Why do Realtors ask if you’ve been pre-qualified?

When you communicate with a real estate agent for the first time, they’ll often ask you if you’ve been “pre-qualified”. Pre-qualification is the term used to describe the process by which a mortgage broker or lender verifies the income and credit history of an individual to determine if and how much they’re willing to loan the person for a mortgage.

A Realtor will ask you this for a number of reasons such as:

• They want to see how far along in the home-buying process you’ve gotten and whether or not they may need to refer you to one of their recommended lenders.
• To find out how much home you can afford to buy and what price range you should be looking in and what type of buyer you are.
• It can be an indication that you may have already spoken with one or more other Realtors since the typical buyer doesn’t go out and get pre-qualified on their own without first speaking with a Realtor.

So, if a Realtor asks you if you’ve been pre-qualified, it’s just their way of gauging how far along you are and if you can afford to purchase a home, whether or not they can provide some assistance via a good lender recommendation, or to make sure they’re not interfering with any working relationship you may have with another Realtor. Not to mention, any ‘Offer to Purchase’ you make on a home will never be accepted without a pre-qualification letter or some form of proof of funds if paying cash. Don't be alarmed when they ask you this question and feel as though they're trying to get into your business or probe too much. It's necessary information for them to do their job and to know how to move forward in helping you.

If you’re thinking of buying a home and would like to speak with us about the home-buying process or would like us to connect you with a great mortgage broker, please fill out the form below and we’ll get back to you quickly.