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Berkshire Financial Group, Inc.
Berkshire Financial Group, Inc., offers services worldwide like home equity loans online,
refinancing mortgage loans, licensed mortgage
broker services, home improvement loans, home
equity loans, mortgage loan broker services, etc.
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If you’re looking for the best mortgage rate, online
mortgage brokers and lenders provide a convenient method by which to obtain
home financing, and may even be able to get you a lower interest rate
than you might find at your local bank or lending institution. BUT
BEWARE! If you choose the wrong online mortgage broker or lender, or
even if you choose a good one, you could be signing a death warrant for
your personal finances and your good credit rating.
I dislike having to make such a negative statement, but it is a sad fact that
disclosing personal and financial information over the internet can be
like playing Russian Roulette. Most companies doing business on the
internet are both honest and reputable, but some are not, and the
financial arena has attracted the wolves, because that is where the money
is. This warning applies not only to online mortgage brokers, but
to all types of online lending and financial institutions.
This does not mean that you should completely avoid doing business on the
internet, or even that you should avoid online mortgage brokers. Use
common sense when seeking the best mortgage rates, avoid being gullible
by refusing to jump at exceptionally generous offers, and do (or
don’t do) the following:
- Never, EVER, respond to ANY email solicitation for any sort of
financial transaction. The majority of email solicitations are
bulk mailings of a highly dubious nature. Some of these simply seek
to confirm that your email address is active by attempting to gain a
response from you, after which your address will be sold to other
email solicitors. Others are more sinister phishing
expeditions. Phishing is a tactic whereby you are coerced
into providing personal information which may then be sold to other
lenders or used for the purpose of identity theft.
- If you receive an email from a known institution or one with which
you routinely do business that solicits financial or personal
information, you should call the institution or log on to your account
THROUGH THEIR WEBSITE. DO NOT use any link within the email,
which could lead to a fraudulent website masquerading as a legitimate
financial institution. Find out whether the financial institution has
actually solicited this information and report the suspicious activity
to them if they have not. NO BONA FIDE FINANCIAL INSTITUTION WILL
EVER SOLICIT PERSONAL INFORMATION THROUGH AN EMAIL LINK; they
will instead ask you to go to their website independently to perform
such a transaction.
- Read Home Buyer Beware by Consumer Reports®
WebWatch. Follow this by reading
Privacy: Tips for Protecting Your Personal
Information from the Federal Trade Commission. These are
must-read articles that will help you avoid questionable lenders and
safeguard your personal information.
- Invest in a good spyware blocker to help secure personal financial
information on your computer. A firewall is also a good idea, but
start with a spyware blocker to prevent keystroke logging,
a method by which information you enter into your computer can be
transmitted to a remote location without your knowledge. We use
Spybot Search&Destroy, an absolutely
free spyware blocker which just happens to be one of the best
available, and update it regularly.
- Insure that any lender or online mortgage broker with which you
choose to make inquiry or do business either has a brick-and-mortar
location (physical office with address and phone number) or is VERY
WELL KNOWN. Check with the Better Business Bureau® to determine
whether the lender is legitimate and whether they have any complaints
lodged against them. It is a good idea to choose a licensed lender
with an established history who belongs to one or more lending
associations and can provide verifiable references.
Having been properly cautioned about at least some aspects of internet security
relating to online mortgage brokers and lenders, is it truly to your
advantage to choose an online mortgage broker over the loan officer at your
local bank? Well, yes and no. There are advantages and disadvantages
to both online mortgage brokers and local lenders.
- Mortgage brokers do not actually fund your mortgage themselves;
instead, they act as freelance agents to bring borrowers and lenders
together. Online mortgage brokers may work with many dozens of
lenders. Because they have access to multiple lending sources, you
might think that the mortgage broker can procure you a much better
deal than your local bank. This is not necessarily true. While an
online mortgage broker usually has access to a large number of lenders,
the broker is most often paid by the lender, so there may be a
tendency to choose a lender with whom they can negotiate the highest
fee. A good mortgage broker should negotiate the best mortgage
rate and, overall, the best mortgage deal for
you, knowing that fair lending practices and client goodwill
result in more clients in the long run.
- It is true that local bankers have better knowledge of situations
indigenous to the local housing market than do online mortgage brokers.
Unanswered questions relating to the local market or the local economy
may delay the processing of an online mortgage application. Larger
online mortgage brokers may have regional or even local representatives
with whom they can interact to iron out problems quickly.
- Online mortgage brokers will usually be able to acquire a mortgage
much more easily than a bank if you have problems with your credit or
if you are seeking to purchase a unique or commercial property.
When selecting an online mortgage broker, ascertain whether the broker
intends to charge you a fee. Avoid brokers that charge upfront fees,
since there is no guarantee that they can deliver a satisfactory mortgage
solution. Ask the broker what services they offer both during and after
the mortgage transaction. Ask for a comparison of any mortgage
recommendation the broker makes to satisfy yourself that you are getting a
loan that is right for you.
Be aware that multiple or frequent credit inquiries can reduce your credit
rating, resulting in a less than optimal mortgage solution. If you
opt to utilize a mortgage broker, or if you must talk to multiple lenders,
you may want to take steps to insure that multiple pulls of your credit
records are kept to an absolute minimum.
Authored by Kenneth L. Anderson.
Original article published 4 May 2005, updated 21 February
2006.
Follow links to the right to learn more about online mortgage brokers and lenders offering online mortgage
loans, licensed mortgage broker services, mortgage refinancing, home improvement
loans, home equity loans and related services.
At the left margin, Related Links address topics of interest
pertaining to personal finance and money-saving resources. View the
Personal Finance SiteMap
for a complete list of personal finance and financial services topics.
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