Mortgage lenders and brokers must provide borrowers a standardized Good Faith Estimate form. The GFE lists terms, timelines, and amounts for several key aspects of a loan.

The new Good Faith Estimate also specifies which charges are set in stone, which ones can increase as much as 10 percent at the closing, and which items can vary by any amount. The standardized version of this form not only clearly presents your costs, it makes it easier to compare loans to one another.

Mark Fuller is a leading real estate professional specializing in Luxury Homes In Houston Texas.

When you actually close on your house, you'll receive another form called the HUD-1. This form gives you the ability to compare the charges to what was listed on your GFE. The HUD-1 even refers to specific line numbers from the Good Faith Estimate and provides a side-by-side comparison.

You can view the Good Faith Estimate and the HUD-1 on the HUD Web site. If you have any questions about them, your Realtor can help.