Choosing a Good Mortgage Lender on Sarasota Florida’s Suncoast
Not All Florida Lenders Are Created Equal – Finding a Good Mortgage Lender is Key to Closing!
Disclaimer: Let me start out by saying that I’m not a mortgage lender. I’ve learned what makes a good mortgage lender and I’m writing this blog post and expressing opinions from my experience as a real estate professional on Sarasota Florida’s Suncoast.
Will You Be Paying Cash or Getting a Mortgage?
As a Realtor, one of the first things that we need to establish when working with buyers is whether they are actually qualified to make a purchase. We will ask our buyers if they will be making a cash purchase or if they will need to get financing to make the purchase. If they need to get financing, we will need to find out if they can be pre-approved by a mortgage lender.
Pre-approval is key because there aren’t many sellers that will accept an offer from a buyer who hasn’t been pre-approved by a lender. The seller won’t really want to take the house off the market while waiting for the buyer to find out if they are even able to purchase a home. So, a smart buyer will listen to their agent and get pre-approved prior to starting the house hunting process.
Keeping it Local
In my opinion, getting approved by a local mortgage lender seems to make for a smoother transaction. One of the reasons I feel this way is because a local lender will tend to use local appraisers. It’s important for the appraiser to know the local market. If the lender is not local and they order their appraisals from an appraiser that is not local, that appraiser may be coming from 2 or 3 counties away which is a completely different market.
Florida is Ranked #1 in When it Comes to Mortgage Rejections
Florida Realtors published an article with the following statistics regarding mortgage rejections. You can check out their article here.
- 41% of mortgage applicants felt they didn’t know all their loan options during the process
- 49% said they would have done something differently
- 28% felt they weren’t a priority to their mortgage professional
- 42% said the homebuying process was: stressful, complicated (32%) or intimidating (21%)
- 41% said the process was manageable; 30% said it was rewarding
- 27% of millennials got a mortgage rate they thought they could afford when purchasing
- 11% of millennials didn’t feel financially secure after purchasing
- 26% of Gen X applicants said the mortgage experience wasn’t positive compared to millennials, even though they were just as likely to be approved
- 25% of millennials, 20% of Gen X and 10% of baby boomers were approved at a higher interest rate than expected
- 57% of millennials, 61% of Gen X and 38% of boomer homeowners had regrets, saying they would do things differently the next time around
Communication Can Make or Break the Sale
A good mortgage lender will be accessible by phone and in constant communication with you and your real estate agent. There are any number of issues that can come up and put your home loan in jeopardy. The earlier something can be caught, the better chance your mortgage lender and real estate agent can save the deal. How would you like to be at the closing table, your moving truck is in the driveway at the new house, the closing agent needs a document from your lender and they call the lender only to be greeted by a voicemail that says, “Thank you for calling __________, please leave a detailed message and someone will get back with you within 24-48 hours.”?
By the way, the good mortgage lenders that I recommend to my buyers will very likely be sitting right next to you at the closing and will be available for any last minute needs that may come up!
Moving Into Your Dream Home Without It Being a Nightmare
On three separate occasions, I’ve worked with buyers who came to me with their pre-qualification letters in hand from their financial institutions. Prior to knowing what I know now about a good mortgage lender, I would have probably done the same thing. After all, they have their savings and checking accounts with these big national financial institutions, why wouldn’t they go to them first to get a mortgage.
Unfortunately, each of these buyers went through their own mortgage nightmare during the final days and even hours, before closing. When things started to fall apart for these buyers, I was able to recommend some good local mortgage lenders who were able to step in when their financial institutions dropped the ball and get them a mortgage on their new homes. The good news is that two of these three buyers were actually able to close on their new home purchases. Sadly, one of the buyers wasn’t able to close and it was not by any fault on the buyer.
After those three nightmarish experiences, I’m always happy to provide my buyers with names of good mortgage lenders for them to get pre-approved with or maybe get a second opinion.
Getting You Into the Home You Love
Getting you into that new home that you love is the goal that we all want. The home buying process inherently may have some ups and downs. Making the whole process as smooth as possible is what we strive for. Choosing the right mortgage lender from the get go is a big part of how smooth your home buying experience will be.
One Last Thing…
If you’ve been thinking about buying a home and you’re not sure if you would even qualify or where to begin, call Julie Larson at 941-882-0322 and we’ll help you to get started!
