Mortgage Fees

My wife and I were looking for a way to consolidate our credit card debt and cash out for some home improvement projects. We finally decided to take out a second mortgage against our house. Did some searching on the Internet for companies that we would possibly work with and selected a nationally recognized company because of their competitive interest rate, closing fees and speed in processing the loan.

The service was fantastic. From the application process to closing, it took a total of no more than 10 days. The loan officer gave your information to the processor who sent all of the paperwork we needed to sign via overnight mail. Included with the forms was a return envelope which was also overnight mail. Once we made it through underwriting, an appointment was set up with the person who does the closing. He actually came to our house at the day and time that we wanted. Closing took no more than an hour. Be prepared to sign tons of documents.

Too often, people look just at the interest rate and decide who to go with. Be sure to get a Good Faith Estimate to see what junk fees you might end up carrying on your loan. Some loan officers will pad the fees so they get a higher commission. Also, make sure the difference between the actual loan amount and the APR is as small as possible. The higher the APR, the more junk fees that are carried throughout the life of the loan. If you aren't sure about terms used in loans, do some research on the Internet so some slick sales guy doesn't overwhelm you with terms. Finally, if you don't like the person you are working with, break it off. Listen to your intuition.