Mortgage Bankers - choose one or shop multiple?

[Tim Coulter]

Ok folks, here is the story. I have a friend who is a mortgage banker/broker and I went and got pre-qualified with him. I completely trust that he would do a stellar job executing quickly, making listing agents confident in my offer, and doing his best for me.

I also reached out to another lender, recommended by my agent who I met and believes he knows his stuff. He's got a lot of experience and I from my interactions I believe he will also do a fantastic job. I went ahead and submitting info to get pre-qualified with him as well.

My mindset was, I might as well talk to a number of lenders and get pre-qualified with a few of them at around the same time so all the credit pulls count as one. My mindset was also, then as long as I believe all can execute, I will shop the best rate when I have a deal and am looking to price lock. The 2nd lender knows I am engaging other lenders and it doesn't bother him but he is likely confident that he may get the business due to his close relationship with my agent. As I was updated my friend on things, I shared that I got pre-qualified with another mortgage banker/broker and my friend was shocked and not happy because he thought I was committing to work with him. And he was putting a lot of time and energy into underwriting and he rushed on a recent HUD deal I was going to bid on (that never panned out). He felt that if I was engaging other lenders and not committed to working with him, that I may not be a good fit and he was going to invest his time with people who he knows will work with him.

I totally get his point of view, but what is normal and recommended for investors (I am looking to house hack the property I purchase)? Do you find one lender that you trust that can shop different places for the best mortgage offering for you, or do you engage multiple lenders, have them underwrite and pre-approve you, and then shop rates at the end?

Thank you for your input and recommendation as I navigate these new waters.