Loan Estimate.
In plain English
The Loan Estimate is the document that lets you compare mortgage offers honestly. Every lender uses the same form, so the numbers line up side by side: the rate, the monthly payment, the closing costs, and what you pay over time. It exists because lenders used to bury these numbers in different formats. Getting one from more than one lender is how you shop a mortgage.
02The math, step by step
Apply with three lenders and you get three Loan Estimates. Lender A shows 6.5 percent with $9,000 in closing costs, Lender B shows 6.4 percent with $12,000. The form's comparison section shows what each costs in five years, so you can see which is actually cheaper for how long you plan to stay.
03What this is NOT
A Loan Estimate is not a loan approval, and not a Closing Disclosure. The Closing Disclosure is the near-final version three days before closing; the Loan Estimate comes first, right after you apply.
04Receipts
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Plain-English answers from our glossary. Receipts included. Never advice.
Educational tool. Answers come only from ClearMoneySchool's published glossary and are not advice. Why we never give advice