Which comes first?

[VickiR]

Originally Posted by jnj873

Thanks for all the information!

Lauren - I did not know that you did not have to go with the company who pre-approved you! That will make a big difference, I think!

Vicki - If we were to go thru our real estate agent (which we don;t have yet either) will they only point us to the specific firm they use or do they tend to give you a few option?

Thanks everyone!

I work for one of the larger companies in this area and we do have our own in house lenders. However, sometimes I use them and sometimes I don't. It really depends on the type of loan that my clients are getting. For example, the lenders in my office are great for first time homebuyers since they are very famaliar with the nc housing money. They are brokers which means they can get the best rates. I also use a lender that is with a bank. Sometimes he is allowed to negotiate a bit on rates and closing costs since he has worked for the bank for awhile and he is willing to do that.

I think its important to give people a couple of different options and let them use the lender or home inspector or termite inspector that they feel comfortable with. No matter who your Realtor recommends, its illegal to get any kickbacks so don't worry about that.

Vicki

[rcarrillo]

Lender first. Do not go out shopping for homes only to find out you do not qualify, or that you do qualify but the mortgage is far more than you want to pay every month.

As was pointed out by a few people there is a difference in what a lender says you can afford and what you may be willing to pay. Tell the loan officer what your realistic monthly budget allows for, not to just qualify you for as much as possible. With that they can work backwards and tell you the general price range you should be looking at to stay on budget.

A pre-qualification or pre-approval can be done very quickly, the important part is to know you are ready and get a feel for the process. That way if there are any issues you can work out a plan with your mortgage advisor before you have made an offer or are facing a deadline.

Ask friends, family or co-workers if they have a mortgage person or Realtor that they can recommend. That is always the #1 way to find a good, honest professional in my book. If they had a good experience and are willing to recommend someone its the best filter you can get.

If you can not get a referral, then make sure anyone you choose is properly licensed and trained to do their job. With a good team, the purchase process can be fun and rewarding... good luck.

[travelmate38]

Mortgage first, but only because all the sly agents will innocently be asking you........"So what do you do for a living." "How much money do you make" and so on in attempts to feel you out. Having the letter of pre-approval ends this game.

Some real sound advice. Do not sign their commitment contract as a buyer unless you are 100% sure the agent is really going to work hard to fine you the home, you want. Not one THEY think you want. So many agents now days will sit you down in their office, go through the MLS, have you pick out "the best" 3 or 4 homes on the computer, show you those 3 or 4 homes and sigh if you do not write an offer. If your agent is not willing to personally drive you around for 7-14 days showing you 10-15 homes EACH day, move on to someone that will. There are also lots of exclusive buyers agents now, that work strictly with buyers who are fully willing to do this.

[MikeJaquish]

Originally Posted by travelmate38

Mortgage first, but only because all the sly agents will innocently be asking you........"So what do you do for a living." "How much money do you make" and so on in attempts to feel you out. Having the letter of pre-approval ends this game.

Some real sound advice. Do not sign their commitment contract as a buyer unless you are 100% sure the agent is really going to work hard to fine you the home, you want. Not one THEY think you want. So many agents now days will sit you down in their office, go through the MLS, have you pick out "the best" 3 or 4 homes on the computer, show you those 3 or 4 homes and sigh if you do not write an offer. If your agent is not willing to personally drive you around for 7-14 days showing you 10-15 homes EACH day, move on to someone that will. There are also lots of exclusive buyers agents now, that work strictly with buyers who are fully willing to do this.

I respectfully disagree with the odd twist on why to get a preapproval.

The real reasons to talk to a lender are for the Buyer to know the costs of the money to buy, and for the Buyer to know a realistic affordable price range.
The Buyer definitely needs this knowledge, particularly if the Buyer is not pretty well experienced, or has a couple of credit dings.

Yes, the Agent should have confidence that they are working with a Buyer who can afford the housing they are looking at.
That is fair.
Why show $600,000 homes to someone with a $300,000 budget? Why let someone fall in love with a home that is unaffordable, but will be the benchmark for comparison to all other homes? That is a disservice to the client.

There is nothing "sly" about directly asking how they arrived at a price point. I don't care about income, credit, job situations, or other personal information when I know that a trustworthy loan officer has pre-approved the Buyer for the price range we are discussing.
That knowledge frees the agent up to work full-tilt at screening homes within a range, confident that the time is not wasted. again, I think that is fair.

Regarding viewing homes:
I have never seen or heard an agent dismayed because the Buyer didn't pull the trigger on the first three or four homes. We work in a service industry, and showing inventory is part of the service.
One complaint I have heard is Buyers being rushed through too many homes. Most people, Agents and Buyers, cannot keep a huge inventory straight in their heads.
15 homes a day for 14 days, 210 homes, would turn most brains to mush.
10 homes a day for 7 days, 70 homes, would likely do the same to most people.
Buyers' Brains and Agents' Brains. Mush.
Mushy brains are Non-Productive.

