Archive for Colorado DORA
Today’s Colorado Mortgage Springs Tip is a summary of what you should ask when selecting your Colorado Home Loan Broker. Start by checking the Colorado DORA site to make sure that he/she is licensed. These questions will help ensure that your next Colorado Springs home loan is a “Good” one.
Seven Must Ask Questions - Mortgage Colorado Springs Broker
What is your rate? It doesn’t matter what the loan program you ask about, but what the response is. If the Mortgage Colorado Springs Broker gives you a rate without asking any questions, just thank him and hang up. You want a “Professional” Colorado Home Loan Broker, not “An Order Taker”.
Do You Own Your Home? This next question is if the Mortgage Colorado Springs Broker asked you a lot of questions to properly determine what your situation is and what your Colorado Springs home loan goals are. You want someone who has been through and understands the process.
How Long Have You Been Doing Colorado Springs Mortgages? You want someone who has at least five years of experience to do your Colorado home loan.
What Colorado Springs Home Loans Do You Offer and What Is Your Niche? As Brokers, we usually have the same programs available with the exception of Government loans i.e. FHA/VA. The reason for that is you have to get approved to offer these programs and some Colorado Springs mortgage companies won’t spend the time and money to get approved. If they answer that they can do ALL loans and don’t have a niche, this is a Red Flag. You want a Specialist.
Why Should I Get My Colorado Springs Mortgage or Colorado Home Loan From You? You are looking for details of exactly how he operates and not just he will provide great service and/or you will get you the lowest rate. Don’t fall for “BS”.
How Do You Determine When to Lock My Colorado Springs Mortgage or Colorado Home Loan? Unless he gives you specific names of services that he uses, don’t trust or use him. You should hear names like Mortgage Coach RATEWatch, Rate Alert, Mortgage Market Guide, or RateLink. It’s doesn’t matter which service he uses, but that he is using at least one. You want to protect yourself from the big rate swings and get a good rate.
What Colorado Springs Mortgage or Colorado Home Loan Do You Recommend that I Get? If you get only one recommendation, don’t use him. You should get several options to choose from so you can achieve your financial goals and get the “Right” Colorado Springs Mortgage or Colorado Home Loan.
The next Colorado Springs Mortgage Tip will address the new HUD “Shopping for Your Home Loan” booklet that is required to be given to you by your Mortgage Colorado Springs Broker prior to getting your Colorado Springs mortgage or Colorado home loan.
In today’s Colorado Springs Mortgage Tip, I would like to sum up the differences between a Loan Officer from a Bank and Colorado Mortgage Brokers. Please pay close attention because if you don’t know them for your next mortgage Colorado Springs CO or Colorado home loan, it may cost you tens of thousands of dollars. Don’t you want to be an informed consumer?
The Four Major Differences are:
- Compensation: Bank and Credit Union Loan Officers are paid a salary and Colorado Mortgage Brokers are normally “Commissioned”. Neither one by itself is bad. However Banks/Credit Unions would like for you to think that you can get a more unbiased Colorado Springs mortgage or Colorado home loan from them. It is not necessarily true.
- Loan Programs: Banks have limited mortgage programs and Colorado Mortgage Brokers have numerous home loan programs since they are not limited to one lender. Don’t you want the ability to get the “Right” mortgage Colorado Springs or Colorado home loan when you don’t fit the typical Bank mortgage?
- Interest Rates: Like I said above, “Compensation” by itself is neither bad nor good. However when you put together all the money that Banks have to pay their staff and all of the other overhead costs, they have to make it up with bank fees, higher interest rates, etc. Don’t become a victim by paying their overhead costs with higher interest rates on your Colorado Springs mortgage or Colorado home loan. This is why Colorado Mortgage Brokers can usually give you a much better rate on your mortgage Colorado Springs. We can pass the savings to you since have very little overhead.
- Qualifications: Banks and Credit Unions have their own standards. They can hire “Anyone” that they want. However with Colorado Mortgage Brokers, we have met all the Colorado DORA’s Division of Real Estate licensing requirements. I believe that we are much better qualified to advise you on your Colorado Springs mortgage or Colorado home loan. We’re licensed and they aren’t!
How does all this save you from needlessly spending tens of thousands of dollars on a mortgage Colorado Springs? If you get the wrong loan program because it wasn’t available at the Bank/Credit Union and/or the Loan Officer wasn’t trained or qualified to correctly advise you and/or you get a higher interest rate due to their large overhead costs, you may pay for it for many years. Just ask the hundreds of thousands of home owners who got a “Bad” loan and who are now in foreclosure.
So the next time when you need to get a mortgage Colorado Springs or a Colorado home loan please ask yourself, “Do you want to get it from a unlicensed, minimum waged Bank Loan Officer who can only offer you a their few loan programs which may or may not be “Right” for you and at a Higher interest rate?” I have never gotten any of my Colorado home loans from a Bank. It didn’t make financial sense back before I became a Colorado Mortgage Broker and it still doesn’t.
