Internet Rates and Movies?
This week one of my clients called to state (quite dramatically, if I may say) she heard that the rates had dropped and she deserved a better rate. She trolled the internet and landed on Bankrate where awesomely low rates are published. Usually, I give my spiel that the internet companies are not local, devoid of service and knowledge, etc. But this time I decided to contact the top three lenders advertising the lowest rates on Bankrate. This is what I discovered in my journey to find the very, very best interest rate:
The first company made me feel like I was Adonis fighting in the movie Creed. They just kept coming at me. I gave all my info except social and address. The company was hesitant to provide an actual quote, including fees or indicate their underwriting turn times. When I did receive a quote, the estimate included $1995.00 in lender’s fees. To be clear, not total closing costs, just their fees. (They called it an “origination fee”) In their defense it was on the site, in itty, bitty, print.
The second lender channeled Mad Max and got angry when I refused to lock in his rate. I asked for a written quote with all of the costs, and he began oozing oil through the phone. “I will never get this rate again in my lifetime!” BTW, I still haven’t received the quote.
The third company was actually pleasant, and quoted a great rate. Until they pulled The Big Short. I pretended I was purchasing a home and placing 20% down, good credit and ratios. All the things I hear from my clients, until I do their prequalification. Then the call center minion told me, “Oh, that rate is only if you put 25% down and have 780+ credit scores and have eyes the color of a spring day. I’ll talk to my manager to see if we can do any better.” After muting my call, he said they could match the rate quoted on their site only if I could pay additional fees to make up for my lousy 720 credit score.
Bottom line, I spent about two hours of my life, which by the way I will never get back, to explore the world of internet rate marketing. But I am glad I did. It was an education.
