Yes you can but there may be additional information needed. Your mortgage professional should be able to prove that this is an "arms length" transaction meaning the seller and the buyer are doing the negotiations and bargaining without one influencing directly the other party through blood relationship or extended degree of relationship, ie. this is not a sale within family members. The purchase and sale agreement needs to be crisp to get a mortgage that is not MLS. Also,. an appraisal may be needed especially if the price does not make sense.

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Im 26 with good credit. i just got a raise to 75k a year, up from 60k. a friend of mine who is a real estate agent told me to go to a mortgage broker because they can offer better rates? is this true and how is this possible? doesn't all the money come from the bank; it's like dealing with a middle man?

Your friend is correct. A mortgage broker can and will shop around to get you the lowest rate, while a specific bank is simply stuck with their product offerings only.

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Hi, i am buying a new home and am shopping for mortgages. i recently locked in an mortgage rate with a broker and have been contacted by a few other brokers offering me much better rates ever since. when i locked in the rate with my first mortgage broker, he didn't charge me any fee. can i now pick a new mortgage broker without incurring any problem? am i obligated to anything? my broker didn't charge me any anything, didn't mention any fee and i haven't signed anything. thanks for your help.

You are not obligated to anyone but you need to make sure that you are comparing apples to apples. For example the mortgage you are currently in may have a higher interest rate but without points and those who are quoting you a lower rate may be with paying points. Also unless you have submitted a full application to the other brokers and they know your credit/income there is no way for them to know if you even qualify for the lower rates. Beware of those who offer the lowest rates to get you in the door.

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I recently applied for a home loan, but the broker told i need it a higher score for a better mortgage rate. the broker offer to fix my credit and get me the preaproval. i am still not convince that the broker can do this for me.

Under federal law, your credit score can only be changed to correct mistakes or if your credit has been used fraudulently (ie someone stole your identity). If the mortgage broker is offering to bump your credit score up in order for you to get a better loan, that woud be wholly illegal. If they did it with your knowledge, that would make you culpable. Sounds like you need a new mortgage broker. If your current broker is willing to cheat a bank in order to get a bigger loan, think about how willing they probably are to cheat you. Good luck.

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Hello, when a client goes tro see an Independent Mortgage Broker, the broker will first of all do a factfind to find out as much as they can about the client. they will then pump this information into a database of mortgage products in order to find the best one in the given circumstances. Banks need to make sure they have competitive rates to finish at the top of these search engines. If the same client goes directly into a bank then there is no comparison and therefore no need to offer such competitive rates. At the moment in the uK the reverse is actually true. Many banks are offering better deals direct and trying to knock mortgage brokers out. This is called "Dual Pricing".

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I have a friend who is buying a house. he is trying to get the best rate. there are mortgage brokers that are offering a rate that is 0.125% better than the banks. right now, that is around 6.25% for a 30 year loan at 80% financing. are mortgage brokers the best deal? thanks.

I like that your asking about a good mortgage... not the BEST. There is no BEST out there. If your friend likes the rate (more importantly the payment) then he should be ok. Find a loan officer you like and can trust. When you get the good faith estimate keep in mind that the items from the loan officer are going to be: Origination, Mortgage Broker Fee, Processing, Credit Report and if they are sneaky an application fee. Most of the items the loan officer discloses to you are in fact 3rd party fee's and in reality we have little control of this... Especially with a purchase since many of the service providers are picked by the agents. Appraisal, tax service, underwriting, title/escrow, notary, doc prep etc... Also taxes and insurance. Expect title and escrow to cost a pretty penny. Keep in mind that the companies that are used are typically picked by the agents but it is a negotiable item in the contract. If you shop around you maybe able to find better pricing. Make sure it is better for both you and the seller or the seller most likely will not be willing to change companies. Regarding the rates... depending on the loan amount, credit, documentation etc... they may be great or they maybe on the high side. Without knowing the scenario it is hard to tell if the pricing is right in line; however 6.25% is not a bad rate. Good Luck Kevin 866-562-6838 x 106 kruorock@firstratelending.com

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I am looking at buying a co-op. i was given the number of a mortgage broker but i have read mixed reviews about using one. what should i look for in a good mortgage broker and what should i spot in one that is trying to take advantage of me. i know that i want a 30-years fixed rate mortgage and i have a good credit history. what question should i ask the broker and what is the process of working with them?

