Three business days before you close, a document called the Closing Disclosure lands in your inbox. Most people skim it, see a number close enough to what they expected, and sign.
Those three days exist for a reason. They are the last window you have to catch a fee that moved without permission, and once you sign, getting that money back becomes a favor rather than a right.
The Loan Estimate and the Closing Disclosure are deliberately laid out the same way. Same sections, same lettering, same order. The forms were designed as a matched pair so a borrower with no financial training could set them side by side and spot a difference.
The Loan Estimate arrives within three business days of your application. The Closing Disclosure arrives at least three business days before closing. In between, a real loan gets underwritten and real numbers replace estimates.
You must receive the Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing. That waiting period is yours. Three changes restart the clock and give you a fresh three days:
Everything else can change without restarting the clock, which is exactly why you have to read the document rather than wait to be told.
Check the loan amount, the interest rate, and the monthly principal and interest against your Loan Estimate. Then check the four yes/no boxes: can the loan amount increase, can the rate increase, can the payment increase, is there a prepayment penalty or balloon payment. Those answers should be identical on both documents.
This is the lender's own pricing, their fees and any discount points. It is a zero-tolerance category. These numbers cannot be higher on the Closing Disclosure than on your Loan Estimate unless a documented changed circumstance applies. If Section A went up and nobody told you why, that is a cure the lender owes you.
Section B is services you were not allowed to shop for. Section C is services you could shop for. Which section a fee sits in determines which protection you get, so check that fees did not quietly migrate between them. Services in C, where you picked from the lender's written list, fall under a ten percent cumulative cap along with recording fees.
Prepaid interest, homeowners insurance, and the initial escrow deposit. These have no tolerance limit, because they depend on your actual closing date, your actual policy, and your actual tax bill. This is where the largest legitimate swings happen, and also where an optimistic Loan Estimate gets corrected.
The Closing Disclosure gives you a column showing the Loan Estimate figure, the final figure, and a yes/no on whether it changed, with a short explanation. Read that column. It is the fastest summary of what moved, written by the lender.
Most borrowers compare one number: cash to close. If it looks close, they sign.
The problem is that cash to close blends categories together. A lender can raise a zero-tolerance origination fee and offset it with a lower escrow estimate, and the bottom line barely moves. You would never see it, and you would have given up a cure you were entitled to.
The comparison only works section by section. A single number cannot tell you which bucket the change came from, and the bucket is the whole point.
Raise it before you sign, not after. Ask the lender to identify the changed circumstance and to state which tolerance category the fee falls under. Legitimate answers exist and are easy to give. Vague answers about rates moving are not answers.
If a zero-tolerance fee increased without a valid reason, the lender is required to reimburse the difference, and that can be handled at closing.
Three business days is enough time to get a second opinion, and this is the moment where a second opinion is worth the most.
Send me your Loan Estimate, or both documents if you already have the Closing Disclosure, for a free LE Review. I will compare them section by section, tell you exactly what moved and whether the lender was permitted to move it, and give you a plain-English verdict, usually within one business day. No cost, and no obligation to work with me afterward.
If you are earlier in the process and your Loan Estimate has already changed once, start with why your Loan Estimate changed, which covers the rules on revisions and what counts as a valid reason.
Dan Frio is a federally registered mortgage loan originator with PBT Bancorp, NMLS #257781. Able to assist borrowers with mortgage financing nationwide. Serving Chicago, Kane County and the Fox Valley.
Dan Frio | NMLS #246527 | PBT Bancorp | NMLS #257781 | 524 Main St, Hazard, KY 41701 | Equal Housing Lender
This article is general information about the mortgage disclosure process and is not legal or financial advice for your specific situation.
