3 Keys To Successfully Negotiating Your Home Mortgage Rate Like A Pro
Posted on: 8 December 2016
If you are like most prospective homeowners, taking out a mortgage means you walk into the lender's office and wait for them to tell you the terms and conditions of what they have to offer. This is simply because unless you have had plenty of prior experience with buying a home or an experience with mortgages professionally, you probably just don't know a great deal about how it all works. The problem with this is, a lender may not lay everything on the table that is available unless you ask questions, which can mean you leave with a mortgage rate that is not as ideal as you would like. To successfully negotiate when you go for a home mortgage, there are a few keys to keep in mind.
You have to know the ins and outs of your credit score.
In your eyes, your credit score is just a confusing number that reflects your prior credit history, but in the eyes of a lender, every last detail in the report means something and can affect the mortgage you get. By obtaining a free copy of your credit report before your mortgage appointment, you will have the chance to look at everything closely and get a better understanding of what shortcomings may come up with the lender. Plus, if there are discrepancies in the report, which does happen on occasion, you can get to work eliminating things that should not be listed.
You have to get familiar with closing costs.
As someone who may have little experience with buying a home, you will see the closing costs as one lump sum or percentage of the overall loan amount. However, closing costs can be made up of several things, depending on which lender you are visiting. Your closing costs could be a list of fees covering home inspections, financing and loan processing fees, and even government fees. Knowing the breakdown of the fees involved gives you the opportunity to negotiate with the lender. For example, lender and broker fees during a mortgage application are often negotiable, but most buyers have no idea.
You have to talk to other mortgage lenders instead of settling with one.
No matter who you are, how perfect your credit may be, or where you live, every mortgage lender could offer you a different rate. Getting more than one loan offer gives you greater insight as a buyer into your options, and it also makes it possible to negotiate better terms with specific lenders who may have more desirable loan attributes to offer. For example, if