Does it sound sleazy? It is. Sometimes you have to play with the game with the consumer the way they’ve been taught. Now THAT is consumer-centric !

Bili’s experience defines it.

If you call three lenders and one quotes the lowest rate on the phone. That quote means nothing until the loan is locked since rates change constantly.

And unless you’re locking in the rate the moment you’re shopping, you don’t have the rate.

Because she spent time educating me, running numbers, preparing 3 GFEs, gave me the best rate, and I didn’t go with her.

Her final response was “Why would you go with someone who didn’t quote you the best rate initially, but only after you asked for it?”

I didn’t have a response to that. She was right.

I would guess I’m pretty typical, so I’ll share my experience from a few years ago.

I got a GFE from a broker recommended to me by my boss. She was smart and knowledgable, but not particularly personable.

I also got one from a guy who worked with my Realtor who called himelf a Home Mortgage Consultant on of Wells Fargo. Personable, but not that sharp.

I also called a few other brokers off the net and paper – straight APR shopping.

The first broker, the one recommended, had the best rate. Because I liked my Realtor, I gave the WF guy a shot to match her rate, which he did.

He made numerous mistakes, and I was forced to go over my docs repeatedly with a fine tooth comb to make sure they were correct.

In retrospect I should have gone with the recommended broker, though perhaps not, given that she was angry with me and showed it.

In the end, however, I am going to go with the reputable person who gives me the lowest rate in an apples-to-apples comparison. A quarter point could mean 10s of thousands of dollars over the life of a loan. That’s going to trump loyalty every time, and you are fooling yourself if you think otherwise.

“The Homeowner’s Protection Act of 1998 states that if your loan naturally amortizes to 78% of the original value, it automatically drops. If your loan naturally amortizes to 80% of the original value, you can request it to be dropped.

If appreciation is being used to drop MI, there are a few factors involved. Most investors will require an appraisal be ordered, at the borrower’s cost, and depending on the investor, the value will need to come in anywhere between 75%-80%. Most will also mandate no mortgage lates. This law applies to owner occupied, full doc loans only.

If the borrower makes a one time principal reduction that brings the LTV to 80%, the servicer should cancel the MI.

If you are dealing with a non-owner, stated, etc, it is best for you to contact your servicer (say Flagstar) to find out what their rules are.

I always recommend you check with the investors you are working with to see what their policy is. Each one has their own nuance, but they should be complying with the law. If they tell you the MI company won’t cancel, that is incorrect-we can’t cancel a premium, it’s not ours to cancel.”

She also added there is typically a 2 year seasoning requirement before PMI can be cancelled (this was the issue I personally ran into with my loan years ago…so I just refinanced it instead).

Hope this helps!