Need a Pre-Approval Letter for Your Offer?

How it works

Answer a few questions
Tell me about the home, your work and income, your down payment, debts and credit. No Social Security number or document uploads to start.
Download your letter
Qualified buyers with complete information download the PDF letter online in minutes.
Zach verifies and confirms
If your situation needs a closer look, I usually reply within an hour during business hours, or first thing the next business morning. Every letter is subject to review and verification.
Make your offer
Send the letter with your offer. A pre-approval letter is not a final loan approval. Your loan still has to be approved once you have a home under contract.

Questions buyers ask about getting pre-approved

How fast can I get a pre-approval?

Qualified buyers with complete information download their letter online in minutes. If your situation needs a closer look, I usually reply within an hour during business hours, or first thing the next business morning. Subject to review and verification; not a final loan approval. Business hours: Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 7 PM PT. The online path is for W-2 employees. If you are self-employed or paid on a 1099, the next step is a conversation with me.

What are mortgage rates today?

I don't post rates on this site. The rate for your loan depends on your file, the program and the day you lock it, so a number on a web page would not be yours. A pre-approval letter is not a rate lock. Locking your rate is a separate step once you are under contract, and when to lock your mortgage rate covers how a lock works. For today's pricing on your situation, text me.

What credit score do I need to get pre-approved?

It depends on the loan program and the rest of your file, so I don't publish a minimum score here. The form asks how you would describe your credit, and a rough idea is fine; the form does not pull your credit. If your credit is still building, text me and I'll tell you which programs may fit before anything is pulled.

How long until closing after I get pre-approved?

It depends on your purchase contract and the loan. The contract sets the closing date. Before that date the loan has to be approved, the appraisal completed and the lender's conditions cleared. A pre-approval letter is the start of that, not the loan approval. No day count is promised here, because the timeline is set by your contract and your file. Once you are under contract, text me the closing date and I'll tell you what has to happen by when.

What documents do I need?

None to start: no Social Security number and no uploads. If your answers fit the program, your letter comes from your answers to the online form. To verify afterward, I ask for your W-2s and your two most recent pay stubs. For a bank statement loan, I ask for the last 12 months of statements from your strongest account. If anything is missing, I'll tell you what's needed.

What is the difference between a pre-qualification and a pre-approval?

Lenders use the two words differently. The CFPB says both refer to a letter saying a lender is generally willing to lend up to a certain amount based on certain assumptions, and that a pre-approval letter helps you make an offer because it gives the seller confidence that you will be able to get financing. Neither is a promise of a loan. My letter comes from your answers and a soft credit check, and I verify your income documents afterward; an agent can confirm it with me by the Pre-Approval No on the letter. The CFPB suggests asking your real estate agent or a housing counselor whether the letter you have will serve its purpose.

How long is a pre-approval letter good for?

Your letter stays good as long as your income situation doesn’t change in a meaningful way. If something does change, or your search runs longer, tell me and I’ll verify your file again and update your letter.

Does a pre-approval hurt my credit?

Not with my pre-approval. I use a soft credit check only, and myFICO says soft inquiries don’t affect FICO Scores, but hard inquiries may. When a lender checks your credit with a hard inquiry, the CFPB says the inquiry “typically has a small negative effect on your credit scores.” If you shop with more than one mortgage lender, the CFPB says: “Within a 45-day window, multiple credit checks from mortgage lenders are recorded on your credit report as a single inquiry.”

Can I get pre-approved in San Clemente today?

Yes, online. I'm based in San Clemente. Qualified buyers with complete information download their letter online in minutes. If your situation needs a closer look, I usually reply within an hour during business hours, or first thing the next business morning. Subject to review and verification; not a final loan approval.

What does the pre-approval letter show?

Your purchase price, the one you entered, on West Capital Lending letterhead with my name, my photo and the West Capital Lending logo. It is based on the information you provide, it is subject to my verification, and it can be withdrawn if that information proves inaccurate. I’m a mortgage broker with West Capital Lending, NMLS 1652805 is my own license number, and I arrange your loan and place it with a lender.

What should I check before choosing where to get pre-approved?

Before you rely on a pre-approval letter, ask what information was reviewed and what conditions remain. As a mortgage broker with West Capital Lending, I put the financing together by reviewing your situation against the programs I offer.

The CFPB says lenders use the words pre-qualification and pre-approval differently and that both letters rest on certain assumptions, so check each letter on the same points: what you supplied and what was verified; whether your credit was pulled, and whether it was a soft or a hard pull; what the letter assumes about the property, the taxes and the dues; which conditions are still open; who coordinates the file from the offer to closing; and what the letter represents to a seller. My letter comes from your answers and a soft credit check, and I verify your income documents afterward. Should I use a mortgage broker, a bank or a direct lender? explains the roles, and what I review to put your financing together covers income, property, credit and equity, costs and timing.

Getting pre-approved in San Clemente and South Orange County

I'm based in San Clemente, with a branch office in Irvine, and I work with buyers in California, Utah, Oregon and Arizona. Buyers in San Clemente and the rest of South Orange County use the same online form as everyone else.

What I review for a San Clemente purchase before you rely on the letter. The property tax bill, because a Talega or Marblehead home carries Mello-Roos lines that the lender counts in the housing payment with any association dues. Whether the home is a condominium, where the lender reviews the project as well as you. And the supplemental property tax bill that follows a purchase in your name, which the county says mortgage companies do not usually pay. The online letter reads your answers, not the parcel, so text me the address and I run the right payment before you write the offer.

