Industry Referrals
Should I use the lender my realtor
referrers?
Using the loan officer or mortgage company
your real-estate broker suggests can be both good and bad. It can
help you when the real-estate broker has a good working relationship
with them, thus insuring that your loan will be watched step by step to
make sure it's done in a timely matter. Plus, your loan officer
will usually be on his best behavior for fear of losing his referral
source (real-estate broker).
It can hurt borrowers when professionals
decide their commissions are worth more than your financial interest.
When this happens it becomes all too easy for both parties to charge
higher fees or give miss information just to get the deal closed.
Remember the relationship between the realtor
and loan officer can be quite an advantage to you in terms of experience
and speed at which a well connected realtor-loan officer team can get
your loan done. Be sure to ask outside sources if you think
something doesn't sound right.
It's illegal for mortgage brokers/loan
officers to compensate the real-estate agent in anyway for your
referral. Fortunately with today's access to information it
doesn't seem to be a factor so much in the service or fees you see, but
more a way for the loan officers to get the realtor referrals.