Frequently Asked Mortgage Questions

How do we provide our lowest rates possible?

When you apply for a mortgage online with Money Street Mortgage you are accessing THE most competitive rates we offer. We are able to maintain very low margins for our on-line customers because of the efficiencies of on-line lending. Because you have already chosen the rate and loan option you want and input the loan application information we can expedite the whole process for you. The less time and expense we have in beginning your loan, the less it costs you!

Is there a fee charged or any other obligation if I fill out the on-line application?

There's no cost at all for filling out our application. After your loan is approved, you can decide whether you wish to pay the application deposit to cover the cost of the appraisal and final credit report so that you can lock in an interest rate and we can begin to process your request.

What are the advantages of using an on-line lender?

If you're looking for a mortgage it may be tempting to pick up the phone book or to visit your local bank, after all that's how people have done it forever. Before you do ? check out some of the advantages of shopping on-line for a mortgage.

• Faster, easier comparison shopping.

To get an accurate cost comparison of traditional lenders you need to contact each of them and spend time collecting the appropriate data to decide who has the best mortgage available. That in itself can be pretty time consuming, and to top it off, interest rates can change daily. If you don't get all your quotes the same day you still may not know who has the best rate. The web makes getting an apples to apples mortgage comparison easier than ever!

• Apply at your convenience.

There's no need to make an appointment with a loan officer when you choose an on-line lender. You can complete the loan application in the morning or at midnight in the convenience of your own home without any pressure to make a final decision until you are ready!

Personal Assistance whenever you need it. Unlike traditional loan officers who may spend a large portion of their day out of the office prospecting for new customers, loan advisor who work for Money Street Mortgage maintain regular office hours and devote 100% of their time to closing loans not looking for new business.

What can you expect when you apply for a mortgage?

First, you'll fill out our on-line application.

The application will ask you questions about the home and your finances and takes less than 20 minutes to complete. As soon as you've finished the on-line portion of the application we'll review your request for immediate pre-approval. If your application is approved on-line, we'll ask you for a deposit to cover the cost of the appraisal on your home and a loan advisor will contact you by phone so that we can begin to process your request immediately. This deposit will be credited towards your closing fees at closing.

Your loan advisor is a mortgage expert and will provide help and guidance along the way.

If you are purchasing a new home, the loan advisor will also contact the Real Estate Broker or the seller so that they'll know who to contact with questions.

We'll send you an application kit and prepare your loan for closing.

The application kit will be sent using a one day delivery service and will contain papers for you to sign and a list of items we'll need to verify the information you provided about your finances during the on-line application.

We'll order the appraisal from a licensed appraiser who is familiar with home values in your area. Depending on your finances and the loan amount requested, different types of appraisals are used. Sometimes the appraiser will need to view the home. Sometimes they are able to do their evaluation from the street.

Title insurance will be necessary, if you're purchasing a home we'll work with the real estate broker or seller to ensure the title work is ordered as soon as possible. If you are refinancing we'll take care of ordering the title work for you.

We'll contact you to coordinate your closing date.

After we received the application kit back from you and the appraisal and title work, we'll contact you to schedule your loan closing. If you are purchasing a home, we'll also schedule the closing with the real estate broker and the seller.

The closing will take place at the office of a title company or attorney in your area who will act as our agent. A few days before closing your Loan Advisor will contact you to walk through the final information so that there won't be any surprises at closing.

That's all there is to it! You're on your way to the most convenient home loan ever!

How are interest rates determined?

Interest rates fluctuate based on a variety of factors, including inflation, the pace of economic growth and Federal Reserve policy. Over time, inflation has the largest influence on the level of interest rates. A modest rate of inflation will almost always lead to low interest rates, while concerns about rising inflation normally cause interest rates to increase. Our nation's central bank, the Federal Reserve, implements policies designed to keep inflation and interest rates relatively low and stable.

Should I pay points in exchange for a lower interest rate?

Points are considered a form of interest. Each points is equal to one percent of the loan amount. You pay them, up front, at your loan closing in exchange for a lower interest rate over the life of your loan. This means more money will be required at closing, however, you will have lower monthly payments over the term of your loan.

To determine whether it makes sense for you to pay points, you should compare the cost of the points to the monthly payments savings created by the lower interest rate. Divide the total cost of the points by the savings in each monthly payment. This calculation provides the number of payments you'll make before you actually begin to save money by paying points. If the number of months it will take to recoup the points is longer than you plan on having this mortgage, you should consider the loan program option that doesn't require points to be paid.

If you'd prefer not to make this calculation the 'old-fashioned way', we have a points calculator!

When can I lock in my interest rate and points?

You can lock in your interest rate and points as soon as your loan is approved and you pay the application deposit to cover the cost of your appraisal and final credit report. The application is not another fee, it's actually just the appraisal cost estimate and will be credited to the actual appraisal cost at your closing. As soon as you are approved you'll have the opportunity to pay the application deposit via credit card and can lock in your great rate.

If we need to review your information before providing your loan approval, a loan advisor will contact you and you'll have the opportunity to lock your rate and fees then.

What is your Rate Lock Policy?

General Statement

The interest rate market is subject to movements without advance notice. Locking in a rate protects you from the time that your lock is confirmed to the day that your lock period expires.

Lock-In Agreement

A lock is an agreement by the borrower and the lender and specifies the number of days for which a loan's interest rate and points are guaranteed. Should interest rates rise during that period, we are obligated to honor the committed rate. Should interest rates fall during that period, the borrower must honor the lock.

When Can I Lock?

In most cases, Money Street Mortgage can lock in your interest rate once we have either approved your request on-line or you have provided us all necessary documentation to submit your loan for manual underwriting if your initial request was not approved. As the interest rate environment is always changing, we require that all rate locks must be made by phone with your loan advisor who can confirm the days price for you real time.

