If any of our Loan Officers divulged that information to the sellers agent prior to being under contract it would be grounds for termination. I am confident that such as act would be a violation of the privacy act and it certainly is not ethical as it hurts your ability to negotiate. When my office issues a pre-approval letter it is customary to not put a dollar amount on the letter but to verbally communicate the maximum selling price with the buyer and the buyers agent. This way you know how much you can spend for the approval letter to be valid but the number is not available to the seller or the seller's agent. This keeps the negotiation playing field level. - Sat Nov 14 2009, 12:20