How did you find the best mortgage rate?

[jd11365]

Going though a broker causes an origination fee, so how do you find the best deal?

[set81616]

You can go to a broker and get his quotes and then ask your brick in morter to match. Internet lenders are also great. Your finance section in the paper should have all the local rates.
Shannon

[mskitty]

Don't just fixate on the rate. Look at the whole package (inspection, closing costs, rates, servicing, etc). The last time we actually paid a 1/4 of a percent more for no cash refi and to lock a rate for 7 years. We were really fed up our loan getting sold every six months and misplacing our escrow so we went through a local mortgage company that guarantees never to sell the servicing of your loan.

www.jbnutter.com is their website. Look at their questions to ask page and check out their rate page. They usually are very competitive without any gimmicks or runaround. I know they do loans in lots of states... e-mail or call them to find out if they work in your state.

Hope that helps...

MsKitty

[bostonsmama]

If you're doing new financing (for a home purchase), it's quite different from refinancing a loan. For our original home purchase, we went through a broker recommended by my mother (who was also our realtor) and paid down the rate with a quarter point, no origination fee, all closing costs rolled into the loan amount, and some more goodies, even though we were sold eventually to a great company (Wamu-Washington Mutual). When we refinanced (this loan was also sold to a good lender), we used my step father, a mortgage broker with a private firm, and only paid a tiny OF, but got a great rate (4.78% fixed rate for 15years) with no cash out, and the appraisal and lawyer closing fees were doable. What helped was closing the loan so that we skipped 2 payments, which took closing costs down to $1,500. I don't know how they did it, but we wound up with a plus in escrow. We "shopped" our home bank (Bank of America) and several credit unions we have other accounts with for a better rate and package, but honestly, once we priced out interest rates, upfront & financed fees, and other charges, they were all about the same, with Bank of America being slightly less competitive. Also, depending on your credit score, debt-to-income ratio, type of loan (VHA, VA, FHA, conventional) and first/2nd/etc-time buyer status (and a slew of other factors...including the market), you can end up with a very good rate or a very poor rate. Of course, there are interest only loans (that I personally don't recommend), ARM rates/step rate loans, loans with 20% downpayments or 20% equity (so you save on PMI-private mortgage insurance) that can all save you money upfront or in the end. Forgive me if you already know this stuff.

Oh, and don't go out a buy a car or make a late payment on a bill before you get qualified. Also, don't have multiple companies check your credit for major financing. While credit checks for credit cards and even future house-shopping are considered soft hits on your credit score, they can seriously screw up your rate potential. Trust me!! I hear my step dad come home and complain all the time about his "not too smart" clients who apply to five different credit lenders (who are more than eager to tell you what you'll qualify for) and wind up going from a 6% rate to a 9% in the blink of an eye.

Larissa
who's trying to create her own miracle

I'm an Aunt again! Introducing Jack Dorian, born to my brother and SIL on 3/25/06 at 6pm (7.5lbs)
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