Get the preapproval.
Sit with an agent or two.
Engage someone to work for you.
Be realistic about what you can afford, and what you want and need.
Keeping it simple without games streamlines the process and takes a lot of stress out of the deal.

[saturnfan]

Without knowing what you can afford, how can you shop intelligently?

Get your numbers first from lenders to see how much home makes sense for you.

[VickiR]

Originally Posted by travelmate38

Mortgage first, but only because all the sly agents will innocently be asking you........"So what do you do for a living." "How much money do you make" and so on in attempts to feel you out. Having the letter of pre-approval ends this game.

Some real sound advice. Do not sign their commitment contract as a buyer unless you are 100% sure the agent is really going to work hard to fine you the home, you want. Not one THEY think you want. So many agents now days will sit you down in their office, go through the MLS, have you pick out "the best" 3 or 4 homes on the computer, show you those 3 or 4 homes and sigh if you do not write an offer. If your agent is not willing to personally drive you around for 7-14 days showing you 10-15 homes EACH day, move on to someone that will. There are also lots of exclusive buyers agents now, that work strictly with buyers who are fully willing to do this.

"Sly" agents? "Innocently" ask you?

Nothing sly about ME! I ask because my job is to help you get a mortgage and find you a house that you love and then get you through the maze to the closing table and help you live happily ever after!

Its would be unproductive to the buyers to take a buyer who hasn't spoken with a lender to see $500,000 houses if they can't have one. I don't believe in torture!

Looking at 15 houses per day? I have buyers that can't remember the 5th house we see! 7-14 days? Wow. Most of my buyers are happy that their company will allow them to stay in a hotel for 4 days, while they shop for a house! Those living here in town do not want to shop for a house for 7 to 14 days STRAIGHT! Trust me, if I don't sleep sometimes, I can get very cranky!

Buyers and Realtors work as a team. Its a team effort to find someone a home that they love and want to live in. There are certain questions that I need to know in order to achieve the buyers' goals. If I have to be "sly" with my clients, I am not doing something right!

Vicki

[travelmate38]

Originally Posted by VickiR

"Sly" agents? "Innocently" ask you?

Nothing sly about ME! I ask because my job is to help you get a mortgage and find you a house that you love and then get you through the maze to the closing table and help you live happily ever after!

Its would be unproductive to the buyers to take a buyer who hasn't spoken with a lender to see $500,000 houses if they can't have one. I don't believe in torture!

Looking at 15 houses per day? I have buyers that can't remember the 5th house we see! 7-14 days? Wow. Most of my buyers are happy that their company will allow them to stay in a hotel for 4 days, while they shop for a house! Those living here in town do not want to shop for a house for 7 to 14 days STRAIGHT! Trust me, if I don't sleep sometimes, I can get very cranky!

Buyers and Realtors work as a team. Its a team effort to find someone a home that they love and want to live in. There are certain questions that I need to know in order to achieve the buyers' goals. If I have to be "sly" with my clients, I am not doing something right!

Vicki

Hi Vickie,

Despite my label of being critical of agents, I do NOT think you fit the greedy sly agent profile. You're probably one of the good ones as are a few others.

I guess my point, was even though an agents intentions are noble and have merit, I always found it distasteful to be talking about my income and qualifications as soon as I met the new agent. It made me fee belittled and pre-judged as a buyer. If I am interested in say a $250,000 home and the agent is referencing higher end stuff while at the same time he or she is feeling me out about my income, job, etc, It makes me think this agent will think I'm waisting their time once I blurt out $250,000.

From a buyers perspective, the very last thing you want to do is feel like you're imposing on an agent. You want the agent to make you feel welcome and hope that they truly will enjoy finding you that special place. Some agents have a real skill and ability to do this.

I also was exaggerating a little about seeing 15-20 homes for 2-weeks, but also making a point. The last agent I used was wonderful. We found our home in 3 days, but she did show us a good 15 homes each of those 3 days and she loved doing it. She loved seeing our excitement as we found a home we were interested and then she worked hard to try and top that home within the same price range. She spent the first day just getting a feel on the type of home we were looking for without us really even knowing. By the second day she was real close and by the third, she hit that home run. The neighborhood, the style of home, the location, the price, the quality was just perfect!

[rcarrillo]

Glad to hear you had a good experience travelmate. I have worked with agents that fit both ends of the spectrum you described and everything in between.

I have seen the agents that try to get buyers to narrow it down to 3-4 homes. It is bad cutomer service as Mike mentioned and shameful to anyone in a service business. Most agents however do take the time and work hard for their buyer. The reason they ask about qualifications is not to judge a buyer but becuase they need to know.

You cant expect a doctor to prescribe a treatment without information, or a lawyer to defend his client without performing due dilligence... its the same for loan officers and Realtors. The ones that do not ask information and just take orders and try to cram their clients into a generic mold are the problem.

[MikeJaquish]

Show me the money!!!!!!