Selecting The Right Mortgage Broker
Like with most other services in our modern world, looking for the services of a mortgage broker should go through the same steps of comparison shopping and research. When looking for a mortgage broker there are a couple of things you need to know before you commit to one or other: how long have them been in business, how will they get paid, do they have good references and how they handle rate locks.
First of all let's talk experience. You want and frankly you deserve a hassle-free loan process, and a good way to guarantee this is to ensure that your mortgage broker has been around the block a couple of times. If your mortgage broker has been doing whatever you're interested in for awhile now, he has a leg up on the competition.
It's also always a great idea to find out exactly how your mortgage broker will get paid. Usually a mortgage broker generates money from one of two sources: fees or yield spread premiums, both of with are usually paid by you.
Ask your mortgage broker for the names and telephone numbers of at least three clients he's helped in the last couple of months. You can give them a call and see if they were happy with the service that your mortgage broker provided. It's important to check with others your mortgage broker has worked with to ensure that calls are returned, promises are kept, and that your broker is as good as you think he or she is.
Ask your mortgage broker for a loan commitment letter because it could be like gold to you. That letter spells out exactly what interest rate you're facing with a refinance home loan, for instance.
By getting it in writing you'll be eliminating any confusion over your interest rate right before closing. In addition, once in awhile a mortgage broker may try to squeeze a few extra dollars out of a loan by gambling with your rate lock.