Home buyers who do mortgage loan shopping can avoid leaving money on the table.   Whether you’re shopping for new bed sheets or a new car, the drill is usually the same. Hit the reviews, check with friends, and scope out the best deal. After all, who wants to buy a car that racks up repair bills right away? Yet when picking a mortgage loan, borrowers don’t always think about comparison shopping. In a Bankrate survey of recent home buyers, 12% of millennials said they believe their mortgage rates were too high. Some buyers may think that when mortgage rates are low, they don’t need to shop for the best offer. But even a few basis points can make a difference of thousands of dollars over the life of a loan, according to Bankrate, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Federal Trade Commission. You may think mortgage shopping is about as much fun as prepping for a tax audit. It’s true that comparing home mortgages can get complicated. But you don’t need a finance degree to make an informed decision. Here are some steps to get there. Find a Few Lenders When looking for lenders to consider, loan officers recommend going to a few sources: Locals you know and trust: “Make sure the lenders you’re comparing come from referrals from local people you know who’ve worked with them — like your friends or relatives,” advises Jeff Koch, senior vice president of residential lending at Draper & Kramer Mortgage Corp in Schaumburg, Ill. “Wherever you have trust established would be a good source.” Your real estate agent: “If you’re working with a real estate agent, find out if they have any feedback or advice on a lender or a loan officer,” recommends Jim DeMarco, branch manager and senior loan adviser at Flagstar Bank in Seattle. Online reviews: These can be a good starting point, DeMarco says. “If you see a lot of really good reviews, that means people are taking the time to provide them.” Have an Intro Mortgage Loan Meeting During a meet and greet, you and the loan officer will usually ask each other questions, and the loan officer will use that information to assess your qualifications. That may sound cut and dried, but the meeting should be fluid based on what you’re ready to do. Typically, the loan officer would schedule a meeting focused on comparison shopping separately. If that sounds painful to borrowers who want to (literally) get moving, no worries, Koch says. “The borrower may be well versed and want to get right to what’s most relevant for them, which are the financial and comparison details. But a lot of people need to go over their own questions or cover key topics first.” Want to meet virtually? “Some folks are just more comfortable virtually, and that’s OK,” DeMarco says. “I’ve closed loans with people I’ve never talked to on the phone. It’s all via text.” Interview the Mortgage Loan Officer Whichever way you choose, this meeting is prime time to interview the loan officer. Borrowers need to find someone who will be in there with them and can problem solve. “We call unanticipated problems ‘icebergs,’” DeMarco says. “You think there’s smooth sailing. And then, suddenly, you smack into an iceberg.”  Check out the lender’s communication strategy and their process for delivering on time. “The process is highly complex, and you’d think professional lenders all would have mastered it. That’s not the case,” says Koch. “When a loan isn’t delivered on time, people’s finances and lives are basically balanced on the head of a pin, which is the closing date.” To avoid problems, ask questions like these:  Fact finding about the process: Would you take me through the process? What should I expect?  What will I need to supply? Compatibility with the loan officer or mortgage banker or broker: What’s your communication style? Are you willing to communicate virtually? When would I work with you? Are you available in the evenings? Will I work with you or a member of your team? What do you think of my time frame to get to closing? What if any problems do you foresee? Track record of loan officer and lender: How long do loans you process typically take to close? How would you expedite the process if there’s a tight time frame? About what percentage of loans you work on close on time? How many loans have you worked on that haven’t closed or haven’t met deadlines?  What’s the biggest problem you’ve had with a loan and how did you fix it? Use the Meeting to Learn You can also use the meeting to clarify general info you’ve picked up online and talk about your concerns. DeMarco gives a couple of examples. “You may have switched careers or industries in the last year or started having bonus or commission income. Your research may have shown you can just divide your salary by 12 to figure monthly income. But it may not be as simple as that.” You’ll also want to bring up concerns like the impact on your credit score. Thirty-eight percent of buyers think comparing multiple mortgage offers in a short time will hurt their credit rating, according to a 2020 LendingTree survey. “As long as the lenders all pull the borrower’s credit within a couple of weeks, it’s counted as a single credit inquiry. So, it’s not a problem if they do it within a narrow band of time,” Koch explains. Get and Compare Financial Information Whether you’re looking at a federal form called a loan estimate or a precursor form called the fees worksheet, you’ll see a breakout of closing costs, explains Koch. “To compare the lender financials, you’ll want to drill down to origination charges in the lender section. Make sure you’re comparing apples to apples. If one lender is offering a 30-year fixed rate at 2.875% with no lender fees and another is offering 2. 75% with $1,500 in lender fees, those are unlike products. Get the fees at the same rate to find out which is less expensive.” 6 Tips to Get Mortgage Loan Information Comparison shopping can get complicated. Here are six ways to keep it simple: 1. Keep Your Pool Manageable Mortgage shopping “depends on the borrower and the personality type and how they’re wired,” Koch says. “The process can seem overwhelming. That’s why it makes sense to have a select few options to compare so borrowers can process and assimilate them.” 2. Get a Fees Worksheet The best way to compare effectively is to zero in on the fees worksheet, which the loan officer should provide. “You’ll be able to figure out just what the lender’s direct fees are, and you can make a nice, simple comparison,” Koch explains. 3. Understand a Fees Worksheet Versus a Loan Estimate The numbers on the worksheet are estimates and not locked in. Interest rates are fluid and change daily or even more often, DeMarco says. On the other hand, after you have a contract with a seller, “the loan estimate and loan application are where the information is binding, barring structural changes to the loan,” Koch says. Make sure the information reflects previous discussions with and disclosures by the loan officer. 4. Be Careful Interpreting Third-Party Fees Third-party fee estimates are included on the worksheet. Two lenders could each come up with different estimates for title, escrow, or appraisal fees, Koch explains. But not all are negotiable. For instance, the seller chooses the title company, so the lender doesn’t control the choice or the fees. The lender could be choosing the high or low end of a range, but it’s only an estimate. 5. Think About Timing Make sure lenders are using the same time frame for locking in pricing and that it will extend through the closing, Koch notes. “A lender might offer a rate that’s a lock for three weeks, but if you anticipate or know your closing date will be five or six weeks out, that’s a problem.” 6. Consider Applying for Loan Approval Before Finding a Property “Many lenders will not do this,” Koch says. “But some will allow borrowers to go through the formal underwriting process — not just pre-approval — without having a property. The borrowers can get a bona fide mortgage commitment with all of the major buyer financials truly underwritten at that point. Then when borrowers make an offer, they can close more quickly.” You’ll have to invest some time and effort into comparison shopping for a mortgage loan and selecting a lender and a loan officer. But your return on investment can pay off over the long haul.

