Well, let me specify a few things that I hadn't already. 1. We have a bid from the GC in hand. We got multiple bids and all were pretty competitive. We like one GC the best and his bid was actually the lowest, but not by much. I kind of expected that because he lives about two minutes from where we're building. The other contractors would have had more travel expenses for sure. We're happy with the bid and feel quite confident we'll be able to stay within the budgeted allowance amounts. We've done quite a bit of price checking already to make sure we can stay within the allowances. If we have a well written contract there shouldn't be much to worry about, correct? It's not like the contractor could all of a sudden increase the price by $10,000 for no reason. Obviously, there's the unusual circumstances clause in the contract in case they hit solid rock, etc. Other than if we go over our allowances, it's a lump sum contract and the price can't increase, correct? I thought we might need multiple inspections just to make sure correct materials are being used, etc. I know the GC is supposed to represent my interests, but I thought an independent inspector might be nice to protect our interests. Oh, and regarding letting our GC know our finances. At this point, he certainly doesn't know we could build with all cash. But, if that's the route we decide to take, I'm assuming we'll have to tell him. I'm sure he'll want to know how we plan on paying for the house. I figured he'd want to see bank statements to prove the assets. Or, he might even want to escrow funds to make sure that we don't spend the money. Again, just because he know we have money, he can't just start making random charges if we have a well written contract, right? This post was edited by dreamer16 on Mon, Apr 28, 14 at 11:50

Haven't met with the loan officer yet but have talked to her on the phone. Before we talked to her we called an insurance agent & he said he had to do some figuring & get back to us on premiums. When she called she asked if we had insurance & my husband said no but we were getting it today. We had already decided to go with this guy no matter what the costs were because we didn't have much of a choice. He calls back with the figures & my husband tells him the house needs repairs. The guy says he can't insure us. Its now about 4:30. We call one place & they're gone for the day. We had been with State Farm for years & didn't want to go back to them but my husband called them. They won't insure us until we've been insured with someone for 6 months. Tomorrow we'll call more insurance companies. Its so frustrating. For years we paid monthly premiums on auto & homeowners. There were times we'd be late but then we'd catch up. For years we paid our insurance premium but when the butane man said we had a leak, insurance wouldn't cover it. Same when we had a water leak. So we didn't call them when the roof started leaking or the septic started messing up. Figured those were normal wear & tear like the gas & water. They cancelled us for being 30 days late. We didn't realize we had been cancelled until I called them. I had 2 different amounts & had called to find out which was correct so I could go by & pay both months. When she said we'd been cancelled, after all those years, it pissed us off. I got car insurance with another company but put off the homeowners "temporarily". Which stretched to a year & a half.

