Mortgage News for the Albany Area

Choosing A Mortgage Lender

It’s very important to know the right questions to ask a lender in order to make a smart decision about which lender to choose.  And choosing a lender is one of the first steps in the home buying process, because there are many advantages to getting pre-qualified or pre-approved for a mortgage before you start looking at home with a real estate agent.  Here’s a list of things you should know about a lender before choosing one:

• What type of mortgage lender are they (banker or broker)
• What are their underwriting turn times to review documentation
• Where does the loan get processed and underwritten
• What are their interest rate lock-in policies and options
• What’s their average timeline to close a mortgage
• Experience and availability of the loan officer
• What type of loan products do they offer
• What are their hours of operation
• Is their pricing competitive (interest rates & closing costs)
• Do they sell their loans to investors

These are some of the most important questions you should have for a lender before making the decision to choose what lender you’re going to work with.  Ask these questions before you even let a loan officer take your application.  They are running your credit report after all and you are spending a decent amount of time going through the application process.  So be sure about who you are working with.  Take the time to fully prepare yourself for what is most likely the biggest purchase of your life.  Keep in mind that luck favors the prepared mind.