Choosing lenders

[Anonymous]

Hi all,

It's time to pull the trigger on the home buying process. I am as ready as I'll ever be, credit is good, financials are good, taxes are done and checks sent.

Now it's time to get pre-approved. I have a couple of options as far as lenders, all from referrals from friends who used them or from the agent I'm thinking of using.

My questions is: how to choose? there's a recent topic debating the same thing, but my question is slightly different:  I know that beyond feeling confortable with their level of service you have to compare rates/fees. But, to get specifics onn those whould I apply with each one of the ones I'm considering? and by that I mean run credit, file application and all? It might be a dumb question but I've read something saying "no question is a dumb one when it comes to your money"....

this forum tought me a lot as far as getting to the point of being ready for a mortgage, but now I'm walking into a grey area for me so there will probably be more "dumb questions" coming. (like: documentation needed for self employed - beyond pers. and bus. taxes)

Thank you in advance.

[Anonymous]

You can get a rate at one bank and then take it to the others and see if they can beat that rate.

[StartingOver10]

You don't have to have them run your credit report to get quotes.

You can first 'interview' each loan officer to see which ones you are comfortable with and get the criteria they need for your application. You can shop rate and terms. You only have to ask. If you know your score you can tell them your score is X and ask what their terms would be for your loan. A good loan officer will take it from there.

Naturally if you make application with them and your score is not what you said it would be, the terms could change.

You want to compare rate and closing costs. So you want a worksheet detailing all the expenses because one company may have lower costs and a slightly higher rate and another may have lower rate and much higher closing costs.  So compare the whole deal so you know what you are getting into with each lender.

Service and communication is extremely important in the mortgage process. If you get a LO that doesn't answer emails or phone calls, then it makes the process much more stressful.

[ezdriver]

Understand that the only rate that matters is the one availabe to you when you are in a position to lock it. Until that times, quotes on rates are not that critical as are the fees for any particular lender. Most 30-year fixed rate mortgage can be had for rates betwwen 4% and 4.5% right now. The first choice that you will make is which lender will you choose for preapproval. The chosen lender will pull your credit. At that time, if you can provide specific parameters [eg: home price, amount of down payment, resale or new construction, income, assets, etc.] that loan officer can prepare a Good Faith Estimate for you that will show all the fees your will be incurring with that lender.

[Anonymous]

First of all thanks for the replies.
That's what I don't know... how do I know what their fees are and the rate they offer me without applying (running credit with them)? What's the order of events?

[ezdriver]

I thought that your question was answered. Let's try again....

Until you do as my last post suggests, what you are trying to do is akin to sticking your finger in the air to test if a breeze is blowing. You can ask any lender, at any time, to give you a list of all their usual fees associated with a mortgage application ... without having your credit pulled. Regarding the rates they quote however, you must ask for the parameters used to quote that rate. It is as simple as that. Try it and get back to us with the results you receive.

A rate quote example: IF you were locking your rate today, I would tell you that you can have a 30-year fixed rate mortgage at 4.6% for

1) A conventional loan

2) with 20% down payment

3) a mid credit score of 680

4) a DTI of less than 45%

5) Min 2-years employment with no gaps

6) Very good credit profile with no chargeoffs, late payments, judgements, etc etc etc.

Get the picture?

Alternatively, YOU can provide all of those parameters to the person from whom you are requesting the quote.

[DallasLoanGuy]

apply with one and get your fee sheet.... and then you know your scores.....

you know everything else, like down payment and purchase price already.

any lender CAN give you a fee sheet with this info..... and dont need to pull credit.

[Anonymous]

Thank you guys for your advice. i have two, possibly three that I am talking to right now, and I sent them my 2 year returns along with other info they might need  to run a scenario without actually filing a full app.

At first they all kinda pushed for me applying through their site or by phone with them, which is why  I felt that's the normal way they do things. I will change my approach with each of them following this thread. I did get a fee worksheet from a fourth out of state lender. I don't know what to look for on it without having a comparison.

[Anonymous]

Ok, what do I make of this? GFE:
Purchase Price	$185,000.00
Guaranteed Lender Fee	$1,995.00
Guaranteed Lender Rebate	($122.40)
Services We Select	$478.25
Guaranteed Appraisal Fee	$395.00
Guaranteed Credit Report Fee	$16.75
Guaranteed Flood Cert Fee	$5.50
Guaranteed Tax Service Fee	$61.00
Guaranteed Settlement Agent and Lender's Title Insurance	$530.00
Guaranteed Owner's Title Insurance	$595.00
Guaranteed Govt Recording Charges	$68.00
Guaranteed Govt Transfer Taxes	$705.00
Escrow Account Deposit	$1,007.92
Prepaid Interest	$292.19
First Year's Homeowner's Insurance	$647.52
Homeowner's Insurance Premium	$647.52
Your new loan amount	($170,000.00)
Estimated Cash Required at Closing	$21,196.48