Run the numbers. Protect yourself.

Eight quick questions to gauge how ready you are to apply — and exactly what to fix before you do.

Everything to gather before you apply, W-2 or self-employed, with live progress.

Two Loan Estimates side by side — which is actually cheaper once you weigh rate against closing costs, every fee decoded.

Work back from your income and a max debt-to-income ratio to an estimated home price.

Principal, interest, taxes, insurance, HOA, and PMI — your real monthly number.

Front-end and back-end DTI, with a plain-language read of where you land.

Down payment plus closing costs, minus seller credits and earnest money.

Purchase or refinance, fixed or ARM — estimate the monthly principal & interest.

Up to four scenarios side by side — payment, payoff, total interest, and savings.

The honest version — net cost of each over your horizon, with the down-payment opportunity cost.

How long a refinance's lower payment takes to recover its upfront cost.

Whether paying points to buy down your rate actually pays off, and when.

What extra principal — or biweekly payments — does to your payoff and interest.

Year-by-year principal, interest, and balance, plus lifetime interest.

When mortgage insurance can come off — conventional PMI vs. FHA MIP, with the dates.

What a lump sum + recast does to your payment, vs. paying it as extra principal.

Buying again with a VA loan — what your remaining entitlement and income can support, $0 down or with a down payment.

Estimate state transfer / recording tax on a purchase — verified rates only, with who customarily pays.

A red-flag checklist for a lender or offer, plus the wire-fraud rule that protects your closing funds.

Look up any mortgage company or loan officer, with a 5-point checklist of what to confirm.

The post-application call flood is now banned by law — what protects you, plus the opt-outs still worth doing.

Real borrower rights nobody advertises — shop title, cancel PMI early, recast, dispute an appraisal, and more.

Lender giving you the runaround? How to escalate in the order that works — in writing, then the regulators.

A free security freeze blocks new credit opened in your name. Do all three bureaus.

Experian's official free security-freeze center.

TransUnion's official free credit-freeze page.

Register your number free with the FTC at donotcall.gov.

The bureaus' official site to opt out of prescreened credit and insurance offers.

Check any MLO's license status, history, and record before you work with them.