A couple of weeks ago, a couple came into our office. They were ready to buy their first home! (Let me just say right here that I love first time homebuyers!) Good news! They had already done their homework and had their pre-approval done. When I asked who it was with, they said, "*Insert LARGE national bank here*". Oh, I said. OK. I asked if they had shopped around and they said no. I thought to myself, "No worries here. Let's get them looking at homes and we can do the lender talk when we find The One."
We look around on a couple of weekends and, sure enough, we find The One. They are ready to go. We get all of the paperwork filled out and signed, and I send their loan officer an email (after leaving a voicemail), telling her that we need a pre-qualification written out for our offer price. I get one but it's wrong. I email/call again with no response.
This is where my first red flag goes up. I let my buyers know what's going on and do they have another number for the officer. No - just the office number. OK, I think. I'll get a hold of her tomorrow (Saturday). Saturday rolls around and I don't hear anything until 5:30pm that night with an email that says, "Pls call me." I call. No answer since the only number I have is her office number. I email back, explain that I tried to call, blah blah blah. No reply.
LONG story short - we explain our concerns to our buyers and tell them that, since they are looking for downpayment help, that they should really talk to a couple of our local lenders who have local programs that can help them.
Suffice to say that they made ONE phone call, talked to one of our lenders, got a better program and a better rate...and we got the pre-qualification we needed within 24 hours. On top of that, I can actually reach this loan officer after hours. "Email me anytime," she said. "I check my email until 9pm or so."
MORAL OF THE STORY: Bigger isn't always better. When we shop for a car, we check website after website. We talk to friends, neighbors, family. We do a TON of research. Same thing applies when it comes to finding a loan officer/mortgage broker. I am a BIG proponent of going local for this. I know quite a few of these folks - I volunteer beside them, attend a lot of the same events and I get to know them on a personal level. I know how they work and I know how to get in touch with them.
Don't be afraid to shop around and talk to as many loan officers as you can. No one is the same - everyone has different programs to offer.
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