Hi there! We are looking to purchase a home in upstate NY or New England.
I do qualify for a full VA loan and am exempt from the funding fee (awesome!). Our budget is somewhere between 500-900k. I know, big range but taxes can change the payment and some places are quite affordable. MMS is 700.
VA loan is the definite route but I am struggling with the "who". I've heard NFCU isn't great, darn. I am a member of some major banks (Chase, BOA, Huntington, U.S. Bank) and several credit unions (NFCU, PenFed, DCU, Affinity, BECU, Andrews Federal, Service CU, First Tech, AOD, and Langley)
I've read through this topic and haven't found a direct answer. I want to avoid as many fees as we can but I also do not want slow/incompetent service. Willing to join another CU/Bank (as long as they only SP). Does anyone have a favorite VA loan lender and why?
Also, first timer here! Thanks!
@CreditFun I've heard of those! Essentially, they act as a "marketplace" of lenders right? I'd wonder some things.
1. Do they run your credit once and tell you the lender offers?
2. Do they "blast" your credit to a bunch of lenders to get the pre-approval done? I'd like to avoid having several hits as after the house, we will likely get a new car.
3. How do they get paid? Are they incentivized by the lenders to represent them?
4. On the paid thought process, IF they are paid by lenders, how do we know that they are not supporting another lender because of the cut? Essentially, I'd love to know that a mortgage broker maintains an agnostic thought process.
If you know, that would be awesome! Thanks for the suggestion!
@CreditFun wrote:
My suggestion is compare them to a credit union, online lender and a brick and mortar bank.
Then consider the most important factors beyond price. Will it close and will it close on time.
Makes sense! Fortunately, the area isn't as bad as others. So, hopefully closing timelines won't play a huge role. Slightly speculative there.
@dragontears wrote:
@greatscott85 wrote:@CreditFun I've heard of those! Essentially, they act as a "marketplace" of lenders right? I'd wonder some things.
1. Do they run your credit once and tell you the lender offers?
2. Do they "blast" your credit to a bunch of lenders to get the pre-approval done? I'd like to avoid having several hits as after the house, we will likely get a new car.
3. How do they get paid? Are they incentivized by the lenders to represent them?
4. On the paid thought process, IF they are paid by lenders, how do we know that they are not supporting another lender because of the cut? Essentially, I'd love to know that a mortgage broker maintains an agnostic thought process.If you know, that would be awesome! Thanks for the suggestion!
Unfortunately the answers to your questions are not going to be very helpful.
1. Depends on the broker
2. Depends on the broker
3. Depends on the broker
4. By comparing the disclosures to other lender's disclosures for the same purchase price.
My favorite way of finding a good mortgage lender (for owner occupied) is to ask my realtor for recommendations on local lenders then call/meet with them and grill them on what they can do for my stats. Some lenders will not be willing to talk numbers unless they pull your credit, some lenders will (personally I don't work with the former).
Please be aware that large banks and many credit unions have overlays and don't always close on time (I personally would not use them for a home purchase unless I was doing a very small loan or a Jumbo loan).
Well that's good to know!
Trusting a local realtor is definitely something that I would struggle with. I have a friend that MAY know someone trustworthy.
Jumbo loan is interesting. Anything above the conforming limit (647k in most places) would be jumbo. It's likely I would end up in the jumbo situation (unless prices come down in the next 2-3 months). You think jumbo loans are better with larger banks/CUs?
@VALoanMaster wrote:
@greatscott85 wrote:Hi there! We are looking to purchase a home in upstate NY or New England.
I do qualify for a full VA loan and am exempt from the funding fee (awesome!). Our budget is somewhere between 500-900k. I know, big range but taxes can change the payment and some places are quite affordable. MMS is 700.
VA loan is the definite route but I am struggling with the "who". I've heard NFCU isn't great, darn. I am a member of some major banks (Chase, BOA, Huntington, U.S. Bank) and several credit unions (NFCU, PenFed, DCU, Affinity, BECU, Andrews Federal, Service CU, First Tech, AOD, and Langley)
I've read through this topic and haven't found a direct answer. I want to avoid as many fees as we can but I also do not want slow/incompetent service. Willing to join another CU/Bank (as long as they only SP). Does anyone have a favorite VA loan lender and why?
Also, first timer here! Thanks!
Me.
Straight to the point, I like it.