Lesson 04 · 6 min 6 min

Estimate and pre-approval letter

The two documents clients actually read.

This is the part the client sees. They are two different documents and it pays not to mix them: the estimate is indicative; the pre-approval letter is what gets attached to an offer.

The estimate

The «Quick calculator» lives on your programs screen and runs the SAME formula the agent uses from their CRM. You pick a product, enter the home price and the down payment, and out comes the «Estimated monthly payment» with its 30-year amortization and the reference rate that was applied.

  • Underneath sits «Estimate prepared by» with your name and «Agent:» with theirs. That is the co-branding: both names on the same page.
  • It carries its disclaimer in writing: a reference estimate subject to qualification, with the final rate depending on credit score, DTI, and the rest.
  • If your rate sheet is empty the calculator will not run. Activate at least one program.

The pre-approval letter

It is issued from the borrower record inside the pipeline. You enter the approved amount, the expiry date — with no date, the letter is good for 90 days — and your NMLS, which is asked once and remembered, because it is printed on the letter.

The good part comes next: the letter carries a link for your client and their realtor. With it they redo the letter with the address of the offer they are presenting and for that offer's amount, never above the approved one. You stop being the bottleneck at eight on a Sunday evening.

  • If the letter expires, the link stops generating letters until you renew it.
  • You can revoke the link whenever you want: letters already issued stay valid.
  • The letter carries its own disclaimer: it is not a commitment to lend or an offer of credit.
Tip: Issue the letter for the amount actually approved, not the one the client wishes for. Since the link lets them generate letters up to that ceiling, a generous ceiling is not helping them: it is signing something you will not be able to hold up in underwriting, in front of an agent who sent you that client.