mortgage rate

[Strongasabear]

We were able to pay 2 points (just $1600.)and get our rate down to 5.5% for 15 years with Alambry.

[fvfather]

Originally Posted by meimei88

Yes, I did check with Suntrust, but their rate is not competitve.
I'm interested in 15 years fix. I have 800 credit score. The house is around 800k. We will put 50% down. I called a few local lenders and try to get the best rate possible.

Nice credit score, but woof woof 400K mortgage.. Lets see 6.0% 15 years I see big numbers baby... 3,375 a month add taxes 800 K house tax rate 1.12 another 650 a month whoa 4000+ a month just mortgage and taxes..

Go for it! It is nice here in the triangle

[rcarrillo]

Mortgage brokers are good to shop your rates, but as HuntersDad recommended don't always assume they will shop for YOUR benefit. Some shop for just theirs (who will pay them the most). Both banks and brokers are good sources... it depends on your needs and who you work with.

At banks pricing is generally more uniform from branch to branch, however the loan officers do have input so if they want to charge more they often can. Its best to ask for recommendations from those you trust. Then intervriew the prospective lender as you would any other financial services provider (CPA, financial planner). The best first step is to find someone educated, experienced and honest.

From there you can debate programs and options as its not always about the best rate but about the best plan for your needs. Of course if you are already 100% sure of the options you want and its a simple situation (yours is fairly straightforward... no debate about MI vs no MI, jumbo vs conforming, government vs conforming) then those things matter less.

However, if you are dealing with a licensed, honest professional that understands the benefits to their business of providing customer service, you are less likely to run into the "bait and switch" or gouging. NC has some good laws and regulations for loan officers (and is increasing them all the time) but there are still many "sales people" that jumped into the field that only look at how much they can make off of a client.

[adlnc07]

I've had good luck over the years with First Horizon - it might be worth giving them a call.

Rates have unfortunately gone up this year - I wound up with a 6% 5/1 ARM with no points/origination fee when I closed at the end of June. I plan to refinance in a year or two to a 15-year fixed, but this worked for me in the meantime.

edit: I forgot to mention - one of the things I like best about First Horizon is that they only very rarely sell their mortgages. I much prefer to write my check to the same company year after year.

[rcarrillo]

Originally Posted by adlnc07

I've had good luck over the years with First Horizon - it might be worth giving them a call.

Rates have unfortunately gone up this year - I wound up with a 6% 5/1 ARM with no points/origination fee when I closed at the end of June. I plan to refinance in a year or two to a 15-year fixed, but this worked for me in the meantime.

edit: I forgot to mention - one of the things I like best about First Horizon is that they only very rarely sell their mortgages. I much prefer to write my check to the same company year after year.

First Horizon was a decent lender, although I found their rates a little high compared to others. But they are in transition now... they were bought by MetLife and are changing their name, products and policies. This is a trend that will continue in the mortgage industry as companies go under or are taken over. Watch your statements to see if there are any changes, but hopefully they will keep your loan and just change the name to the new company.

Nothing is ever 100% in the mortgage industry. I have had loans with Wells Fargo and Chase and they still get sold. Its an asset to the bank and no matter how large, if they want to raise capital to buy out another bank or stave off bankruptcy they will sell it.

[adlnc07]

I have a great loan officer at First Horizon, which is probably why I like them as much as I do. She has worked with me on multiple transactions and was very helpful throughout.

With online bill payment I suppose having your loan sold isn't such a huge deal - my distaste for it goes back to when my local bank back in Virginia sold my loan to some company in Texas. It had been very convenient to just go through the drive-through to pay my loan, and at the time I was ticked off at the time.