10 Questions to Ask Your Mortgage Lender in Florida Before You Sign

# 10 Questions to Ask Your Mortgage Lender in Florida Before You Sign

Getting preapproved tells you what you can borrow. Choosing the right lender tells you what it will actually cost — and whether you have access to the programs that matter most. For first-time buyers in Florida, those two things are not the same lender decision.

Here are ten questions you should ask and get answered before you commit to a loan application.

What Is Your Interest Rate — and What Is the APR?

These are two different numbers, and most buyers only ask about one. The interest rate determines your monthly principal and interest payment. The APR wraps in lender fees, origination charges, and certain closing costs, expressing total cost as a yearly percentage over the life of the loan.

A lender with a lower rate and a much higher APR may cost you more overall. Ask for both numbers in writing, and when you're comparing multiple lenders, compare APRs side by side. The Loan Estimate form (which lenders must provide within three business days of your completed application) shows both figures on the first page.

If you want to understand how to read that document, the Loan Estimate walkthrough here covers every line.

Are You an Approved Florida Housing Finance Corporation Lender?

Florida's most valuable down payment assistance programs — Hometown Heroes, HFA Plus, Home Key Plus, and county SHIP stacking — are only accessible through lenders approved by Florida Housing Finance Corporation. If your lender is not on that list, they cannot originate those loans, regardless of what they tell you.

Ask directly: Are you an approved Florida Housing lender? You can verify the answer at floridahousing.org using the Participating Lender search. If a lender hedges or says they can find a workaround, find a different lender. There is no workaround.

How Long Is My Rate Lock, and What Does an Extension Cost?

A rate lock freezes your interest rate for a set number of days. When that window closes, the lock expires — and if you have not yet closed, you either extend or accept a market rate that may be higher.

Ask three things: How many days is this lock? What does a 15-day extension cost if closing gets delayed? And who absorbs the cost if the delay is caused by your team, not mine? On down payment assistance loans, 60-day locks are worth the slightly higher cost because the process reliably takes longer.

Are There Origination Fees, Discount Points, or Lender Credits Built Into This Quote?

A rate quote is not a standalone number. Some quotes include discount points (prepaid interest that buys down your rate), some include lender credits (the lender covers some closing costs in exchange for a slightly higher rate), and some carry origination fees. These all move the numbers in ways that make one lender look cheaper than another when the real cost may be the opposite.

Ask your lender to show you the quote three ways: no points, one point purchased, and one lender credit. Compare the monthly payment difference to the upfront cost of each option. For buyers who expect to move or refinance within five to seven years, purchasing discount points rarely pencils out. See the rate buydown explainer here for the math on how these trade-offs work.

What Is My Debt-to-Income Ratio — and How Much Cushion Do I Have?

Debt-to-income ratio (DTI) is the number that most commonly caps how much house you can buy or — in the worst case — gets your application denied. Your lender should tell you your current DTI and how much room you have before hitting the program maximum.

If you are close to the limit, ask specifically: what happens to my approval if I keep my car loan? If I open a new credit card? If my income drops slightly? The answer tells you how much flexibility you actually have between now and closing.

For a full explanation of how lenders calculate DTI and what the thresholds mean for different loan types, see the DTI breakdown here.

Will My Loan Require Mortgage Insurance — and When Does It End?

If your down payment is less than 20%, you will likely pay some form of mortgage insurance. On conventional loans, this is PMI (private mortgage insurance), which cancels automatically once your equity reaches 20% of the original appraised value. On FHA loans, it is MIP (mortgage insurance premium), and the cancellation rules differ depending on your loan term and down payment amount.

Ask your lender to show you the monthly mortgage insurance cost and exactly when you can expect it to be removed — and what steps you would need to take to remove it earlier. The PMI explained post here covers both conventional PMI and FHA MIP side by side.

What Could Delay or Derail This Loan Before Closing?

Ask this question directly, and listen to the specifics. An experienced lender who has actually reviewed your file will walk you through the real risks: a documentation gap, a borderline DTI, a recent inquiry, an appraisal challenge in your target price range. A lender who responds with generic reassurance has probably not looked closely enough.

The goal here is not to scare yourself — it is to identify and resolve issues before you are under contract, not after. A week of preparation now beats a scramble at the closing table.

Can You Stack Multiple Down Payment Assistance Programs?

Florida allows buyers to layer programs — for example, Hometown Heroes from the state combined with SHIP funds from Hillsborough or Pinellas County. Not all lenders know how to execute this, and some are not approved for both programs simultaneously.

If you might qualify for more than one program, ask specifically whether this lender has closed stacked DPA transactions before, how many in the past 12 months, and which combinations they can process. An experienced DPA lender will answer that question confidently. One who hasn't done it will talk around the details.

What Do I Need to Avoid Doing Before Closing?

Most buyers forget to ask this, and some lose their loan because of it. Between preapproval and closing, common mistakes include changing jobs, opening a new line of credit, making a large purchase on an existing card, moving money between accounts without documentation, and co-signing for someone else's loan.

Get a clear list from your lender — ideally in writing — of what is off-limits from the moment you apply to the day you sign. Then follow it exactly.

What Happens If the Appraisal Comes In Low?

In a market where prices have shifted, low appraisals happen. Ask your lender to walk you through the options ahead of time: Can you renegotiate the price? Can you challenge the appraisal? Does your loan program allow an appraisal waiver in certain scenarios? Understanding the playbook before it happens puts you in a much better position if it does.

---

These questions take about 30 minutes to work through with any lender. The answers will tell you, quickly and clearly, whether you are talking to someone who can get you to the closing table or someone who will create delays once you're already under contract.

Barrett Henry, REALTOR® with REMAX Collective, has 23+ years of real estate experience helping first-time buyers in Tampa Bay navigate the lender selection process. If you have questions or need a referral to a Florida Housing-approved lender, call (813) 733-7907.