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Top 5 Things To Consider Before Choosing A Mortgage Broker
By Augusta Barstow
While buying your first home or your next home can be an exciting prospect, securing financing can often be stressful. There are many documents to fill out, forms to sign, many of which can be confusing. You will need past tax filings, bank account and asset lists and more. At a time when it is most important to pay your bills on time, the worries of making the right financing decisions can cause even the most diligent to forget. How do you know who will best help you through this process with honesty and integrity? If you are purchasing or refinancing a property, there are several things to look for in a broker.
1. Local bank, national lender, or broker? The first thing to consider is the offers that banks make available directly. Often people are turned away by their banks because of insufficient cash or credit scores. Lenders are often less stringent, but have a limited offering of loan products. If you do not feel that you can find the best deal on your own, you may want to hire a broker who will do the leg work and find a lender with the best terms to accommodate your specific set of circumstances and needs.
2. Search by reputation. Friends, co-workers and relatives who have recently gone through a home purchase are a positive source of information for choosing a broker. If they have had a positive experience working with a particular broker, you may be able to relax a little and work more comfortably with that broker. Check to see if the broker is a member of the Better Business Bureau, and whether there exist testimonials from prior customers.
3. Keep options open. People rarely purchase the first home they see, and there is likewise no reason to accept the first you are offered. A good broker will not pressure you into a particular loan program. While they
may recommend a particular product, your broker should present you with a variety of products from which you can choose. Make sure you understand the benefits of each before making your own informed decision. If you don't feel your broker is answering your questions so that you fully understand within your first or second meeting, find another broker to work with who will.
4. Drivers license, marriage license, broker license. Make sure the broker you are considering is licensed in the state where you are purchasing or refinancing. For example, a broker in New Hampshire may not necessarily be licensed to broker loans in other states. Also, New Hampshire brokers, like those in any state, have to go through an application process themselves. broker applications in New Hampshire are supervised by the Banking Department Of The State Of New Hampshire. In addition, brokers doing business in New Hampshire have an affiliate association with the National Association of Brokers. Keep in mind your broker should know your state specific laws and be licensed in the state where you want to buy or refinance a home.
5. Specialties. brokers often have specialties. Some niches in the industry are: bad credit financing, reverse loans, new home purchases, home equity loans, refinance loans, VA loans, home improvement loans and more. If you have a specific need such as bad credit financing, find a broker who has made this their passion.
About the Author
Augusta Barstow is the Marketing Manager for White Peak Mortgage, LLC, based in Manchester New Hampshire. White Peak is currently licensed in New Hampshire and 11 other states. For more information, visit http://www.whitepeakmortgage.com
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Proposed RESPA Reform
Mortgage brokers may have some intrusive rules from HUD to deal with.
When I read the news on HUD?s proposed reform of the Real Estate Settlement and Procedures Act (RESPA) I was skeptical. Cathy from Sequim challenged me to read the 96-page federal register document so we could all figure out what?s going on. I am here to tell you that there is one very good change coming out of this proposal. In fact, it?s so good that I am borderline hopeful that this change might do what legislation is suppose to do and what HUD forgot to do when they signed the original version of RESPA in 1974. But first, the changes that will have many, but not all mortgage brokers screaming bloody murder:
Read more: Proposed RESPA Reform
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Neocon-omics
How much can the Fed and the U.S. government do in the face of declining housing prices?
That?s been my worry since I saw the housing bubble peak in 2005. Historically, declines in housing prices take 3-4 years to bottom, which means we still should be at least half a year away. But after that, the economy doesn?t rebound instantly. It yo-yos for a bit - essentially running horizontal.
Read more: Neocon-omics: the Emperor’s Club that screwed us all
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A Mortgage Fraud Solution
A look at appraisers, mortgage brokers, and fraud.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have entered into cooperation agreements with New York?s attorney general to only purchase loans that meet a new home valuation protection code, the state announced. The code is effected on Jan. 1, 2009. Under the new code, mortgage brokers and loan originators are prohibited from choosing or communicating with appraisers.
Read more: This Is A Mortgage Fraud Solution, But!
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Choosing Second-best
How to leverage your second choice into seller concessions and a better deal.
So, rather than competing for the best house and paying top dollar, you can use it as leverage to get a lower price and seller concessions on a home that could be even more ideal for you ? after you do a little work.
Read more: Choosing second-best could get you the best possible home
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Price Depression
A forecast for more housing price depression.
My theory is that housing prices will continue to wilt as long as large levels of foreclosures and new home inventories run high. These are not traditional homeowners, and are motivated to slash prices, thus continuing to depress prices.
