The important first step in buying a home is getting Pre-approved with a mortgage lender. This involves contacting a lender, having them run your credit, going over details such as your income and employment history, and ultimately receiving a Pre-Approval Letter showing how much home you can afford. Choosing a lender is a very important decision that has both short term and long term consequences, so it’s not recommended to simply choose the first lender you come across. There are some critical questions that need asked about the lender and, more specifically, about the loan officer you’re considering using… Does the loan officer get 99% of their loans closed on time? Does the loan officer offer competitive mortgage interest rates? Are the fees charged by the loan officer/lender competitive with other lenders?
Getting a solid mortgage interest rate is critical and will affect your mortgage payments for years to come. Interest rates also don’t just vary from one lender to another, they can vary from one loan officer to another. Many banks give their loan officers THE interest rate for the day and that’s it… Take it or leave it or check back tomorrow. Some mortgage brokers (with ability to lend funds from multiple sources) allow their loan officers to choose their compensation model, which directly affects the interest rate the loan officers offer borrowers. Yes it’s true, one loan officer could offer you a lower interest rate than the loan officer sitting in the next cubicle. It’s simply worth checking with more than one loan officer/lender to be sure you’re in good hands.
If you’re in the market to buy a home, I have a great list of mortgage lenders that has been formed over my 20 years in the real estate industry. It’s critical to my buyers and my success that a loan officer gets the job done and lenders can and do move up and down my list over time. A few of the requirements to get on my list include being recommended from someone I know personally, having a minimum 3 years of mortgage lending experience, offering competitive interest rates, charging reasonable loan fees and the loan officer’s office being located within the metro area. From there performance is critical to be high on my list.
If you’d like my current list of top 5 mortgage lenders/loan officers, click the link below for several ways to contact me…
Request My List of Mortgage Lenders
Posted by Jason Brown
