![]() |
Why a Mortgage Professional Beats a Banker Every Time -- The Story Tells It AllThe best way to explain why a mortgage professional is always better than a banker is to use an anecdote. My parents lived in the house I grew up in for 35 years, so it was finally time to move. They found a home they liked, made an offer, and signed a purchase agreement. After conferring with me, they decided to go to a bank - one of the more well-known mortgage banks in the region. Of course, I thought a good mortgage professional would be better, and I told them I could follow the deal from start to finish, if they went with a company I previously worked for, but the bank they decided on offered a little better rate and lower fees, so they wanted to go with them. I told them to go ahead, but I was nervous, knowing what I know about large banks, ones that are not wholesale lenders, who work with mortgage professionals. After many trips to the bank (remember, bank loan officers don't come to you) that included plenty of hassles over paperwork, they agreed on a loan for their new home. The next step was to sell their house, so they could use the proceeds for a down payment and moving expenses. My parents had over $60,000 in equity and wanted to put a good chunk down on their new house and use the rest for expenses. Since time was against them - they had 30 days to pay off the seller of their new home, and they didn't have an immediate offer on their current residence - they decided to apply for a bridge loan (more on bridge loans later). This would take the equity from their current home and use it to pay off their mortgage, leaving them enough money for the down payment on their new house. When they sold their old home, they would use that money to pay off the bridge loan. Here is where things got very dicey. Their new lender offered 85 percent of the value of their home for the bridge loan. So, if the home appraised for $100,000, they would get $85,000. They assumed the value would be there. The bank sent an appraiser on a drive-by, which means my parents weren't notified, and the appraiser did not go in the house. He then wrote up the value for the bank's loan underwriter. Drive-by appraisals almost always come in lower than the home's actual value. Now one of the three or four loan officers my parents were dealing with called and told them the value they would use for the loan, and it turned out to be about $10,000 less than they expected. This meant they would not have the money they hoped for, and they would now have to put less money down on their new home. This would, of course, lead to other problems - like a higher monthly mortgage payment and less money for moving expenses. They were, to say the least, devastated. Being the proactive person that I am, I decided to intervene and call their bank. I spoke with one of the many loan officers (you see, you don't have just one person handling you at a bank; you're just another loan number). I had, of course, already done my own research and learned that the value of my parents' house should be much higher. I asked the loan officer to explain how they came to this very low value. She fumbled through her answer and told me they use comparable sales prices in the area and that they don't do a drive-by appraisal. She said I would have to talk to someone in their equity department, because she didn't know what other options there were. I was somewhat surprised at her lack of intimate knowledge with the bank's policies, but I certainly wasn't shocked. This is the nature of home loan operations at a bank - one person passes the responsibility to another and only in rare instances does one department really know what the other is doing. You'll never have this problem with a good mortgage professional. After being channeled through another receptionist at the same branch office, I wound up speaking to an underwriter in the equity department. She told me that a drive-by was, in fact, done. I explained to her as I had the other woman why the value was inaccurate. (I had very accurate comparable sales prices from different resources, given to me by one of the area's best appraisers.) I asked the equity underwriter if my parents could have a complete interior appraisal done to give a true value, and she said this was an acceptable option. In the end, my parents got the value they needed, and things worked out just fine. They needed a quality mortgage professional, though, to get it done. Mark Barnes is an investment real estate and real estate finance expert. Get his free mortgage finance course at http://www.winningthemortgagegame.com. Mark is also the author of the new novel, The League, a shocking, sports-related conspiracy. Learn more about his suspense thriller at http://www.sportsnovels.com.
Can You Refinance An ARM Loan? Zing! Blog by Quicken Loans Can You Refinance a Car Loan? Kelley Blue Book Does refinancing a mortgage hurt your credit? Yahoo Finance How To Refinance Into A VA Home Loan Bankrate.com How soon can you refinance a mortgage? CNN Underscored How much does it cost to refinance a mortgage? CNN Underscored Mortgage refinancing: What is it, and how does it work? CNN Underscored Mortgage Interest Rates Today, December 3, 2023 | Rates Remain Low After Dropping Last Week Business Insider Refinance Appraisal: How It Works And What To Expect Bankrate.com Seven Hills Realty Trust Closes $29.0 Million Bridge Loan to Refinance a Hospitality Property in Anaheim, California Business Wire Is Now a Good Time for a Mortgage Refinance? NerdWallet 'Buy Now, Refinance Later' Mortgage Deals Luring New Homebuyers | Florida Realtors Mortgage Interest Rates Today, December 1, 2023 | Rates Fall Further, Boosting Affordability Business Insider Mortgage Interest Rates Today, December 2, 2023 | Rates Are Down, and They Should Drop More in 2024 Business Insider Exclusive: S.F.'s Stonestown mall owner closes on refinancing $180M mortgage San Francisco Chronicle Mortgage Interest Rates Today, November 30, 2023 | Rates Dip Even Further as Markets Eye Fed Cuts Business Insider 30-Year Refinance Rates: Compare Current Mortgage Rates Business Insider Current national mortgage and refinance rates, November 27, 2023 | Majority of rates rise Bankrate.com Mortgage Refinance Rates: Compare Current Rates Business Insider 15-Year Mortgage Refinance Rates: Compare Current Rates Business Insider Mortgage refinance: What is it and how does it work? Yahoo Finance What Credit Score Do I Need To Refinance? Bankrate.com When Should You Refinance Your Mortgage? Bankrate.com 7 Ways To Refinance A Mortgage With Bad Credit Bankrate.com The best mortgage lenders for refinancing in December 2023 CNN Underscored The Great Pandemic Mortgage Refinance Boom - Liberty Street Economics Liberty Street Economics - Current FHA Refinance Rates Today Business Insider Will Mortgage Rates Go Down in 2024? What Homebuyers Should Expect Business Insider How To Choose The Right Kind Of Refinance For You Bankrate.com The Mortgage Underwriting Process Bankrate.com Cash-out refinance: How does it work? CNN Underscored Compare today's mortgage and refinance rates, November 24, 2023 - Majority of rates increase Bankrate.com How Long Does It Take To Refinance A House? Zing! Blog by Quicken Loans Best Mortgage Refinance Lenders In 2023 Bankrate.com Mortgage Interest Rates Today, Nov. 29, 2023 | Rates Stay Low Business Insider Mortgage Interest Rates Today, November 27, 2023 | Lower Rates are Already Saving Borrowers Money Business Insider What Is A Second Mortgage And How Does It Work? Bankrate.com 2 Reasons Why a Free Mortgage Refinance Could Be Right for You The Motley Fool How Soon Can I Refinance My Mortgage? | Mortgages and Advice | U.S. News U.S News & World Report Money Mortgage Interest Rates Today, November 28, 2023 | Rates Stay Low as Markets Await Fed Cuts in 2024 Business Insider Today's national mortgage & refinance rates, November 22nd, 2023 | Majority of rates fall Bankrate.com Little-Known Perks of Going for a No-Cost Mortgage Refinance The Motley Fool Should You Refinance Your Mortgage in 2024? The Motley Fool CFPB Mortgage Report Finds Jumps in Closing Costs and Denials for Insufficient Income, Growing Proportion of Cash ... Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 7 ways to lower your mortgage payment CNN Underscored
|