Shopping for a Mortgage | Purchase or Refinance | Seattle Mortgage Guy
It is easy for someone who is shopping for a mortgage to lose focus on what their ultimate objective is for their purchase or refinance by inundating themselves with the shopping. When shopping for the best service, costs/rates, and products it is important to come away from the shopping experience with a concrete understanding of your expectations moving forward. After being in this business for 6 years it is frustrating to see folks still thinking that the more lenders they speak to (whether they know the loan officer or not) the better. From the lender perspective nobody likes to be shopped, but it is part of the business and the reality is that folks that shop correctly can save a significant amount of money, if done right.
The advice I would give folks shopping around for a mortgage is the same advice I would follow myself if I were in the same shoes: (1) find two lenders that come highly recommended from a trusted referral source(s), and/or that you already a have an existing relationship, and (2) go through the process to obtain a complete quote from each lender. If you do not want your credit pulled from both lenders then I would have one lender pull your credit and then have them send you a copy of that credit report, so you can give it to the other lenders to use for your analysis without having them pull a new credit report (unless you have a reason to want them too, or in some instances the lender might have to pull a new report to finish your analysis, which should not ding/effect you significantly either way, depending on where your scores are at). Anyway, the point is to make sure that every lender you are working with fully understands your complete scenario, so they can give you legitimate expectations, quotes, etc. This will allow you to compare all quotes apples to apples without any expectations of the quote changing (adversely) based on the information the lender had to analyze your scenario, if you decide to move forward.
When you receive your quote from your prospectful lenders you will, also, want to understand their expectations when it comes to turn times in getting your transaction closed - especially for refinances, some lenders can be extruciating slow and might be a deal breaker, and it is important to make sure that the lender is responsive and giving you the service you deserve. An issue in the real estate business is that it takes professionals in the business a long time to return phone calls, emails, etc. - any lack of responsiveness by the lender you decide to work with is generally not because they are so busy, it is because of a lack of organization on their part, and/or a disregard to the responsiveness you deserve; it is not that difficult for the lender to touch base with you to let you know that they will be delayed in their response, and there is no excuse for feeling as though you are not receiving the service you deserve.
Anyway, I would then take the quotes received from the different lenders and then find out which lender will be most able to win your business. Obviously, it is important to note that even with trusted referrals, sometimes the lowest cost or lowest rate might not be someone you decide to work with for one reason or another, but by taking two respectable lenders and having them compete against each other for your business will allow you to ensure that you are going to be working with someone you know should/will give you the proper service you deserve, and you will feel good that you were able to save yourself on overall costs, or at least allow you to know what the difference would be between your choice and a competitive lender alternative.
The last thing I would recommend is that you let each lender know that you are talking with another lender. Once you have received the quotes from each lender, it should not take more than going back and forth one or two times to find out who can win when it comes to overall costs... and then based on your communcation with each lender you will be able to make a wise decision on which lender makes the most sense for your expectations when it comes to service and working with the mortgage professional, on both short term and long term.
This should help you think about the most efficient way to approach shopping for a mortgage, in my opinion.
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