I am going into a meeting tommorow for our mortgage office and I would like to get some info from you guys. What do you look for in a mortgage broker in order to do business with them? What makes you uncomfortable? What makes you comfortable? Thank you in advance! -Nick
Look for professionalism and experience. You don't want some newcomer making a vital mistake because quite frankly, you will be signing so many papers that you will not have time to read 1/10 of what's on there so if you get the slightest hint of sleeziness on his/her part, walk away.
Take your time. Read all. Absolutely let no one pressure you into signing anything. Do not be afraid to ask questions. Good luck on the big adventure.
You will be the judge of your comfort level. There are brokers that do a LOT of business with specific banks and can pump your loan through faster than Lamour can read a Playboy. There are others that have bad rap's with lenders that can't get a bank to look at any paper with 'lower' credit scores. A good broker does a lot of work and will answer your questions in laymans terms. They answer their calls around the clock and understand that you come first. Just don't get screwed paying high broker fees. Good brokers get kickbacks. Also look at direct lenders. I have a guy at Indy Mac that is awesome! He will get all of my future business. Good luck. You may find a few brokers on the board that you could work with.
And don't be afraid to walk if something doesn't smell/feel right. The deal isn't done until you sign.
To clear things up, I am a loan officer. I wanted to get opinions from users on fchat. The purpose was to share with co-workers and my office the responses gathered from different home owners to improve our customer service. I am not purchasing a home just yet, but all your input is very good. I want to be able to approach each deal understanding home owners to get them what they want, and to establish lasting relationships with the company & myself. The original post made it sound as if I was asking because I would be going into a deal, but my intention was to ask what you would look for in a broker. Either way I got some awesome feedback, thanks guys. -Nick
Treat people openly and honestly. Don't try to hide or lie about fees and NEVER try and sneak in extra things that weren't on a GFE without disclosing them. If something extra that wasn't on a GFE has to go in, explain what it is, why it has to go in, and why it wasn't on the GFE. Everyone knows you're making money or you wouldn't be doing the deal, so honesty is the best policy. I wish I could find someone like that around here because that's what I want in a mortgage broker. But every one I've dealt with has tried something underhanded along the way. I know there are good ones out there, I just haven't found them yet.
Thank god I don't really have to deal with this. My wife has been in the mortgage biz for 10+ years. She takes care of most of the mortgage issues. Fixed rate.....For sure !
A low interest rate and NO closing cost whatsoever. I refinaced my house last year with Lennox Financial Mortgage,LLc and they paid 1005 of the closing cost...no it was not rolled into the loan...they paid it...give them a try if the mortgage company you're working with refuses to pay all closing costs. 678.281.6106
You can be sure you were paying them. If the $1005 was a very small percentage of the principle loan amount they probably just had a bit more than their normal margin at the rate they charged you but would not have have made enough at the next lower rate. That is called a negative point. They probably made an extra $1005 on the deal and just gave it to you as a good faith measure. The other alternative is that they simply built those charges into the rate or did not give you as low a rate as they could have.
