Everyone knows that getting a lower interest rate on your mortgage can save you thousands of dollars over time, but what you may not know is that the best rates are not necessarily offered by the big volume players or the bank where you currently do your checking. Instead, they can often be found at smaller banks and credit unions.
“Neglecting to include smaller community banks and credit unions could prove to be a costly admission," says Greg McBride, senior financial analyst with Bankrate.com of the loan-hunting process.
“In this market, in particular with jumbo large or jumbo confirming loans, smaller community banks and credit unions are very competitive,” says McBride.
Compared to large banks, which are more depended on the secondary market, small banks have more flexibility to offer lower rate loans because “they are not dependent on an investor in the second market to eventually buy it,” he said.
The national median existing home price was down 12.5 percent in August from a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors.
"The market is recovering but not yet settled. Last minute chaotic home price changes are evidently still taking place, though there are signs that the sold-to-list prices are narrowing in areas with rising sales. The new appraisal process could also be one of the reasons for the need to slash price," says the Realtors' chief economist Lawrence Yun. "During market transition data often move in conflicting directions."
The biggest discounts are at the high end of the market. Luxury homes (those listed at two million dollars and above) are taking an average 14 percent off the original list price. Athough they represent barely 2 percent of all current listings on Trulia, they are responsible for 25 percent of the total $28.3 billion in price reductions. This is likely due to the fact that while sales are surging on the low end of the market, they have ground to a near halt on the high end. The still tight jumbo loan market is making sure of that.
