Meyer and Miriam’s offer to purchase their first home was accepted. Excited at the prospect of owning their first home, they started researching the costs of all the items they would need to buy.
Moving from the city to the suburbs, they needed to purchase a car. After driving cars at multiple dealers they settled on a Chrysler Pacifica, which they purchased from Aryeh at Arcar.
They then checked out numerous furniture sites and chose baby furniture from Bob’s.
After lengthy research they chose an Uppababy Vista stroller and a Nuna Pipa car seat, purchased on Buy Buy Baby.
Since Meyer ate cholent every Shabbat they searched on Amazon for various crock pot options and finally settled on a six-quart Hamilton Beach they bought at Amazing Savings.
With so many items addressed, they felt confident their home purchase was progressing well. Their real estate agent recommended a mortgage banker rather than a bank, explaining the banker had access to many banks to get the best possible rate for the buyer. Consequently, they only called the one banker and submitted their application.
When the time came for Meyer and Miriam to get the funds for the closing, they went to their bank to get a certified check. When they saw the sign announcing the rate and they realized they could have secured a loan with a lower rate, Meyer turned to Miriam. “Maybe we should have made one more phone call,” he said.
Your mortgage is likely your largest single expense after tuition. A 3/8 percent difference on a $500,000 loan would save over $31,000 over 30 years. While mortgage bankers have access to niche products that large banks may not offer, they may not have access to the best rates offered by large banks. Large banks are willing to earn less on a mortgage loan because they view the mortgage within the parameters of a complete relationship. Checking rates on the internet won’t get you an accurate read on what your bank can offer either because there could be any number of pricing adjusters you are not seeing. A 15-minute call may save you tens of thousands of dollars, so make the call and make sure you are making a decision with the correct facts.
Best wishes for a Purim sameach.
By David Siegel
David Siegel is a home lending officer with Citibank in the Englewood and Clifton offices. He can be reached at 917-270-0593 or david.siegel@ citi.com.