This is an interesting thread. JJfrisco, congratulations on finding your way through the labyrinth to a closing. I wish I did not know that your story was all too normal and accepted in this industry. The mortgage industry, like all businesses has more than its fair share of "get rich quick at the customer's expense" members. In the last five years there was a large influx of people into the mortgage marketplace because of the promise of quick easy big money. Many of these people attended no formal training and worked in environments where the quota of closes was more important than the long term quality of those transactions. Many less than prime credit customers are now feeling the impact of these closings. Who is to blame? There is not a simple answer to this question. Is it the fault of the Government who allowed 105% loans with no income documentation on investment property? Is it the fault of the Market, who bought up every sub-prime 100% stated negative amortization loan they could get because of the potential ROI? Is it the fault of the Lenders who continued to ease qualifications to get a loan so that a borrower in California could buy a million dollar home with no proof of income, no down payment, no closing costs, and run a 1% payment on a negative amortization loan for 5 years then walk away? Is it the fault of the brokers who provided loans, not consulting for their clients so they could make as much money as possible? Is it the fault of speculators who snapped up every home that came on the market for more and more money in order to take advantage of the value bubble they created? Is it the fault of the Loan Officers or Bankers themselves for taking advantage of the lax market rules to make six or seven figure incomes? Is it the fault of the customer for being so uninvolved in the process that they often close a loan without ever reading the loan documents they are signing? Yes. The current market is the result of all these things and many more. I have had the privilege to lead and grow some very fine sales people who are or were in the mortgage industry. I have been involved with Lenders and Brokers. I have written and executed the training for Bankers. I have run and do run a financial mortgage company where the customers true needs are examined first and then, if it makes sense, we look at a mortgage product. The consultation and discovery or development of a long term plan for home ownership, not home renter-ship is the driving force in what we do. That is not the norm, especially in a market like this where every potential customer could make or break your career. What I can tell you is: 1. Brokers or Lenders are for profit companies. The difference between lenders and brokers if that a broker must show you the Yield Spread Premium (YSP) on the closing documents; the lender does not. YSP is the premium that is being paid by the market based on the desirability of the loan. This is money paid to the lender or broker when the loan is securitized and is a portion of the money you will pay over the life of the loan. YSP is how you accomplish a no closing cost loan. The lender simply offsets the closing costs that can be paid by the lender (which ones can not be depends on the state rules) often times with a higher rate than you would get if you paid closing costs. In these loans you need to look at how long you intend on being in the home. Take the difference in payment between the standard loan and the no closing cost loan and determine how long you will make payments before you would have been better off to pay the closing costs. Brokers make their loans as the middle man. They create relationships with few or many lenders and are bound by the lenders rates and qualifications. The underwriting of your loan happens at the lender. Lenders make their loans based on guidelines established by the market that they are selling into for servicing and the rules on their lines of credit. In most cases a lender will not retain your loan for the life of the loan. They will sell it to another company to service the loan (receive the payments, interest and fees) so they can recover their cost of funds. Many times a lender will act like a broker by sending your loan to several other lenders who can provide servicing prior to closing. This is done to ensure they have a buyer for the loan before they grant the closing. Everything clear as mud now? Yes it is a very fine line between them. Having been involved with both I can clearly state that there are advantages and disadvantages to both. It comes down to who has the real deal for you. Both are worth looking at. As for lead sites, which took a good part of this thread in the middle, lead aggregators are all over the Internet. Do a search for get a loan. These sites seem to promise you delivery of a certain product or rate and then turn the information you place in their hands into a lead. This lead can be handled by the company itself or sold to the open market as a commodity (sometimes both). Brokers and Lenders buy these leads and then begin the process of trying to get in touch with you and take you out of the market before anyone else does. Some companies will tell you anything you want to hear to get you to say you will go with them. They count on the fact that once you get involved you will be too far down the line and too frustrated to change. This is not the right way to do business, but that does not stop many from doing it so they can get results. Some sites will tell you that up to four lenders will contact you, this turns into weeks, months maybe even years of calls as your information gets re-circulated through multiple sites as a new lead. This is not all sites, but some. 2. As a borrower you should take the time to make sure of whom you are dealing with. Who are they? How long have they been in the business? How do they conduct their business? Are they acting in a way that makes you feel that they are interested in your overall financial picture and a plan for the future or are they only interested in closing the loan? What is their rating on the State Department of Banking and Finance? If there is a blemish can they explain this to your satisfaction (after all not all complaints are justified, some are just venting). How did they deal with the complaint? Does that seem reasonable and professional? Just because the company is a known name does not mean that you are dealing with someone who knows the difference between a GFE and a credit authorization. I have dealt with many national banks where I wound up showing the loan officer how to use the computer system to determine a debt ratio (once I had to explain what a debt ratio was that deal was never done needless to say). 3. In this market the program requirements are changing almost hourly. Appraisals are now coming under heavy review for any potential of adjustments or depressed markets. Programs from Lenders and the Government are a moving target. Take a walk around the neighborhood (your if you are refinancing, the target if you are buying). How many homes are there? Are they all similar in size? How many homes are for sale? How long have they been for sale? Are there any foreclosures in the area (this will impact you!)? 4. Rates are pretty much where they have been for the last three years, for prime confirming borrowers (80% loan with full income documentation and credit above 680) between 5% and 7%. What is changing is who you have to be and what you have to prove to get those rates. Your profile is made up of your credit (score and history), the collateral (the property itself - value, comparables and likely time to sell if the lender has to eat the loan) and your capacity to pay (how much do you make a year, how long have you made it and how much do you have in liquid assets). So, please do your homework. Gather your bills, bank statements and pay stubs and really work out where you are before you start. Look at the person AND the company you are doing business with. Decide on a reasonable amount of profit that you are willing to pay for the service. Tell your service provider what that is up front and be willing to negotiate it based on great service. Decide if you are willing to pay for that service up front as a closing cost or over time in a higher payment. Remember that sometimes if it seems too good to be true, you may have found one of the rare individuals that is truly gifted in his or her craft and that they may have an insight that average loan officers may not care to find. As I have said, I have worked with a few very talented people in this industry and those who actually care about the customer, rather than the payday, are a jewel to be treasured. Poor service should be reported to the Department of Banking and Finance in that state. Other complaint data can be given to the BBB and posted on sites like this.

I had a text for "Louisa" today, saying she qualified for a loan. I have gotten messages for her several times, and also for some guy Phillip and one named John Hargraves. After trying for a very long time to tell whoever that they had the wrong number, I gave up and now I write them a story about Louisa or Phillip or John Hargraves. I've gotten to the point I look forward to hearing from them. Today I told them Louisa had died and she was a meth addict. I make my stories very chatty, telling about Louisa's children that I am raising...her 14 yr old gang banger son and her 4 yr old daughter who has bad teeth. Before anyone chastises me for messing with these people, they annoy me. I don't have any loans or need a car warranty or student loans forgiven. I love writing the stories and I make them as wacky as I can. I'm sure no one believes them...but since they are liars anyway, what do I care.