useful checklists in a clear, conversational writing style that serves to make a very complex topic largely comprehensible. A companion website offers downloadable resources, too.

Comprehensive, eminently readable, and free of jargon—an all-in-one resource for anyone seeking a mortgage loan.