shopping for a mortgage rate

[coastiewifern]

Give me some tips on shopping around for the best mortgage rate. My husband is retiring from the military in a few months and we will be buying a home for the long term (finally). We have excellent credit, no debt other than 1 car payment and jobs lined up. Our bank loan officer is really pushing the VA loan. We have used this once in the past and other times we did not. The VA funding fee is quite a lot however and I am not sure what the advantage is to paying for this. We have 20% to put down on our home. Look at this first offer and let me know what you think, really don't want to make a mistake or miss something on such a big purchase:
This bank said as of yesterday the VA rate on 30 year is 3.25 and fees
Appraisal: $425
Credit report: $16
Tax Service Fee Charge: $105.00
Flood Certification Charge: $12.50
VA Funding Fee Charge: $3,125.00
MERS Registration Charge: $6.95
Property Survey / Location Improvement Report Fee:$400.00
There will be title related fees that I don't have until we go under contract and know who the title/escrow company will be charging. The title fees are but not limited to: recording, escrow/closing fee, owners and lenders title insurance policies, etc...
Also, the seller is required to pay certain fees that the veteran is not allowed to pay. This is estimated at $1500 in fees. Your agent will include this in the sales contract.

 

[hhh]

The last time I refinanced (about five years ago), I found the rates online were significantly lower than those at my local bank. It's possible your VA rate is even better, but you should at least look at:
http://www.zillow.com/mortgage-rates/

Of course, you need to compare the fees too.

Good luck!

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

check with your current lender and inquire about the HARP program. If you have not missed a mtg payment you could be elligable for this program. We refied last spring with our current lender and only paid for the credit report.

And it does not require and appraisal!

http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/programs/lower-rates/Pages/harp.aspx

 

[coastiewifern]

The last time I refinanced (about five years ago), I found the rates online were significantly lower than those at my local bank. It's possible your VA rate is even better, but you should at least look at:
http://www.zillow.com/mortgage-rates/

Of course, you need to compare the fees too.

Good luck!

Thanks that was helpful.

 

[coastiewifern]

check with your current lender and inquire about the HARP program. If you have not missed a mtg payment you could be elligable for this program. We refied last spring with our current lender and only paid for the credit report.

And it does not require and appraisal!

http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/programs/lower-rates/Pages/harp.aspx

We don't currently have a mortgage. We are renting because we knew we would only be in FL less than 2 years.

 

[wiigirl]

check with your current lender and inquire about the HARP program. If you have not missed a mtg payment you could be elligable for this program. We refied last spring with our current lender and only paid for the credit report.

And it does not require and appraisal!

http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/programs/lower-rates/Pages/harp.aspx

wow...awesome link! Thank you!

 

[DawnM]

Here are the eligibility requirements listed: (we don't met them per the Freddie Mac requirement)

You may be eligible for HARP if you meet all of the following criteria:

The mortgage must be owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae.

The mortgage must have been sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac on or before May 31, 2009.

The mortgage cannot have been refinanced under HARP previously unless it is a Fannie Mae loan that was refinanced under HARP from March-May, 2009.

The current loan-to-value (LTV) ratio must be greater than 80%.

The borrower must be current on the mortgage at the time of the refinance, with a good payment history in the past 12 months.

If your loan is owned by Freddie Mac, you may check your potential eligibility for HARP here.

If your loan is owned by Fannie Mae, you may check your potential eligibility for HARP here.

*Eligibility criteria are for guidance only. Contact your mortgage servicer to see if you are eligible for HARP

check with your current lender and inquire about the HARP program. If you have not missed a mtg payment you could be elligable for this program. We refied last spring with our current lender and only paid for the credit report.

And it does not require and appraisal!

http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/programs/lower-rates/Pages/harp.aspx

 

[DisneyWatchMan]

As a retired mortgage loan officer with over 30 years experience, you are correct in asking why should I pay the VA funding fee? The VA funding fee is like pmi or FHA morgage insurance. With 20% down, good credit and jobs you should be able to qualify for a typical conventional mortgage. As a seller, I would rather take another offer on my house where I would not have to pay fees because you have decided to go with a VA mortgage. Maybe your loan officer will make a higher commission by selling you a VA loan rather than a conventional loan. With conventional morgage rates about the same as a VA mortgage rates, the best thing to get is a Good Faith Estimate of closing costs from the lender to compare apples to apples. Shopping on the internet for a mortage will only give a partial picture of the cost of te loan. As far a reputable mortgage loan officer, speak to your Realtor for a referral. The Realtor gets nothing from the loan officer for the referral, other than good service to their customer (you the buyer), and they have worked with many loan officers, good and bad. They certainly won't refer a bad loan officer because the closing depends upon their ability to get the loan approved, closed and making everyone happy at the closing table.