What Is My Mortgage Rate?
Your Instant Rate Quote vs Your Pre-approval Rate, Explained
A letter from our branch manager, Edgar DeJesus
Within the first three minutes of any conversation a client asks, so what kind of rate can you give me? I answer truthfully that it depends on a lot of factors based on the questions I’m about to ask during the application process.
I get it. You think this is a sales tactic. You’ve seen rates published on other websites, and a lot of other brokers are willing to quote a rate from the
Primary Mortgage Market Survey. The problem is that “published rate” is a governmental survey and doesn’t represent you as a borrower.
At the end of the day, here’s how the rate game is played.
Honest brokers will tell you, "I can’t quote you a rate until I gather all the information."
Other brokers will just tell you the advertised rate from the PMMS,
http://www.freddiemac.com/pmms/.
For dishonest brokers, quoting a rate before asking questions is a bait and switch. The broker will tell you a rate that you may or may not qualify for. Then, they will explain why your rate is higher after they take the application and realize that your credit isn’t over 760 or you don’t have a 20% down payment. The hope is that you will stick with them even if they can’t deliver the published rates.
My favorite joke is “I can get you a 0% interest rate, with a 100% down payment.”
Think about it another way. You come to me and you say, I want to buy a car. How much? I say great, it will be $8,000 before ever identifying the car you want. You say, wow, that was better than what the last guy told me, let’s work together.
You just got a quote, but you know nothing about the car. What’s the brand, make, model? How many miles does it have? What kind of condition is it in? Is it big enough for your family? What are the safety features?
I wouldn’t want to sell a two-seater sports car to a family just because it is cheaper. And I wouldn’t sell a 5/1-Yr ARM to newlyweds because it has the lowest rate.
As brokers, it is our responsibility to ask questions, so we can match the best loan to your circumstances.
I'm going to let you in on an industry secret.
Most mortgage brokers have access to the same lenders and the same products. However, there are hundreds of lenders and thousands of products, and this is why experience matters. Great brokers know how to ask the relevant questions, accumulate the answers, and match the right loan, lender, and product to the individual borrower.
That is how you get the right loan type, the best terms, the best rate, and a memorable mortgage experience!
So, if you want a general idea of the industry’s surveyed rates, go to
http://www.freddiemac.com/pmms, or look at all those websites with "published" rates. If you want to know your actual rate or better yet if you want to find out what loan type, lender, and product is best for you, give me a call,
772-444-6362. We would love to help you plan your mortgage.
To learn more about our
5-star Mortgage Experience and map out your objectives. Visit our
5-star page.
Or start your
application today.
Still, wondering about What is the Primary Mortgage Market Survey?
Answer: According to Freddie Mac, the Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) surveys lenders each week on the rates and points for their most popular 30-year fixed-rate, 15-year fixed-rate, 5/1 hybrid amortizing adjustable-rate, and 1-year amortizing adjustable-rate mortgage products.
Click here to read all the factors about the survey. Our summary, it’s the average of the best rates lenders are quoting in the previous week.
Next Steps
The first step is to begin the pre approval process. You can get started by completing the mortgage application, so we can better understand your mortgage objectives. After pre-approval, we will develop a mortgage strategy with you to determine all of your options and opportunities.