Top Five Things to Look for When Hiring A Mortgage Agent
If you’re venturing into the real estate industry to invest in your future home, having the right mortgage product can make the purchasing experience more manageable and affordable. However, the perfect mortgage won’t fall onto your lap that easily.
You will need to find a product that matches your financial situation. As a layperson, going through the mortgage jargon may seem to you like a challenging puzzle. Therefore, you will need to work with a mortgage agent to help you find the best product and term to suit your unique needs. They will take care of all the legwork of negotiating and filtering down to the best financial option that will work for you.
Unfortunately, there are several mortgages agents out there providing similar services. To help you sift through those numerous options and pick the right mortgage agent for you, here’s a list of the top five things to look for when hiring a mortgage agent.
1. License
Most mortgage dealers, banks, and credit union employees or mortgage specialists don’t possess the right license. So, when looking for a mortgage professional, you need to verify their licenses to get the best service. Mortgage agents and brokers are licensed in provinces where they operate and can even also have licenses in other provinces.
2. Dedicated
Check with your prospective mortgage agent if they are solely focused on mortgages or whether they deal with other financial services. This will give you a clear understanding of their knowledge and expertise in a mortgage.
At Vic Lehan & Associates, mortgages are all we do! Our focus is on your mortgage, and we don’t do investments and credit cards, loans and lines of credit, etc.
3. Online presence
Does your mortgage person have a professional website? Can you fill out an application on that website if you want, or does it have contact information so you can call for an appointment within the next few days, not a week or two weeks away? Do they have a time that fits your schedule? Make sure to do a thorough check on their online service so that you can benefit most from them.
4. Best mortgage service
While an interest rate is important, it isn’t the only important part of a mortgage. When clients ask for the lowest rate, what actually they are asking for is, “How do I pay less interest over the life of the mortgage.”
At Vic Lehan & Associates, we educate you about the mortgage process and offer a suitable financial strategy. We know that a sliver of a difference in interest rate won’t help much to do that. But there are two main ways to pay less interest. The first is to put as much downpayment as you can. A lower starting mortgage balance keeps you from paying the maximum amount of interest you would pay if you only put 5% down. The second way to save interest is to make accelerated weekly or biweekly payments rather than monthly. With accelerated payments, you pay for an extra month each year. A little extra is added to that weekly or biweekly payment and makes the balance go down more quickly, meaning less interest. Another way of payment is to put a lump sum on the mortgage when possible to greatly reduce the interest paid over a mortgage’s life.
5. Work schedule
Most mortgage agents and brokers are business owners. They are licensed as previously mentioned but seldom do they work “bankers’ hours” or nine to five. Mortgage agents work to accommodate the client’s schedule as a mortgage is the only product, and they don’t use it as the “Anchor product” to get you in the door. On the other hand, mortgage specialists usually try to get you to sign up for a credit card, insurance, line of credit, bank account, etc.
If you’re looking for a reliable mortgage agent in Leamington, ON, reach out to Vic Lehan & Associates. As a seasoned mortgage broker with over two decades of experience in the mortgage industry, I can help you choose an effective mortgage option that suits your needs. My team and I will provide you with the highest mortgage service standard and offer access to myriads of mortgage products and lenders. I provide a full range of residential mortgage services, which include first time home buyer mortgages, mortgage refinances, mortgage renewals, bruised or bad credit mortgages, private mortgages, commercial mortgages, and new to Canada mortgages.
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