Often times a Realtor will suggest to a homebuyer that they use the real estate company's "in-house" lender. Realtors don't usually push these lenders on their buyers, but they are definitely suggested many times. Every wonder why? It is important to know how these lenders are structured, and how they operate. Read the rest of this entry »
Everyone wants to get the best deal reasonably possible when getting a mortgage. I say reasonable, because although some lending sources advertise what seem like unreal rates, most consumers are smart enough to discount what appears to be a free lunch. The reality is that even with hundreds of competitors, rates never vary by much more than 1/8% in rate. But hey, who does not want every 1/8% to be in their favor?! I do. So go for it. But here is the problem with shopping for that best 1/8% deal online: Read the rest of this entry »
Let's do a quick lesson that may take us back to our school days. I want to make sure everyone knows what a commodity is, and is not.
A commodity is a good for which there is Read the rest of this entry »
Each mortgage lender has dozens of loan programs, and there must be hundreds of lenders. We work with 50 lenders or so, and each lender may have a different interpretation or guideline for each facet of the loan; related to credit, income, appraisal, assets and debt ratios. Imagine the hundreds or even thousands of permutations, Read the rest of this entry »
Don't all of these alphabet groups and definitions confuse you? Interest Rate and APR are two of the most commonly confused terms in the mortgage business. Many people think APR (Annual Percentage Rate) is the rate of interest that you pay on the loan. If I had $1 for every client that called upset that I had quoted a certain rate, and that they were looking at some disclosure with an APR higher than the rate I promised them, and they'd like to know what the hell is going on, I could have Read the rest of this entry »
One motto of Lending Tree is, "when lenders compete, you win." Yes, I agree. But that should be expanded to be considered even somewhat accurate. If Lending Tree were my company I'd say, "when experienced, legitimate, local lenders compete, you win." But then Read the rest of this entry »
There seems to be an epidemic of greed amongst today's mortgage consumer. I am going to try and outline why it is not a birthright to get a lower interest rate if you have locked into an interest rate, and then rates drop a little during your transaction. Read the rest of this entry »
I had clients who applied for a refinance almost 4 months ago. Interest rates dropped for quite a bit of that time period, and it seemed like once a month they were asking me for a better deal than I had originally locked them in at. Getting a better deal is fine, steamrolling everybody in your path to pick up each 1/8% rate drop is another. Read the rest of this entry »
Are we really that gullible to believe the old saw that someone else can price a product or service cheaper than everyone else? Apparently so, it is a gimmick that has been working for centuries. But if you really take a hard look, the lowest price is not always the lowest price. Read the rest of this entry »
Is there a free lunch, or isn't there? My last post about mortgage shopping suggested that interest rates are only a slight bit different (1/8%) from lender to lender, and that the consumer needs to focus on performance, customer service and execution more than price. But no one does, do they? And we create our own customer service problems by seeking the lowest price, and expecting the best service. It happens with mortgages, movers, furniture, contractors…you name it. We have been creating our own service and product hassles since the dawn of time.
And the reason I have chosen to write about this again is a recent client who asked me to serve a piping hot free lunch. How you ask? Read on… Read the rest of this entry »