More from The Mortgage Professor.
The key to a fix is to make appraisals portable, meaning that they can be used with any number of lenders. With a portable appraisal, a mortgage shopper could begin the process by getting an appraisal, then apply to several lenders, with the appraisal included with each application. The borrower would invite each lender to make a firm offer at a specified date and time. The offer would specify the interest rate, loan fees, and lock fee, on the mortgage for which the shopper had applied. The borrower would accept one of the offers that day– offers will lapse at the close of business — and pay the lock fee of the selected lender.
This is so true! “Issuing appraisals in the name of a lender effectively makes it the property of that lender. This never made any sense. Since the consumer pays for the appraisal and owns or will own the property to which it applies, the appraisal should belong to the consumer, not to the lender.”
In the meantime, the best solution is to work with the loan officer your real estate agent trusts and recommends.
You want two things – a loan with good rates and terms, and a very competent loan officer. An incompetent loan officer can make your purchase a nightmare so the skill and integrity of your loan officer is also super important.