Mortgage rates, for the purposes of this article, will refer to the most commonly-quoted loans available through the most prevalent channels. That essentially means conforming, fixed rate loansâespecially 30yr and 15yr fixed. Itâs not that other loan types arenât affected by the same variables, just that the most prevalent loans will be affected more reliably.
An example of one of these mainstream rate quotes would be a 30yr fixed from a big bank or mortgage lender a retail branch of that bank or indirectly via a mortgage originator who has access to several correspondent or brokered banking channels. In both cases weâre talking about some large underlying financial entity that is in the business of making lots of loans.
These sorts of lenders will typically adjust their rate sheet offerings every day. In fact, itâs extremely rare to see absolutely no change in any given lenderâs rate sheet from one day to the next. That said, itâs also rare for rates to change so much that the actual contract interest rate is affected. Thatâs because rates are almost universally quoted in .125% increments. As such, rates would have to change by .125% in order for a rate that had been quoted at 4.0% to now be quoted at 4.125%, all other things being equal. And itâs rare to see that much movement in a single day.
The âfine-tuning adjustmentâ for mortgage rates lies in the upfront cost side of the equation. This can either be an actual cost out of the borrowerâs pocket (âdiscount pointsâ), or a rebate from the lender. Rebates to cover closing costs, etc., are a common feature of loan quotes, and lenders are able to offer them because of the interest collected over time. The higher the rate, the higher the potential rebate. The lower the rate, the higher the cost. For example, if a 4% rate involved neither an upfront discount nor a rebate from the lender, then a 3.875% might require a 1.0% discount point and a 4.125% might result in a 1% rebate from the lender.
In that example the discount point and the rebate are both part of the same component of âmortgage rates.â One is negative and the other is positive, but they both represent the COST side of the equation. This is the side of the mortgage rate equation that is almost guaranteed to be changing every dayâsometimes multiple times per day, and those changes can be extrapolated to changes in effective rate. In other words, an effective rate of 4.04 doesn’t mean that people are being quoted 4.04. Rather, the actual rate quotes are mostly likely 4.0% with an upfront cost or 4.125% with a rebate.
When comparing a bank, mortgage lender, or mortgage broker for the best mortgage loan program for your family, be sure to consider all of the other factors that go into the loan package: upfront junk fees from the lender (AKA underwriting, processing, admin, and application fees), discount points, and Mortgage Insurance (PMI or MIP). These will factor into the overall costs that are paid and should be strongly considered when doing a comparison of different loan options.
A side note: Mortgage Approval Group, LLC does not charge any junk fees and we’ve pre-negotiated with most of our lending partners to ensure that no additional lender fees are charged to our clients; on average this saves our clients $1,500-$2,500 in out-of-pocket closing costs!!!
In closing, lower interest rates are just one of the reasons to choose Mortgage Approval Group, LLC as your Mortgage Broker in Tampa, FL. As a top reviewed local mortgage broker, we have access to 50+ lenders and investors to shop for the best interest rates with .
For a competitive analysis of your mortgage purchase or refinance options, just visit our 4 minute online application.