Interest rates are only one factor when it comes to buying a house now.   Interest rates sure do get a lot of attention. But they shouldn’t be the only part of your home buying decision-making process. After all, the answer to the question “is right now a good time to buy a house” boils down to whether the time is right for you: To start your new chapter. To invest in what makes you happy. Interest rates don’t negate the benefits of buying a home. Unlike that other big-ticket purchase — a car — home value doesn’t take a nose dive once you get the keys. Quite the opposite. Is Owning a Home a Good Investment? Let’s dig into the advantages of buying a house. Benefit #1: Long-term Financial Growth When it comes to long-term, stable financial growth, real estate is your ace in the hole. If you bought a home 30 years ago for the median price at the time — about $105,900 — that same home would have appreciated by almost $280,000 in 2022 to about $384,900, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Even factoring in the lowest point for the market in recent memory — the Great Recession — home values have risen over time, and have kept pace with inflation. Benefit #2: Building Equity The down payment and the principle in your monthly mortgage payment goes straight to your equity. Rent money just goes. That equity, an interest percentage in the home, gives you a lot of flexibility. You can: Trade up to your next home when the time is right; Tap equity to borrow money to pay for home repairs and renovations (making your home even more valuable!); or Use it to consolidate credit card debt or even help pay for college. (Just keep in mind when you use equity, your home becomes your collateral.) Thanks to equity, the typical net worth of homeowners is $300,000 compared with $8,000 for renters, according to 2022 NAR data. That’s a lot of financial leverage.   What are the Tax Advantages of Owning a Home? Benefit #3: Tax Savings Believe it or not, savings and taxes can play together nicely. Equity is savings, and when you sell a primary residence, you don’t typically pay taxes on the gain. You can take up to $250,000 ($500,000 for a married couple) without owing taxes. So all that appreciation goes with you on your next adventure. Benefit #4: Deduction of Property Costs If you itemize, you also can deduct some of your property costs from your federal taxes. Those include the annual interest you pay on your mortgage, your state and local property taxes up to $10,000, and in the year you buy, some of the fees you paid to close on the home. Only itemize if it means you can claim more than the standard deduction, which for tax year 2022 is $12,950 for single filers and $25,900 for married couples.   More Advantages of Buying a Home Benefit #5: Fixed-rate Mortgage Payment Unlike rent, your fixed-rate mortgage payments don’t rise over the years so your relative housing costs may actually go down the longer you own the home. That is, if your earnings go up, a static mortgage payment means your home debt load becomes a smaller percentage of your monthly nut. Here’s an example: Say your mortgage payment is $2,329 this year and your monthly gross salary is $6,667 (roughly $80,000 per year). That means you’re putting 35% of your salary toward the mortgage. Now, fast forward a few years. Say you saw 5% salary growth annually, and you’re at $7,700 gross per month. Your mortgage payment is still $2,320, but now you’re only spending 30% of your salary on your mortgage. Of course, keep in mind property taxes and insurance costs will likely go up. Benefit #6: Improved Credit Score Speaking of those mortgage payments: Each one, paid on time, is helping to further build your credit score. Benefit #7: Remodeling Your Dream Home One of the biggest pros of owning a home is that you can turn the house you can afford into your dream home – bit by bit. Those holes in the wall and paint colors your landlord freaked out about? No worries. You can upgrade amenities, décor, and style to your vision — whether that’s cottagecore, Barbiecore, or anything in between. Bonus Benefit: Work with a REALTOR® You don’t have to go through the buying, or selling, process alone. A REALTOR®, an agent who’s a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and subscribes to its code of ethics, has the expertise to help you assess the market; expand and reframe your home search into areas you might not have thought of; refer you to reliable lenders; and guide you through the offer, negotiations and closing. When the time is right to go forth, we’ve got you covered on every step of the buying process.