Read more: Wilt the Silt
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Can I Afford A Mortgage
A good tip on getting concessions from the seller.
You should try to get pre-approved by a lender prior to shopping for a home. A pre-approval is a strong marketing tool when making an offer that may contain many a number of seller concessions. Telling a seller that you are already approved for a loan makes the acceptance of a low offer or one where he may be paying the closing costs much more palatable.
Read more: Can I Afford a Mortgage
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Time To Purchase A House?
Housing prices are off their highs, but mortgages are harder to find.
US News and World Report implies (hopes?) we may be nearing a bottom in housing prices but with a mountain of resets coming in the next few months, it?s difficult to see how a bottom can be seen or even predicted.
Read more: Time to purchase a house?
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Filing Your Home Insurance Claim After The Disaster
Here are 5 steps to follow when you need your home insurance.
Here are 5 steps you should do to prepare and file your home insurance claim after the disaster.
Read more: 5 Steps To Preparing & Filing Your Home Insurance Claim After The Disaster
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Strike One
A look at role of mortgage insurance in FHA loans.
Regarding the second point: By not raising the loan limits they fail in one of the 11 ways they can help. I believe they will fail in almost all, but let us have hope. To be specific as to why I support this: FHA is not a government gimme. It is a government guarantee the mortgage will be paid or the lender compensated for losses. The program pays positive cash flow to the government in that there is a type of mortgage insurance fee charged the borrower. It is reasonable and more than pays for the reimbursements made to the lenders that suffer a default.
Read more: Strike One, How Many More To Go President Bush - Congress?
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Who's To Blame
Mortgage brokers share the blame with the rest of the industry in the current real estate mess.
Who is not to blame for the mortgage mess? Take one step back. As lenders, money was flowing from the spigot like there was no tomorrow. As mortgage brokers, there was money to be made by cranking the faucet, and it was a foot race to see who could get to the sink first. As agents, we sang the ?Houses are expensive, but money is cheap? refrain until we were blue in the face. And, as for the consumer, it really doesn?t matter in the final analysis whether they were motivated by necessity, opportunity or unadulterated greed. We all helped make this bed in which we now must lie.
Read more: Chicken Soup to Social Responsibility - Damn, I’m a Paradox
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Trying To Move
Hard to move when you're house loses value.
I will continue to work from Los Angeles while we work on selling our house, which unfortunately is bad timing as housing prices have taken a bit of a dive around here. Once we have things settled over here, we?ll pack our things and move up to Seattle.
Read more: Why Is Microsoft Removing My MVP Status?
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Housing Slump 'Forces' Pair To Open Whorehouse?
A critical look at a story about mortgage brokers turned sex workers.
What else can you say to such a ridiculous report, such obvious sensationalism? The sad thing is, many people will read this wild hyperbole and imagine that the TV station?s salacious report has a ?point? to it.
Read more: Housing Slump ‘Forces’ Pair to Open Whorehouse?
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Home Buyers Returning This Fall
This blogger says lower mortgage rates will drive buyers to the residential real estate market soon.
Ten days ago after the Fed calmed the markets' credit panic with a 1/2 point cut in the Discount rate, I postulated that home buyers will come back this fall when the Fed finally drops the Fed Funds rate, and mortgage rates drop. It's now almost certain to happen. Here are the parameters in play now:
Read more: Home buyers are returning this fall - part 2
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Lead Scrub Rates
A look at the cost of a lead for a mortgage broker.
Joel has a good interview with Dave Wengel of TargusInfo around Mortgage lead scrub rates. Specifically that lendingtree and lowermybills have a 15% scrub rate whereas the free ipod guys (lure people in with promise of a free ipod but they and their friends have to signup for credit cards, netflix and talk to mortgage brokers to get it) have around a 50-60% scrub rate.
Read more: Lead Scrub Rates
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Why I Have Endorsed FHA
A look at FHA compliance for mortgage brokers.
Having been an FHA lender I can attest it is a pain at times. FHA requires annual financial audits of the mortgage brokers financial condition and more. We always have survived the several day pain, and the expenses tied to it, but only FHA drags brokers through this. The actual banks that sponsor the mortgage broker go through even more red tape and grief. Loan officers have to know more rules. FHA doesn?t rely on the easy automated underwriting or the quick answer from a subprime lender. FHA restricts how the borrowers pay for certain expenses and how much the lender can charge.
Read more: I Have Endorsed FHA, Why Specifically?
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