Shore United Bank

To determine the value of the property you are purchasing or refinancing, an appraisal will be required. An appraisal report is a written description and estimate of the value of the property. Usually the appraiser will inspect both the interior and exterior of the home.

The appraiser will create a written report for us and you will be given a copy at your loan closing.  If you would like to review it earlier, your Account Officer would be happy to provide it to you.

National standards govern not only the format for the appraisal; they also specify the appraiser's qualifications and credentials. In addition, most states now have licensing requirements for appraisers evaluating properties located within their states.

In addition to verifying that your home's value supports your loan request, we will also verify that your home is as marketable as others in the area. We will want to be confident that if you decide to sell your home, it will be as easy to market as other homes in the area.

Unless you waive your right to receive a copy, upon receipt of an appraisal for a 1-4 family dwelling, we will immediately mail a copy to you which you should receive within 7 business days.  If you prefer hand delivery, you will receive a copy of the appraisal within 3 business days.  If your loan is for an approved/permitted lot, you will receive a copy of the appraisal at closing.

Since the value and marketability of condominium properties is dependent on items that don't apply to single-family homes, there are some additional steps that must be taken to determine if condominiums meet our guidelines.

One of the most important factors is determining if the project that the condominium is located in is complete. In many cases, it will be necessary for the project, or at least the phase that your unit is located in, to be complete before we can provide financing.

We will also carefully review the appraisal to insure that it includes comparable sales of properties within the project, as well as some from outside the project.

Federal Law requires all lenders to investigate whether or not each home they finance is in a special flood hazard area as defined by FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The law can't stop floods. Floods happen anytime, anywhere. But the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 and the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994 help to ensure that you will be protected from financial losses caused by flooding.

We use a third party company who specializes in the reviewing of flood maps prepared by FEMA to determine if your home is located in a flood area. If it is, then flood insurance coverage will be required, since standard homeowner's insurance doesn't protect you against damages from flooding.

The maximum percentage of your home's value depends on the purpose of your loan, how you use the property, and the loan type you choose, so the best way to determine what loan amount we can offer is to complete our online application or contact an Account Officer at one of our branches.

None of the loan programs we offer have penalties for prepayment. You can pay off your mortgage at any time with no additional charges.

A home loan often involves many fees, such as the appraisal fee, title charges, closing fees, and state or local taxes. These fees vary from state to state and also from lender to lender.

To assist you in evaluating our fees, we've grouped them as follows:

Third Party Fees:

Fees that we consider third party fees include the appraisal fee, the credit report fee, the settlement or closing fee, the survey fee, tax service fees, title insurance fees, flood certification fees, and any courier/mailing fees.

Third party fees are fees that we will collect and pass on to the person who actually performed the service.

State/Local Taxes, Transfer Taxes and Recording Fees:

These fees will most likely have to be paid regardless of the lender you choose and are based on the loan product you select.

Lender Fees:

Fees such as points, document preparation fees, and loan processing fees are retained by the lender. This is the category of fees that you should compare very closely from lender to lender before making a decision.

There is no cost for completing our application.

There is no charge to you for the credit information we will access with your permission to evaluate your application online. 

The simple rule of thumb for determining if it makes sense to refinance is to analyze the amount that it will cost you to refinance compared to the monthly savings you will have by reducing your payment. By dividing the cost of refinancing by the monthly savings you can determine how many monthly payments you will have to make before you have recaptured the initial refinance cost. If you plan on staying in your home longer than the recapture time it may make sense for you to refinance.

To fully analyze whether it's the time to refinance you will have to look deeper. The remaining term of your current loan must also be considered, as well as your tax bracket. Our refinance calculator can help you determine if it's the right time to refinance.

The interest rate market is subject to movements without advance notice.

Once your application is approved, you will receive a commitment letter which will set forth the interest rate and other terms of your loan, the date by which the commitment letter should be signed and returned and the date the commitment letter expires.  Should interest rates rise as we process your loan, we are obligated to honor the committed rate.

In most cases we are able to offer financing for homes on large tracts. What's most important is to determine if the size of your property is common for the area. The appraiser must be able to provide detailed information about the recent sale of similar homes on similar lots that have occurred recently. If that's not possible, we may not be able to provide the financing that you are looking for.

It's also important that your property be residential in nature. If the property is a working farm or is used for any commercial purposes, we may have issues. Contact an Account Officer if you have concerns about the acceptability of your property.

Contact your Account Officer.

A home equity loan often can involve fees, such as the appraisal fee, title charges, fees and state or local taxes. These fees vary from state to state and also from lender to lender. An estimate of our fees can be found on the Early HELOC Disclosure which will be provided to you.

If you have any other questions about fees, please contact one of our Account Officers - they would be happy to help!

Having changed employers frequently is typically not a hindrance to obtaining a new loan. This is particularly true if you made employment changes without having periods of time in between without employment. We will also look at your income advancements as you have changed employment.

If you are paid on a commission basis, a recent job change may be an issue since we'll have a difficult time of predicting your earnings without a history with your new employer.

If you were in school before your current job, enter the name of the school you attended and the length of time you were in school in the "length of employment" fields. You can enter a position of "student" and income of "0."

Congratulations on your new job! If you will be working for the same employer, complete the application as such but enter the income you anticipate you will be receiving at your new location.

If your employment is with a new employer, complete the application as if this were your current employer and indicate that you have been there for one month. The information about the employment you'll be leaving should be entered as a previous employer. We'll sort out the details after you submit your loan for approval.

We ask for your daytime phone number so that we know the best way to reach you. If you can't take calls during the day, please don't answer the daytime phone question. We will contact you after work hours or via e-mail, if you prefer.

Federal and State laws require that mortgage lenders provide certain disclosures at the time a customer completes an application. Those laws apply to online lenders as well as traditional lenders. Some of the most common disclosures include information about certain loan types and information about any application fees or deposits that may be required. You will be able to print copies of the disclosures. 

You are never too old for a 30-year mortgage. Federal law prohibits all lenders from discriminating based on age. You should apply for whatever mortgage you are comfortable with regardless of your age.

The most important documents you will sign at closing are the Note and Mortgage, sometimes called the Deed of Trust. Unless there are special circumstances, these documents are usually prepared one to two days before your closing. Other documents are prepared by the closing agent the day before or the day of your closing. If you would like copies of the completed documents to be sent to you after they are prepared, please contact your Account Officer.

If you won't be able to attend the loan closing, contact your Account Officer to discuss other options.

Automated debit payments from your Shore United Bank checking account are available. At the loan closing an automated debit transfer application can be provided. Simply return it at your earliest convenience to enroll at any Shore United Bank branch.

Our goal is to have your loan ready for closing as soon as possible! Generally the items that take the longest to receive are items like the appraisal and the title work. We will want to get those ordered as soon as possible to avoid any delays.

If you are obtaining a home equity loan, it rarely takes more than 30 days to close. If you are refinancing and have a second mortgage that you don't want to pay off with your new loan closing could take a little longer as we will need the permission of your second mortgage holder before we can close.

It couldn't be easier! We will schedule an appointment with you to close the loan at a Shore United Bank branch convenient to you.