What actually delays a refinance, and what to have ready

Refinances stall in predictable places. Income documentation is the first. Two years of returns with all schedules, recent pay stubs, and for a self-employed borrower a year-to-date profit and loss. Anything unusual — a new job, a bonus structure, a business that changed entity type — needs an explanation prepared rather than discovered. Assets and reserves second. Full statements, every page, including the blank ones, because lenders need the pages to be consecutive. Large deposits that are not payroll will be questioned and need a paper trail; moving money between accounts during the process creates work. Insurance third. The declarations page, with the lender's information updated. In Florida this is also where a policy at renewal or a roof age question can surface. Association documents fourth, for a condominium: the association's questionnaire, budget and insurance, which the association has to supply and which run on the association's schedule rather than the borrower's. Title fifth, and this is the one nobody anticipates. An old lien that was paid and never released, a contractor's lien, a name discrepancy on the deed, a divorce or an inheritance that was never recorded properly — all of them surface in the title search and all take time to clear. Two behaviours that cause avoidable trouble: opening new credit during the process, and changing jobs before closing. Both are re-verified near the end. Ask on day one for the full document list and a target closing date, then work backwards. This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules change and every deal is different — check your own case with a licensed professional. Alberto Zaltzberg — Adonait · adonait.com