Bank or Mortgage Broker Faster? (loan officer, credit score, fees, financing)

[kamane18]

We are negotiating on a house in NJ and if we go forward both us and the sellers would like to close before Thanksgiving. Do you think this would be possible from the financing end? Is it usually faster to go directly to a bank (and if so, a local one or national one) or to a mortgage broker?

We are very qualified, would be putting almost 50% down and only looking for a conventional 30-year fixed loan. Excellent credit scores.

TIA!

[PokerMunkee]

Yes.

[chet everett]

You should be OK to close in 30-45 days with any reasonable professional lender BUT this year is going to be a mad house if the Congress does not act to change the tax credit.

If you have a mortgage broker that you personally know they should be able to steer your application to the wholesaler that will offer the best rates AND fastest turn around.

SOME of the regional and even national banks have SOME offices that are on top on this, but unfortunately you won't know until it is too late if you get one of the 'dog' offices...

[VictorBurek]

I say go with a broker.

[Modification Specialist]

50% down.....deal directly with a bank, lower closing costs.

FYI - if you get a GFE that shows any amount for loan origination fee, you're dealing with a broker.

(did mortgages for 10yrs)

[chet everett]

In my experience the fair, honest mortgage brokers have total fees and rates that are completely competitive with any direct lending bank. Many smaller consumer banks / CUs are performing the same function as a mortgage broker and the key is know which one can handle the paperwork and communication in a timely manner.

[kamane18]

Thanks. I have a contact at Wells Fargo (but don't love him), one at a mortgage brokerage and my lawyer has a good contact at BoA who he says can expedite things (just found this out late today). So I guess we'll see!

[grannynancy]

My father had similar credit situation [score over 800 enough reserves to buy outright, just did not want to cash in on stocks last year] and the bank - which had his business for over 20 years through various acquistiions, took forever, and was still yanking him around when he switched to a broker two weeks before closing. He closed on time and with a better deal.

The irony is the loan was sold to countrywide and the bank that dicked him around was BOA.

[SmartMoney]

Just because someone shows a point, does not mean it's a broker. I have worked for banks for over 20 years and it really depends on, seller concessions, market conditions, and rates whether points are used in a quote on the Good Faith Estimate.

A broker vs. bank depends upon the location and reputation of both. I left Bank of America in 2008 due to the inability to get anything done without emailing a supervisor. Rumor is they have cleaned it up, but I find that hard to believe after merging w/ CW. Wells has had the same problem. I recommend you look for a bank that does everything (processing, underwriting and closing) local or a correspondent lender that has the ability to do everything local and sells the loan post closing. As for shopping brokers, I can't tell you what to look for, but I am sure the brokers will. The front end person, the loan officer should be experienced - that goes w/out saying.

[Omaha Rocks]

Go with a local bank. And by local bank I mean a local bank, not a local "branch" of a conglomerate like CitiFinancial or USBank.

I've gone through a local bank for the last two houses I purchased. With the last house, we closed exactly 22 days after signing the purchase agreement.

It can be done that quickly, but it's not apt to happen if you're going through a brokerage or trying to deal with a giant corporation like Citi, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, etc. Work with a local bank.