In today's market everywhere you turn, somebody is trying to make a quick dollar. I get hounded by telemarketers daily and some of the products and services offered are useful. For example, I received a call yesterday from some government grants whatever.com company. According to the rep, all I had to do was pay a $1.00 shipping fee and I would have free access to their web site to download grant forms. After drilling the rep with a series of questions I finally found out that it was a promotion that was only good for the first 7 days. After the 7 days expired I would have to begin paying a monthly fee. Had I not inquired further about all the details, I would not have found out about the monthly fee until seeing the charge on my card. So I declined the offer because I knew that I could download the same forms for free from the Government's website. My point is, whether or not the salesperson you are working with is honest, there is a system that if you stick to, you WILL NOT get taken advantage of. Make sure you ask the right questions. Using my experience with the government grant rep as an example again, I actually liked the service being offered. I just didn't like the fact that I had to interrogate the rep to find out what I needed to know as a consumer. He should have disclosed all of that information up front so that I could make an informed decision. I hate surprises!!

So step 1; Make sure you tell your Mortgage Rep everything they need to know about your situation. Why? Because the Mortgage Rep gets drilled by the Loan Underwriters about your profile to determine what your risk factor is. Your risk factor determines what interest rate you qualify for. If the Mortgage Rep doesn't have detailed information about your employment, income, etc., etc., this is an incomplete loan application. Now listen, a loan application is not a commitment to do business, it's just an application! So don't worry no one's binding you to do business with them. No application - then no quote or estimate. PERIOD. If you want to know the fastest way to get on a Mortagage Reps bad side, don't give him the information he or she needs to complete your loan application. Now I'm not saying to just give every Tom, Dick and Harry your personal information. What I am saying is if you want someone to be upfront and honest with you, you must be upfront and honest with them as well. Listen, underwriting guidelines are very exact and they are always changing; Now if some piece of information is withheld from the applicant, it could hold up or even stop the loan process. When someone doesn't feel well and they go to the doctor to find out what's wrong with them, the doctor will not give a diagnosis without first conducting an examination. The Mortagage Professional must conduct a thorough "examination" of your "financial condition" to give an accurate "diagnosis" as to what you qualify for as a customer.

Step 2; Take notes. Throughout the course of your loan application you will be in contact with your Rep for possibly up to 45 days depending on the circumstances from the time of your application. Write down all of their information for future reference. Whatever documentation they ask for, whatever instructions they give you, write it all down. Miscommunication is so common these days you want to do everything you can to minimize the effects of it.

Step 3: Don't be greedy! What do I mean by that. I'll give you an experience I had; and I'll be brief. A few years ago I had a client approved at 5.50%. We did a complete loan application and the whole 9 yards. He called me a few days later and said that he was approved somewhere else at 5.25%. Now if his loan was for $100,000 with the respective interest rates that's a difference of $15. So I said ok and wished him well. He calls me back a few weeks later and faxed me page 1 of his loan docs and it said 5.875% which was more than I initially had him approved for. He wanted me to help him again. The rate that I had him locked in at the time wasn't good anymore, plus since we already cancelled his application we would have to start all over; and just for a difference of 0.375 !? Forget it. In the process of trying to save money (which is understandable) be sure not to waste people's time. Mortgage Professionals are people and they have to eat too. All the time I spent trying to help that person get a loan to buy a house and I got nothing to show for it. So case and point: If your Loan Rep has you approved at a fair market rate just take it and move on with your life. You don't want to get stuck in limbo for 6 months trying to knock off $15 off of your payment. Remember you get what you pay for. If you like the person you are working with and they are returning your calls and giving you updates stick with them. Don't forget, you are getting way more out of this deal then they are, you're getting a house!

Step 4: Do your own research. You don't have to take a course, this could be as simple as just checking current rates on CNN.COM or by watching CNN. (My personal choice) For example, if current market rates are around 5% and you're being charged 7% you want to know why. Ask your loan rep to send you an overview of the whole loan process from step 1 all the way to funding. That way you can follow along during the process and have a better understanding of what's going on.

Step 5: Keep a file. You might have to fax something again. Maybe it didn't go through the first time, or maybe the copy was too blurry, who knows. As soon as you know that you want a loan get a manilla folder and put all of your documentation in there and have it ready and easily accessible. This saves time and prevents the stress and irritation that's often caused by digging through old files.

I'm sure there are many opinions out there about this topic, however following these guidelines will increase your chances of getting the results you're looking for.

For a free consultation contact Eric Aranda at (714) 499-8601