Knowing what the bank will require ahead of time will allow you to act quickly once you have found the perfect house.

You should always get pre-approved for a mortgage before you go looking for a home. Pre-approval will tell you how much house you can afford, so you can spend more time looking at houses in your price range.

Once you've found a home, your realtor will draw up an Agreement of Purchase and Sale. This is a document between yourself and the vendor and/or lawyer the terms of the purchase and sale. Once the terms are accepted by the vendor, you are ready to finalize the mortgage application. Use this checklist to make sure you can act quickly when the perfect house is found:

1. A copy of the final Agreement of Purchase and Sale.
2. A salary letter from your employer.
3. Self-employed individuals need financial statements for the past two years as well as personal income tax returns and assessments.
4. Confirmation that the down payment came from your own resources (i.e. bank statements or a gift letter) and are not borrowed.
5. A list of all assets and liabilities along with bank transit and account numbers.
6. A copy of the real estate listing if you are buying a resale house.
7. Condominium corporation financial statements, if you are purchasing a condominium unit.
8. If buying a home under construction, a copy of the building plans and specifications, the land survey and the agreement with the builder.

Once we have this information, TD Canada Trust will complete a property appraisal and obtain a credit bureau report on you.

Once your mortgage application is approved, your lawyer makes the necessary searches. You should make sure you have sufficient monies to cover your closing costs, in addition to legal fees. We recommend reserving 1.5%-2% of the purchase price to cover closing costs.

After approval, the bank provides the lawyer with a package which includes mortgage approval, mortgage documents, instructions, and in some cases a post-dated cheque payable to your lawyer in trust, for the mortgage to advance. A few days before closing, you are expected to give your lawyer the funds required to complete the transaction, and attend to the execution of the mortgage documents. On the closing day, your lawyer attends to the closing, including registration of the mortgage.

¹ Due to Quebec legislation, applications from Quebec residents cannot be accepted online or over the phone. Please visit any branch to apply.