so new to this - looking for lenders and have other questions

Maribelle7777 Posted: Jul 14, 2004 09:19 AM

so new to this - looking for lenders and have other questions

Can you all please tell me who your lenders were and if you would recommend them? There's so many out there.

And I thought all mortgage rates were the same no matter what bank or lender you went to. Because they are set by the federal government.

So far I know of
Chase
Fleet
Wells Fargo
Washington Mutual
Allstate (not sure if they are a lender or broker)

Are there any out there that are credible but I wouldn't think of as a lender?

How exactly does a mortgage broker work? Do they help you find the best mortgage? Will they work 'for' you in really finding the best one or just try to give you what the call the best but really they are just making a big commission if we take what they say?

And what can HUD do for me? I've been on the website but can't seem to understand how they help getting a nice mortgage. Same with Fannie Mae. I thought Fannie Mae was an investment vehicle that people invest in and that's where the moeny for mortgages comes from.

What or where can I go to get general information (current) about all this stuff?

Thanks in advance.
Mary

Ang&Rich Posted: Jul 14, 2004 01:07 PM

Re: so new to this - looking for lenders and have other questions

We purchased a co-op and then refinanced that morgage not too long ago so I'm not sure how much help I'll be but I can try to suggest somethings...

We had our first mortgage through CitiMortgage - fine until we went to refinance - what a pain! When we refiannced we actually went through our bank because the fees were the lowest - NorthFork.

We had a mortgage broker for the purchase and I must say that I loved having her. Refinancing on ur own was a pain - IMO. I will definitely be calling her when we go to buy our home. She shopped around for the best rate and handled everything in terms of credit reports, paperwork - and always kept us well informed. When we first called her we basically told her what the deal was and that we'd call her at 5pm to see how her rate compared to the ones we were gathering independently. We made several calls on our own and then called her back - she actually got the best rate for us.

Maribelle7777 Posted: Jul 14, 2004 08:41 PM

Re: so new to this - looking for lenders and have other questions

bumping - no one wants to recommend the bank they got their mortgage from???? Or make other suggestions for me to look into??

Not asking for anyone to do my homework, just some leads. I've looked at bankrate.com and alot of the lenders are online lenders and I'm a bit wary of those.

Thanks

Florenze Posted: Jul 14, 2004 09:13 PM

Re: so new to this - looking for lenders and have other questions

We have an excellent mortage broker. FM if you want her info. She is awesome, my husband and I have nagged her to death for the last 3+ years. We have purchased a c0-0p then a house now we're trying to upgrade into a bigger house and she is the only person we trust and she is extremely knowledgeable and helpful.

sept20yay Posted: Jul 14, 2004 09:19 PM

Re: so new to this - looking for lenders and have other questions

I have an outrageous mortgage broker too. He is wonderful. He is paid by the bank where he finds the best rate. His rates are wonderfully comptetitive. A mortgage broker finds you the best rate at no cost to you. It is sort of wholesale vs retail. Banks on their own are USUALLY higher.