Fees

Money Street Mortgage offers a 30 day rate lock at no additional charge. There are no advance fees for rate locks.

Lock Period

We currently offer a 30 day lock-in period on our site. This means your loan must close and disburse within this number of days from the day your lock is confirmed by us.

Lock Confirmation

Your interest rate will be confirmed by your loan advisor by e-mail.

Lock Changes

Once we accept your lock, your loan is committed into a secondary market transaction. Therefore, we are not able to renegotiate lock commitments.

Are there any prepayment penalties charged for these loan programs?

None of the loan programs we offer have penalties for prepayment. You can pay off your mortgage anytime with no penalty.

Can I get a pre-approval for a loan before I find a property to purchase?

Yes, being approved for a mortgage loan before you find a home may be the best thing you could do! If you apply for your mortgage now, we'll issue an approval subject to you finding the perfect home. We'll issue a pre-approval letter on-line instantly. You can use the pre-approval letter to assure real estate brokers and sellers that you are a qualified buyer. A mortgage pre-approval may give more weight to any offer to purchase that you make.

When you find the perfect home, you'll simply call your loan advisor to complete your application. You'll have an opportunity to lock in our great rates and fees then and we'll complete the processing of your request.

If I apply, where will the closing take place?

We use a nationwide network of closing agents and attorneys to conduct our loan closings. We'll schedule your closing to take place in a location that is located near your home for your convenience.

We'll deliver our loan documents and wire transfer your loan funds to the closing agent or attorney prior to closing so that they'll have plenty of time to prepare for your closing.

Tell me more about closing fees and how they are determined.

A home loan often involves many fees, such as the appraisal fee, title charges, closing fees and state or local taxes. These fees vary from state to state and also from lender to lender. Any lender or broker should be able to give you an estimate of their fees, but it is more difficult to tell which lenders have done their homework and are providing a complete and accurate estimate. We take quotes very seriously. We've completed the research necessary to make sure that our fee quotes are accurate to the city level and that is no easy task!

To assist you in evaluating our fees, we've grouped them as follows:

Third Party Fees

Fees that we consider third party fees include the appraisal fee, the credit report fee, the settlement or closing fee, the survey fee, tax service fees, title insurance fees, flood certification fees, and courier/mailing fees.

Third party fees are fees that we'll collect and pass on to the person who actually performed the service. For example, an appraiser is paid the appraisal fee, a credit bureau is paid the credit report fee and a title company or an attorney is paid the title insurance fees.

Typically, you'll see some minor variances in third party fees from lender to lender since a lender may have negotiated a special charge from a provider they use often or chooses a provider that offers nationwide coverage at a flat rate. You may also see that some lenders absorb minor third party fees such as the flood certification fee, the tax service fee or courier/mailing fees.

Taxes and other unavoidables.

Fees that we consider to be taxes and other unavoidables include: State/Local Taxes and recording fees. These fees will most likely have to be paid regardless of the lender you choose. If some lenders don't quote you fees that include taxes and other unavoidable fees, don't assume that you won't have to pay it. It probably means that the lender who doesn't tell you about the fee hasn't done the research necessary to provide accurate closing costs.

Lender Fees

Fees such as points, document preparation fees and loan processing fees are retained by the lender and are used to provide you with the lowest rates possible.

This is the category of fees that you should compare very closely from lender to lender before making a decision.

Required Advances

You may be asked to prepay some items at closing that will actually be due in the future. These fees are sometimes referred to as prepaid items.

One of the more common required advances is called 'per diem interest'? or 'interest due at closing' . All of our mortgages have payment due dates of the 1st of the month. If your loan is closed on any day other than the first of the month, you'll pay interest, from the date of closing through the end of the month, at closing. For example, if the loan is closed on June 15, we'll collect interest from June 15 through June 30th at closing. This also means that you won't make your first mortgage payment until August 1st. This type of charge should not vary from lender to lender, and does not need to be considered when comparing lenders. All lenders will charge you interest beginning on the day the loan funds are disbursed, it is simply a matter of when it will be collected.

If an escrow or impound account will be established, you will make an initial deposit into the escrow account at closing so that sufficient funds are available to pay the bills when they become due.

If your loan requires mortgage insurance, up to two months of the mortgage insurance will be collected at closing. Whether or not you must purchase mortgage insurance depends on the size of the down payment you make.

If your loan is a purchase, you'll also need to pay for your first year's homeowner's insurance premium prior to closing, We consider this to be a required advance.

What is mortgage insurance and when is it required?

First of all, let's make sure that we mean the same thing when we discuss 'mortgage insurance'. Mortgage insurance should not be confused with mortgage life insurance, which is designed to pay off a mortgage in the event of a borrower' s death. Mortgage insurance makes it possible for you to buy a home with less than a 20% down payment by protecting the lender against the additional risk associated with low down payment lending. Low down payment mortgages are becoming more and more popular, and by purchasing mortgage insurance, lenders are comfortable with down payments as low as 3 ' 5% of the home's value. It also provides you with the ability to buy a more expensive home than might be possible if a 20% down payment were required.

The mortgage insurance premium is based on loan to value ratio, type of loan, and amount of coverage required by the lender. Usually, the premium is included in your monthly payment and one to two months of the premium is collected as a required advance at closing.

It may be possible to cancel private mortgage insurance at some point, such as when your loan balance is reduced to a certain amount - below 75% to 80% of the property value. Recent Federal Legislation requires automatic termination of Mortgage Insurance for many borrowers when their loan balance has been amortized down to 78% of the original property value. If you have any questions about when your mortgage insurance could be canceled, please contact your loan advisor.