When you’re shopping for a mortgage, you can go directly to multiple lenders to find out what rate you may be offered, or you can work with a mortgage broker. Because they act as concierges who find you a number of quotes at once and do the application paperwork for you, mortgage brokers can help secure you an affordable loan at a competitive rate. Still, working with a mortgage broker has its advantages and disadvantages, so you should know how the process works before you commit to using a mortgage broker. The following are four things you should keep in mind to understand how to work with mortgage brokers. 1. Find a broker you can trust. Ask for referrals and [...]

When you purchase real estate, you will almost always be expected to secure title insurance in order to obtain a mortgage. Banks require title insurance to protect their investment, and you should do the same. Title insurance protects you against undiscovered or undisclosed defects in the title not found before a purchase of real estate is finalized. Essentially, title insurers do a thorough background search on the property and its title to see if there are any liens, conflicting claims to ownership, or other problems that would impact a transfer of property to you. Once the insurance is issued, any problems with the title are revealed. Title insurance protects you against any conflicting title claims and any financial losses related [...]