Friday, August 04, 2006

Best News I've Heard All Week

I got a free 30-day extension on my mortgage lock. Rates have gone down a little recently so my anxiety about the lock expiring before my closing is somewhat lessened. I'll be keeping an eye on this and talking to my mortgage broker about whether we should reapply at a different bank depending on how things go over the next few weeks... this may be one of the benefits of working with a mortgage broker. I originally felt it might be a bit lazy not to approach a few banks directly, but since my mortgage broker could take me to a different bank without me having to pay a new application fee, there was some leverage to apply that I might not otherwise have had.
I've always had the impression that people in NYC tend to use mortgage brokers more often than they go directly to banks, one of the reasons being that the brokers know which banks will give loans for certain circumstances: to small co-ops, for instance, or in particular neighborhoods.
Does anyone else have any opinions on using a mortgage broker vs. applying directly to a bank?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I agree. Brokers typically have a larger number of lenders to work with which, in theory, means better pricing for the borrower.

Tyler
http://highdividendpayingstocks.blogspot.com/

Frugal Duchess said...

A reputable broker can do a lot of comparison shopping for you, especially if the broker hopes to cultivate a long term relationship wih you.

But I know that there are a lot of roque
brokers out there also.