Ring in the new year with one less mortgage payment… courtesy of LendingTree! Be sure to click here, become a fan and submit your entry for your chance to win! We’ll be running this contest all the way through the end of 2011 (contest ends 12/31/11 at 11:59pm EST). After some hefty holiday spending, wouldn’t it be nice to take a break from making your mortgage payment?
The heat surrounding the unexpected increases in bank fees this week serves as a reminder for borrowers to read the fine print in their mortgage agreement. Even though rates are at an all-time low, borrowers should not only want the best rate, but the best overall deal on their next home loan.
We’ve identified a few fees borrowers should watch out for when beginning the home loan process:
Processing fees
Processing fees may be referred to as underwriting fees, processing charges, application fees or even rate-lock fees. Application fees are fairly common, although lenders may tack on additional fees and call them processing fees or underwriting fees. On your Good Faith Estimate, be sure you walk through each fee with your loan officer so you know exactly what you’re being charged for.
Appraisal Fees
Appraisers may collect fees uprfont, even if your loan falls through. With new, longer appraisal forms, appraisers who are billed hourly …
This summer, LendingTree was fortunate enough to have intern Abigail Harris from Charlotte, NC in the office for a few weeks before she headed to the West Coast to attend the University of Southern California. Before she took the big next step, Abigail analyzed the cost of college today versus the cost of college two decades ago. Read below for Abigail’s interesting analysis:
Last month I flew to Los Angeles for my college orientation and while waiting to board my flight bound for LAX I conversed with a businessman. Mid conversation he interjects, “Man, that’s scary to think about. I must have graduated from college around the time you were born, I graduated in 1992”. I grinned and replied “Yes, I’m 18, I was born in 1992”.
Having just spent several months “angsting” over which university to attend I had become well versed in the complexities and nuances of the college decision process …