A lot of people suggest getting a Good Faith Estimate, which is good but that's not all you should focus on. You're not buying a plasma TV or an I-Pod, you will want to consider service and experience. Remember, this will probably be the largest financial transaction of your life and you need to be treated accordingly. You want to find a mortgage banker/broker that will take the time to educate you, explain all of your options and answer all of your questions thoroughly. With the new RESPA reform law that went into effect on January 1st, it should make it easier for borrowers to shop around without falling victim to bait and switch tactics that have plagued the industry.

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I am pursuing redoing my mortgage on my own.......how do i know if i could get a better rate through a mortgage broker? do they have their own seperate fees or roll them in?

As one person wrote, a broker or loan officer has several lenders to choose from to find a loan that best fits your situation. While a bank only has one or two loans to offer. Licensing may depend on the state you live in. So, check the laws in your state. In California, a BROKER has to be licensed, and in fact, the broker's license is in addition to his or her Real Estate license. Loan Officers are also required to have a Real Estate license in California, and work under a licensed broker. A loan assistant may not be licensed, but must work under a licensed agent or broker. That means someone who's licensed must review and sign off on the loan documents being submitted to the lender. Banks and loan officer's both charge a fee, usually called 'points'. The fee is equal to a percentage of your loan amount. You should never be charged more than 2 points for a mortgage loan. In today's market, it should be easy to find someone willing to charge much less than 2 points. Some loan officer's charge as little as a half a point or a point (.5% or 1%). Sounds like a great deal, right? Well, it may not be. The loan officer may try putting you in a higher interest mortgage, and by doing so, receive a bonus from the lender, sometimes as much as 1 or 2 points. Rather than putting you in a lower interest rate. A Lender may charge points for a lower interest loan, say a fee of .75% for a 6% loan instead of a 6.5% loan with no points. For a $200,000 mortgage, the .75% fee equals $1,500. Your house payment will be $1,199.10 at 6% instead of $1,264.14 at 6.5%; a savings of $780.48 per year. It will take less than two years to break even on the up front fee of .75%. The main factors that determine your interest rate are: 1.) your FICO score, should be 680 or better 2.) your debt ratio - your total debt payments (credit cards, car payments, etc.) should be no more than 30% of your income; 3.) a loan to value (LTV) of no more than 80% - basically the amount you're borrowing vs. the value of the property. Your best rate will be for a loan at or below 80% of the purchase price. Before you talk to a loan officer, get a copy of your credit report. You CAN correct any errors that appear, which will help improve your FICO score. It takes at least a couple of weeks, up to 30 days or a little longer to fix errors. By law, you are entitled to get a free copy of your credit report once a year. There are 3 credit reporting agencies-Experian, Equifax and Transunion. All three may have different information. You can order your report from one agency, then 3 months later, order one from another agency; and again in 3 months. This way, you can watch your credit score over the year to ensure no incorrect information is reported and no one is using your credit fraudulently. You can save a lot of money if you do your home work! Ask your family and friends for a referral. If your loan officer doesn't answer your questions, or return phone calls, find someone else.

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I have been researching mortgages for months and no one gives me a straight answer and even if it seems that they do. the next person i talk with has a conflicting answer. it seems that brokers charge more closing costs but banks don't seem to have as much information on the market and they seem more difficult to work with.

The way to determine this is to get a Good Faith Estimate from all three, compare them and see which entity is offering you the BEST deal. ( Best deal = lowest interest rate, lease amount of out of pocket expenses)

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I am applying for a home loan: i have got a gfe from a bank and they quoted around 5.30%(30 yr fixed - zero points) i have got another gfe from a mortgage broker and they quote 4.85%(30 yr fixed - zero points) 1) does a mortgage brokers usually give better rates than direct banks ? 2) how do i know that the mortgage broker will give me the gfe rate what he gave me today, so there are no surprises later ? 3) are there any questions or something i need to ask the mortgage broker to make sure i am getting the right deal ?

Pretty much, they all have the same rates. However, with a mortgage broker, they are looking out for the best rate between a ton of different banks that they work with. If you go through a bank directly, they are only looking out for the OWN rates. Your closing costs are going to be exactly the same through both, however. Everyone usually has around the same origination fees, processing fees, credit report fees, etc. I would go through a mortgage company. They can lock you in with a different lender if rates or turn times are better somewhere else.

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Our mortgage broker is encouraging us to wait for the interest rates to fall again despite the fact that they have increased steadily for the past three weeks. is there a monetary incentive for him to lock us in higher? we are paying 1 point for a better rate.

absolutely. do not think he is your friend. he has no legal responsibility to you