Mortgae Shopping Tips

Itemized fee worksheets (aka the old good faith estimate) Get all cost sheets with interest rates the same day from everyone that you speak to. If you find someone new a few days later, you need to go back and ask them all for updates. Same if one tells you that rates have changed, good or bad. Note: It’s not mandatory that a loan officer give you any type of fee sheet, cost sheet, or GFE (good faith estimate). Don’t say yes to anyone until they can show you all costs and rate spelled out on a piece of paper. Just be aware that it’s often not worth the paper that it’s written on.
Lock vs Float – Make sure the loan officer explains the different procedures to you upfront. Make sure the loan officer understands your closing/settlement date. If you don’t have one, make sure you ask all the loan officers how long that rate would be good for when shopping. The longer the lock period, the more expensive the interest rate.
Credit scores – If you won’t allow the loan officer to pull your credit, make sure each one has a copy of your credit report. There is more to it than just your credit score and your total debts.
Be leery of specific ads or individuals that use such terms as “best interest rates”, “cheapest rates”, “lowest rates than anywhere else”, etc, etc
Be leery of those that state, “I guarantee”, “I promise”, “no problem”, “I am very honest”, “to be honest with you”, etc, etc. – Not that these are bad phrases all of the time, but if used often in a short period of time, could be a red flag.
Additional Tips : Don’t focus strictly on interest rate. And don’t shop based on the APR, because the APR has it’s own rules, and lenders can manipulate the APR. Just a fact. Mostly shop interest rate and total lender’s fees when just comparing “cost sheet sheets”, “itemized fee worksheets”, “good faith estimates”. And never hesitate to ask a question. It’s not a cliche, there really are no dumb questions. A good loan officer will encourage you at the onset of your relationship to ask questions and be available as much as possible.