Self-employed or paid on a 1099 in South Orange County? The online path is for W-2 buyers, so you start with a conversation with me, and I review tax returns, bank statements and a profit and loss statement before choosing a route. Using your VA benefit near Camp Pendleton? Can I use a VA loan to buy near Camp Pendleton? covers the Certificate of Eligibility and occupancy.

Buying here? The page on buying a house in San Clemente covers the costs beyond the price, and my San Clemente page has the rest.

If your purchase is one of these

Buying questions

Already under contract? If rates went up during escrow, see what to do if rates went up during escrow.

Sources

Sources: Confirmed by Zach, Sept 2026 (checked 2026-09-28) · CFPB, What’s the difference between a prequalification letter and a preapproval letter? (checked 2026-09-28) · CFPB, What happens when a mortgage lender checks my credit? (checked 2026-09-28) · myFICO, Do Credit Inquiries Lower Your FICO Score? (checked 2026-09-28) · City of San Clemente, annual comprehensive financial report for fiscal year 2023 (Orange County Auditor-Controller copy) (checked 2026-09-26) · Fannie Mae selling guide, B3-6-03, Monthly Housing Expense for the Subject Property (checked 2026-09-26) · Fannie Mae selling guide, B4-2.1-01, General Information on Project Standards (checked 2026-09-26) · Orange County Treasurer-Tax Collector, New Home Buyers (checked 2026-09-26).

Show each claim on this page, what it depends on, and the date it was checked (8)

Where the facts on this page come from
What we say, and what it depends on	Source	Checked
Zach's pre-approval: buyers whose answers fit the program (the W-2 path) with complete information download the PDF letter online in minutes; if the situation needs a closer look, Zach usually replies within an hour during business hours (Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 7 PM PT), or first thing the next business morning; every letter is subject to review and verification and is not a final loan approval; the letter is at the buyer's target purchase price; other situations start with a conversation with Zach; the credit check is a soft credit check only; the letter comes from the buyer's answers, and Zach verifies afterward; the letter stays good as long as the buyer's income situation does not change in a meaningful way; he asks for W-2s and the two most recent pay stubs, or for a bank statement loan the last 12 months of statements from the buyer's strongest account; the PDF letter is on West Capital Lending letterhead with his name, his photo and the West Capital Lending logo.	Confirmed by Zach, Sept 2026	2026-09-28
The CFPB says lenders use the terms “prequalification” and “preapproval” differently, that both refer to a letter saying a lender is generally willing to lend up to a certain amount based on certain assumptions, that a preapproval letter “helps you to make an offer on a home, because it gives the seller confidence that you will be able to get financing,” and that these letters “provide useful information about your likelihood of getting a loan.” It suggests asking a local real estate agent or a housing counselor whether your letter will serve its purpose.	CFPB, What’s the difference between a prequalification letter and a preapproval letter?	2026-09-28
The CFPB says checking your own credit does not affect your credit scores, that an inquiry “typically has a small negative effect on your credit scores,” and: “Within a 45-day window, multiple credit checks from mortgage lenders are recorded on your credit report as a single inquiry.” It suggests avoiding applying for other types of credit right before getting a mortgage or during the mortgage process.	CFPB, What happens when a mortgage lender checks my credit?	2026-09-28
myFICO says soft inquiries, such as viewing your own credit report, will not affect your FICO Scores, and hard inquiries may. It says FICO Scores from older versions of the formula group rate-shopping inquiries within any 14-day span, the newest versions within any 45-day span, and that each lender chooses which version it uses.	myFICO, Do Credit Inquiries Lower Your FICO Score?	2026-09-28
The city’s annual comprehensive financial report (City of San Clemente, fiscal year ended June 30, 2023) lists, among overlapping tax and assessment debt, Santa Margarita Water District Community Facilities District No. 99-1, Capistrano Unified School District Community Facilities District No. 90-2, the City’s Community Facilities District No. 99-1 and the City’s Community Facilities District No. 2006-1. It describes the 2006-1 fund as recording “debt collections and debt payments related to the Marblehead development under the Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act,” and says Talega, “a planned community annexed into the City from the County of Orange,” reached “build-out in FY 2015.”	City of San Clemente, annual comprehensive financial report for fiscal year 2023 (Orange County Auditor-Controller copy)	2026-09-26
Fannie Mae’s selling guide, section B3-6-03 (12/16/2020), defines the monthly housing expense for the subject property, called PITIA, as the sum of principal and interest, property, flood and mortgage insurance premiums, real estate taxes, ground rent, special assessments, owners’ association dues, monthly co-op corporation fees and subordinate financing payments, and says lenders must enter these components on the loan application for qualification.	Fannie Mae selling guide, B3-6-03, Monthly Housing Expense for the Subject Property	2026-09-26
Fannie Mae’s selling guide, section B4-2.1-01, says: “Before delivering a loan secured by an individual unit in a project, the lender must determine that the project meets Fannie Mae’s eligibility requirements,” and that project documentation “may include, but is not limited to, the following: legal and recorded documents... project budgets, financial statements, and reserve studies.”	Fannie Mae selling guide, B4-2.1-01, General Information on Project Standards	2026-09-26
The Orange County Treasurer-Tax Collector’s New Home Buyers page says: “Supplemental tax bill(s) are generally one-time tax bill(s) which occurs when there is a transfer of ownership on a property,” that “Mortgage companies do not usually pay the Supplemental property tax bill(s). They are the responsibility of the new property owner,” and that “You will normally receive your new Supplemental property tax bill(s) within one year of purchasing the property.” It offers a supplemental tax estimator and notes that a home owned and occupied as a principal residence on the January 1 lien date may qualify for the homeowners’ exemption.	Orange County Treasurer-Tax Collector, New Home Buyers	2026-09-26

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