Mortgage Lenders?
Looking to start getting pre-approved, any recommendations for lenders?
Your bank first. Credit unions second. Compare and choose. Avoid brokers or realtor recommendations.
Why?
Totally disagree with this. Iâve been involved with 9 purchases or refis. Brokers and realtors can be great resources. But just like everyone in the industry, donât trust and do verify what they say. Brokers in particular. They MAY be able to get you a great deal. They have for me at times, and other times they couldnât beat my local bank. The issue is to educate yourself of the process and trending rates and terms. Ask for everything in writing. Asked them to explain every term in and GFE or terms sheet you get. Double check they amounts are as expected. And feel free to walk away.
It really depends on your situation. If you have perfect credit, income, and 20% to put down then go with a bank. If you have credit or down payment issues then a broker may be better. You'll have to pay for the loan origination but they have access to wholesale lenders who will take on more risk than a bank.
Use Eligibility.org
Where are you? If youâre in a hot market area, local banks might be better than large banks. If youâre in the Bay Area, a preapproval isnât enough, you need to get underwritten first.
Even in this slower market ?
Credit unions since they are non-profit would get you the best deal unless the bank Matches it. PM if you want a referral to a credit union that I got a good rate.
Costco
How was it with Costco?
Like pretty much everything at costco: amazing. They broker for you and find you the best rate then give you a large discount and service if you run into any problems.
Update to post: - Bay Area - Excellent credit - 20% down
Bankrate is a great place to start. Even if you donât go with anyone for there itâs a great baseline for rates and fees.
Bank of America
Bankrate.com. DO NOT use rocket mortgage.
Why not?
Terrible experience, i was a first time home buyer and they assign some sleazy used car salesman that told me they need all my info pay checks social etc uploaded to their site( i bet its gonna get hacked) to even begin getting rates. I told them my score but they dont care. You lose control over the process. It took me 6 months to buy a house because my previous offers on other houses kept getting accepted and then outbid before signing. So during this time rates changed and Rocket mortgage kept doing hard hits on my credit reports to get you their âbest ratesâ. They are just middleman, and im sure they take a comission. You can search for rates yourself without a hard credit check every time you get a quote. Ended up like 3 hard hits for no reason. Bankrate you have the control, you know your credit range so they give you competing rates without handing shit over.