When I was arranging the financing for my first house, I used Lendingtree.com. They put me in contact with a bunch of different brokers.
Now, my credit was immaculate, sort of. I mean I'd gotten in some trouble in college but it had been immaculate ever since, 3 1/2 years or so. I was a finance manager at a car dealership at the time, so I had a pretty good idea of what I'd qualify for--not the best rates, but some reasonable ones.
Linda Tomas at Simplicity was the only one who gave it to me straight. Everyone else was blowing smoke, trying to tell me how great their deal was, and telling me rates I knew they couldn't get me. Linda said, here's what you qualify for, here's what's on your credit that makes you not qualify for the top rates, here's how long you need to wait before you refinance in order to get the best rates, etc. She got me a great deal.
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