Anyone have experience with lending tree & quicken loans

[Carlos Araujo]

Hey guys, I'm looking for a mortgage company so far I looked at going to a big bank like Bank of America and Wells Fargo but what about all these online companies??

[Account Closed]

My personal residence is financed by Quicken Loans - a refinance from Lending Tree.  I like Quicken Loans better for that purpose.  Lending Tree was less than helpful with poor customer service...

However, I had trouble with getting an investment property through Quicken Loans.  I called them and got pre-approved.  I was told I could not "purchase a residence for less than $75,000".  I made an offer on a $75,000 home thinking I was OK.  Then they backed out when they realized the purchase was for $75k but after my 20% down, my loan would be for less than $75k.  After pre-approval, I went into contract on a home above the $75,000 price, but they walked away when they figured out the finance amount would be less than that.  They left me high and dry - and they left me with the position that I would never do business with them again.  The end result was I ended up dialing for dollars and trying to refinance through Wells...and eventually walked away from the whole thing out of frustration.

I will not be doing business with them in the future and I don't recommend them for that reason.

[Russell Brazil]

Quicken tends to have the highest fees, the highest rates, and they dont have local expertise. A good listing agent may reject an offer if you are using them since without local expertise they may screw up the transaction.

[Ty Golera]

Russell, 

I'd have to disagree with you that local expertise means you may screw up the transaction. Local lenders are just as likely to screw up too. You and others may have had bad experiences but there's a huge amount of mortgage reps doing deals across the country very smoothly.
 All deals are done with local appraisers, title, so really notng is lost except the face to face.

It could be that Quicken's inside people are not lic'd in other states while other mortgage broker company's loan officers are. If they are, then they understand the differences in state laws and the specific disclosures needed.

[Russell Brazil]

Originally posted by @Ty Golera:

Russell, 

I'd have to disagree with you that local expertise means you may screw up the transaction. Local lenders are just as likely to screw up too. You and others may have had bad experiences but there's a huge amount of mortgage reps doing deals across the country very smoothly.
 All deals are done with local appraisers, title, so really notng is lost except the face to face.

It could be that Quicken's inside people are not lic'd in other states while other mortgage broker company's loan officers are. If they are, then they understand the differences in state laws and the specific disclosures needed.

 Never seen a quicken loan officer know how to underwrite ground rent. Ive seen them screw it up at least a dozen times.

[Jeff Dulla]

@Carlos Araujo @Russell Brazil is absolutely right. Quicken is the same as any large retail bank now - overpriced. Talk to some local agents and find out who the trusted mortgage banker is. A mortgage banker will be able to shop rates but also handle the loan in house. In my opinion- residential mortgage bank is your best option.

[Scott Raley]

If  you have a good to great credit score, solid tax returns and verified income , I have found Credit Unions have the most competitive rates combined with great service. Yes, they are picky and want your one of your eye teeth for all the information they need. But, they make conservative loan which is why their rates are generally so competive. If you have the assets, big banks like WF and Chase Private Client Services can complete. I have most my loans with Provident CU or Star One CU, which have served me well. Option B if your credit, income or tax returns have  a few kinks ,  is to work with a talented loan broker.  Getting a loan to the finish line is a serious endeavor which I would never trust  to an online lender. 

[Ty Golera]

@Russell 
So, you're actually saying  that the majority of mortgage reps online are horrible if they are not local?  Sorry, guys but that is not the case with everyone. I work with and know several other mortgage brokers who routinely do deals out of state.  Clients complain that WF, BofA have horrible records local or online.
Many title companies, appraisal mgmt companies also conduct their work out of state and delegate adminstrative tasks to local partners (notaries).  You know this stuff too yet still say in a blanket statement that online lenders are horrible. C'mon. if that were true, they'd be shutting down left & right. 

I do agree a local "expert" is preferred when all things are equal but don't choose a lender mainly based on the fact they are local. UNLESS you're someone who has trouble using the internet.

@Scott - Yes, I agree and I'd use a credit union too if in that situation.

Would you pick a HS educated loan rep. in Bakersfield for a loan in Bakersfield or a well-known reputable company with reps who have BA or Master's degrees in the Bay area?

Would you pick a local defense lawyer in Calfornia at an iffy law firm or Mark Geragos in NYC or Florida if their fee was the same.
Gloria Allred or some unknown?

Heck, people don't even shop locally. Amazon.
People use people they trust whether it's an electrician based 60 miles away or a Realtor 100 miles away. There's even Realtors doing the whole deal "online" for clients in SoCal but he or she is based in the Bay area. 

Competence, experience, and knowing how  to solve problems quickly can all be done online. Hence, online tech chat support vs. your in-house rep. who may have limited knowledge.

[Jeff Dulla]

@Ty Golera I believe what he meant to say is that the majority of mortgage reps are bad. End sentence. Similar to real estate agents. It is still a business that attracts people who want to do it part-time and half-assed. And as things have turned back around, even more so. 

Nothing against people who want to do this as a hobby but along the lines of what you are saying above, can most people doing this 10 to 20 hours per week do as well or be as knowledgeable as someone who works at it 50+ hours per week? I don't want to completely generalize but in my opinion, the vast majority of the time there is no chance. 

I completely agree with your assessment that some of the mortgage reps working at the largest, most "trustworthy" companies - Chase, Wells, B of A, etc, are probably some of the worst in the business. The process as a whole is bad with those companies and you can clearly see that if you simply google _____ bank reviews. 

Lastly, very much so agree that being online and local doesn't really matter. Who isn't "online" these days anyways. I think ideally you look for a well educated, seasoned mortgage banker or brokerage in order to hopefully see max service level combined with lowest cost/pricing. 

[Russell Brazil]

Originally posted by @Ty Golera:

@Russell 
So, you're actually saying  that the majority of mortgage reps online are horrible if they are not local?  Sorry, guys but that is not the case with everyone. I work with and know several other mortgage brokers who routinely do deals out of state.  Clients complain that WF, BofA have horrible records local or online.
Many title companies, appraisal mgmt companies also conduct their work out of state and delegate adminstrative tasks to local partners (notaries).  You know this stuff too yet still say in a blanket statement that online lenders are horrible. C'mon. if that were true, they'd be shutting down left & right. 

I do agree a local "expert" is preferred when all things are equal but don't choose a lender mainly based on the fact they are local. UNLESS you're someone who has trouble using the internet.

@Scott - Yes, I agree and I'd use a credit union too if in that situation.

Would you pick a HS educated loan rep. in Bakersfield for a loan in Bakersfield or a well-known reputable company with reps who have BA or Master's degrees in the Bay area?

Would you pick a local defense lawyer in Calfornia at an iffy law firm or Mark Geragos in NYC or Florida if their fee was the same.
Gloria Allred or some unknown?

Heck, people don't even shop locally. Amazon.
People use people they trust whether it's an electrician based 60 miles away or a Realtor 100 miles away. There's even Realtors doing the whole deal "online" for clients in SoCal but he or she is based in the Bay area. 

Competence, experience, and knowing how  to solve problems quickly can all be done online. Hence, online tech chat support vs. your in-house rep. who may have limited knowledge.

 That's not what I said at all. Twice I cited Quicken loans, and never in this thread have I mentioned any other company. But please do keep keep trying to deduce things from my posts that are not there.