We Have to Stop Meeting Like This... Part 4

You may have heard from friends who had a closing from you know where, and they were stuck in a conference room for 3 hours. When you heard of stories like this you immediately might have thought, “I don’t need that kind of hassle, and houses are not for me!” There is a reason some buyers have an experience like this. It is no different than when you were in college or High School, and some of your classmates always turned their papers in at the very last minute. You knew that had they done their work in consistent and timely manner that the chaotic rush was unnecessary. The same principle applies to obtaining your mortgage. You don’t want to be stuck in a closing room wondering if your lender will be able to fund your loan after you have already sat there for 2 hours. These scenarios happen due to bad planning, last minute changes or a delay in providing the lender with the necessary information. Or in some cases you have done everything right you just have a chaotic lender.  Your loan office is more than an “interest rate” their expertise in guiding you through the system is important and critical. Picking a lender, solely on the rates, generally leads to trouble. I have seen it first hand for 25 years. So what do you look for? You should start with references of their service, are they local, do they fund locally or will the lender have to fund the loan after all the paperwork is signed and you can think of a million things to do like unload the truck, but are stuck waiting for someone in California to okay your loan. Who wants that? Unfortunately that happens to a lot of people who look solely at the rate. Service does not come at a higher price though. There are plenty of great lenders out there that provide great service and low rates. Your real estate professional will know of some good lenders who can take good care of you and provide you with timely service.