Home Loan FAQs

The most common reason your mortgage payment increased is due to changes in your escrow account. If your property taxes or homeowners insurance premiums increased, your monthly escrow contribution goes up to cover the difference. OKCU performs an annual escrow analysis to adjust your payment accordingly once a year.

Yes! You can change insurance providers at any time. If you find a better fit, you must notify OKCU of the change and ensure the new policy meets OKCU’s coverage requirements. Your new insurance provider can send the updated declarations page and proof of coverage to OKCU at the following address:

PO Box 24027
Oklahoma City, OK 73124
ATTN Real Estate Servicing.

If you're ahead of the game and already have a copy of the declarations page and proof of coverage, you can email them to [email protected]. 

Of course! You can apply any amount to your principal as long as your payment is current. 

PMI is short for private mortgage insurance. This is often required if your down payment was less than 20%. You can request to remove PMI once you’ve built at least 20% equity in your home (loan-to-value ratio of 80% or less).

There are sometimes additional requirements, such as a new appraisal or good payment history before PMI can be removed. 
 

Tax statements are available every year by January 31^st. They will either be sent by mail or be available in Digital Banking, depending on your statement delivery preferences. If you do not receive your statement, you can call 405-606-6328 to request a copy starting in February.

Missing a mortgage payment can result in a late fee and will be reported to the credit bureaus, which will affect your credit score.

If you’re having trouble making your mortgage payment, please contact us and we will walk you through what loss mitigation options are available. 

You can get pre-approved for a mortgage online or over the phone. You’ll need to provide basic financial details, such as your income, employment history, credit and assets. At OKCU, most pre-approvals are completed the same day, as long as all the required information is provided. 
 

Here is what's included in your monthly mortgage payment:

1. Principal: The money you borrowed to buy your home.
2. Interest: The cost you pay the lender for borrowing the money.
3. Property Taxes: The yearly taxes you pay to your county, divided into monthly payments. 
4. Homeowners’ Insurance: Insurance that protects your home in case of damage.

If you make a smaller down payment, you may also have mortgage insurance as part of your payment.  

For most mortgage loans, you’ll need:

1. Proof of income (recent paystubs, W-2s, Retirement/Social Security Statements and Tax Returns) 
2. Bank statements (usually the last 2 months)  
3. Valid ID (driver’s license or government-issued ID)  
4. Proof of funds for your down payment and closing costs (this can be from checking, savings or investment accounts) 
5. Proof of homeowner’s insurance (before closing)

Please note: If you’re buying a home, you’ll need a signed purchase contract. 
 

On average, the mortgage process at OKCU takes about 17 days from applying to closing. This can vary depending on a few things, such as how quickly you provide requested documents, appraisal timing and the complexity of your loan.

Yes, you can lock your interest rate once you have a signed purchase contract or once you’re ready to move forward with your refinance. A rate lock guarantees your interest rate for a set period of time. You’ll work with your loan officer to choose the best time to lock in the interest rate, based on market conditions and your closing timeline. 

If your mortgage payment decreased, it is most likely your property taxes or homeowners insurance went down, or you no longer have an escrow shortage to repay.

An escrow shortage means there weren't enough funds in your escrow account to cover last year’s property taxes and/or homeowners insurance. This can happen if those increase from the prior year.

Yes! You must make sure your new policy starts the same day the old policy ends, and provide OKCU a copy of the policy to update your records. If you change policies in the middle of your policy term, make sure you apply any refund from the previous insurance company back into your escrow account to prevent any shortage for the coming year.

An escrow analysis is completed once every 12 months (annually). 

Yes, you can make an extra escrow deposit at any time to help reduce or prevent a shortage at your next analysis.

The most common method to pay your escrow shortage is to spread it across the next 12 payments. This will increase your mortgage payment during those 12 months. If you would like to pay the escrow shortage all at once, please notify the Real Estate Servicing Department. We will recalulate your payment to reflect that the shortage has been paid in full.