Guides
Mortgage verification guides
Plain-language guides to verifying your mortgage loan officer: NMLS numbers, license status, and what to check before you close.
How to Verify an NMLS License
A plain, step-by-step guide to checking whether your mortgage loan officer is licensed, using the official NMLS Consumer Access record.
What Is an NMLS Number?
What the NMLS unique ID is, where to find your loan officer's number, and why every licensed mortgage originator has one.
NMLS License Status Meanings
Active, expired, revoked, suspended, surrendered: what each NMLS license status tells you about a mortgage loan officer.
Loan Officer vs. Broker vs. Lender
The difference between a mortgage loan officer, a mortgage broker, and a lender, and which one is handling your loan.
Questions to Ask Before You Close
The short list of questions to ask your mortgage loan officer before closing on a home, and how to check their answers.
The Mortgage Closing Timeline
What happens between an accepted offer and getting the keys: the mortgage closing timeline week by week, and who handles each step.
How to Read Your Loan Estimate
A plain-language walkthrough of the mortgage Loan Estimate: the rate, fees, and numbers that matter, and how to check them before you commit.
How to Avoid Wire Fraud Before Closing
Closing wire fraud can cost a homebuyer their entire down payment. Here is how the scam works and the simple steps that stop it.
First-Time Homebuyer Mortgage Checklist
A step-by-step mortgage checklist for first-time homebuyers, from pre-approval to verifying your loan officer before you close.