How do you decide which lender is best for you?

There is a lot more to the mortgage process than getting a good rate. High costs in fees and poor service can come as very unhappy surprises.  Here's a list of suggest questions you might ask a lender:

How large is your company, and how long has it been in business? Are you a licensed mortgage broker or loan officer in Texas? Is your company a mortgage banker or a mortgage broker? (A banker lends its own funds; a broker searches mortgage sources and arranges for you to receive financing from the lending entity.) Is your underwriting department local? (You don't want your loan to get lost in outer Siberia during the last critical days before closing) What is the name, phone number and e-mail address of the person who will actually be processing my loan?  How accessible is that person? Tell me about all loan fees.  What fees must I pay up front?  What fees will I* have to pay at closing? How can you assure me I won't pay any unnecessary "add-on" fees? Do the costs you are quoting include the lender origination fee (if they have one)? Are there loans available with no origination fees? No closing costs? Reduced closing costs? What are your interest rates? Is there a fee to lock in my interest rate? How long can I lock in the rate? If interest rates go down, can I relock at the lower rate? If so, will there be a fee for that? What information must I provide to get a mortgage loan? What documentation will I have to provide? Will you require current tax returns? (Take note of this especially between Jan 1 and April 15 if you haven't prepared your return yet.) How long will it take to get complete and unequivocal loan approval and be ready to close? I plan to say in this house for __ years.  Can you show me the breakdown of any ARM loans you offer vs. fixed rate loans to see which could save me the most money in my situation? What is private mortgage insurance?  Other than a 20% downpayment how can I avoid the private mortgage insurance? In the last three months, how many loan applications have you taken and how many have you been unable to close? Can you give me names and phone numbers of two or three people for whom you've funded loans in the last two months?

Currently, Texas-licensed mortgage brokers must use the standard Conditional Qualification and Conditional Approval letters when representing that an application is prequalified or preapproved for a mortgage loan.  Mortgage bankers may be required to do so in the future.