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If you’ve been thinking of buying a home, by now, you’ve probably heard that you should be shopping around for a mortgage. While this advice is true, getting rates from a variety of different mortgage professionals does require a certain amount of legwork. Luckily, there is a way to make the process easier. You can use a mortgage broker. Keep reading to learn what a mortgage broker is, how using one works, and why you may want to include one in your home search.
What is a mortgage broker?
Put simply, a mortgage broker is someone who will act as a liaison between you and the lender. Instead of you having to worry about researching different lenders and finding the best rates, the mortgage broker will do all of that on your behalf. They’ll essentially manage your pre-approval process for you so you only have to worry about choosing the best result for you.
Most mortgage brokers will help you through the underwriting and approval processes as well, meaning that you may not even have to speak to your lender until the day of settlement.
How mortgage brokers work
The first step to working with a mortgage broker is bringing him or her all of your financial documentation. Just like you would when working with a lender directly, you’ll need to bring them documentation that shows your employment history, income, debts, and assets. However, the advantage here is that you’ll only have to go through the trouble of submitting all of your paperwork once.
After that, the broker will take the reins. He or she will look through their pool of participating lenders to find options that may be a good fit for you. It’s important to note that each broker will have a different pool of lenders available to them so you’ll want to do your research and make sure you’re working with a broker who has lots of connections.
After the broker looks into your options, he or she will submit your information and come back to you with a variety of quotes. From there, they will walk you through the process of choosing the best lender for you. When you eventually find a home, they will also submit your loan application on your behalf.
As you go through the process of being approved for a loan, your lender may require additional information. At that point, they would reach out to your broker, who would work with you to gather the information and submit it properly.
Why you may want to use a mortgage broker
There’s no getting around the fact that shopping around for a loan, applying with a variety of lenders, and going through the mortgage approval process is hard work. If you don’t want to be responsible for putting in all that time and effort or if you’d just rather have someone there to guide you through it all, working with a mortgage broker may be your best bet.
However, keep in mind that this is a convenience service. It doesn’t come for free. Mortgage brokers are either paid a commission by the lender or they charge you a separate origination fee directly. In either case, this fee usually amounts to 1%-2% of your loan amount and it’s something that you’ll need to budget for on top of your down payment and closing costs.