I hope you now appreciate why I have spent so much time on addressing these differences. I want you to get the “Right” Colorado Springs mortgage or Colorado home loan from Colorado Mortgage Brokers.
The next Colorado Springs Mortgage Tip will address things you should ask Colorado Mortgage Brokers when you shop for your next mortgage Colorado Springs or Colorado home loan.
Which is Better: DORA or BBB?
Posted by: | CommentsHere is today’s Colorado Springs Mortgage Tip. I said yesterday it is better to first check with DORA before applying for a Colorado Springs mortgage or a Colorado home loan. I’ve listed some more reasons why you should first use DORA for selecting your Colorado Springs Mortgage Broker instead of the local BBB:
- Your local BBB is a great resource for getting background information on businesses. However, DORA is responsible for the licensing, the regulation and the enforcement for the appraiser, the realtor, and the mortgage loan originator. You will need this specialized information so you can make an informed decision on your Colorado Springs mortgage or Colorado home loan.
- The local BBB solely reports on a business performance. They do not report on their employees so you can’t find anything out the individual Colorado mortgage brokers. However with DORA, you can easily see whether your Colorado Springs mortgage broker is licensed. You don’t want to skip this first step in getting your Colorado Springs home loan.
- A company can have a high rating with the local BBB, but that won’t protect you when you get a Colorado Springs mortgage or a Colorado home loan. There are always bad and less competent employees in every company. It is no different with Colorado Springs mortgage companies. What is really nice about DORA is that they will post denied Colorado mortgage brokers. They also post information on the Colorado Mortgage Brokers who have or had disciplinary actions against them. This is extremely important information. You should only work with a licensed Colorado mortgage broker to get your Colorado Springs mortgage. This is the bare minimum standard when you are selecting your Colorado Springs mortgage broker. You don’t want any surprises when you get your Colorado Springs home loan, do you?
I hope you now understand why I stress the importance of using DORA’s website instead of the BBB’s before applying for your Colorado Springs mortgage or Colorado home loan. If so, please bookmark their website and share this information with everyone who is looking to buy or refinance the Colorado Springs home loan: http://www.dora.state.co.us/real-estate/index.htm.
The next Colorado Springs mortgage tip will address whether you should get your Colorado Springs home loan or Colorado home loan from a bank/credit union or from a licensed Colorado Mortgage Broker.
Why & Who is Colorado DORA?
Posted by: | CommentsFor today’s Colorado Springs Mortgage Tip, I want to introduce you to Colorado DORA. DORA is the Department of Regulatory Agencies. It is located in Denver, Colorado. All professions requiring a license are governed by DORA. This includes real estate agents, mortgage brokers, insurance agents, and even your hair stylist. DORA establishes and enforces licensing standards.
Within DORA, there is the Division of Real Estate. Besides establishing and enforcing standards for all those professions related to the real estate industry, it does a great job of protecting you from money-hungry, dishonest, and unethical real estate agents, mortgage brokers, etc.
A recent example of this is when DORA inactivated 4,560 Colorado Mortgage Broker licenses for failure to comply with education and testing requirements. This was just done in August. This counted for about 52% of ALL Colorado Mortgage Brokers! I believe that the majority of the greedy, fraudulent Colorado Springs Mortgage Brokers have left Colorado for easier prey.
Only two years ago, it was Wild West for the Colorado Mortgage industry. Colorado was one of three states that did not require a mortgage license. No one needed a license to do a Colorado home loan! ANYONE could originate a Colorado Springs mortgage that benefited him/her, not you. You wouldn’t have known that he/she was untrained, inexperienced, dishonest, unethical, or even a felon. This is really scary when you consider that your Colorado Springs mortgage is most likely the largest debt that you will ever have.
The State of Colorado now has one of the toughest licensing standards for mortgage brokers in the country! DORA is to be applauded. Aren’t you glad that DORA is watching out for you? So the next time when you need a Colorado Springs mortgage or a Colorado home loan, think of DORA first even before the local Better Business Bureau (BBB).
Here is your Colorado Springs Mortgage Tip: Prior to applying for your Colorado home loan or giving a person any information, go to the Colorado DORA website. Check to see if he/she has an active Colorado Mortgage Broker license. The link is http://www.dora.state.co.us/real-estate/index.htm.
If you want to see how it works, type in my name, Randell Flood, or my Colorado Mortgage Broker License #MB100017910. If the person isn’t licensed, do not do business with him/her and report it immediately to DORA at 303-894-2166. Please help us to get rid of these con artists who are pretending to be Colorado Mortgage Brokers. They are illegally doing Colorado home loans and are causing defaults on Colorado Springs mortgages due to their fraudulent lending. Many times they are taking advantage of military families while their spouse is away serving overseas. That’s low!
My next Colorado Springs Mortgage Tip will further explain why the local Colorado BBB should not be solely relied upon when getting advice for your mortgage or Colorado home loan.