- Shop for a mortgage for yourself before going to a broker.
Brokers make a commission to find rates for you. Oftentimes they make deals with specific banks and would not provide you a list of all banks which you can actually check out for yourself. A good tool is going to Bankrate.com to get a list of mortgages and percentages you can find. You can always contact the banks themselves after getting the list from bankrate. Once again, stick with the major banks that are provided from the list. It is also always recommended that you not only check the bank where you currently have an account, but other banks in your area. You can generally go directly to their websites and find their rates online. If you are having trouble getting even one bank to approve your loan, that is when we would try a mortgage broker. It is often helpful to get recommendations from friends prior to choosing your broker. Most of the time you can find friends or relatives who can recommend adecent broker. But remember, they are helping you out for a fee. Make sure they work hard enough to find you a good deal.

- Be very careful of fees associated with mortgages.
It seems like each bank has their own name for their fees. It is hard to match up the fees from bank to bank. Just make sure that you study the list of fees. If you have good credit and find similar rates at different banks, you can always make a phone call to see if the bank will waive their fee. It can't hurt to make this request. Remember that you are the customer and banks make a lot of money on mortgages. It may be well worth it to them to waive a one time fee.

- To lock in your rate or not to lock in your rate.
When interest rates were on the down swing, it might have been smart to gamble and not lock in your rate until the last moment. Now that rates are rising. We recommend that you lock in your rate at the first chance you get. You can always check out the current interest rate charts and see when the Fed next meets to make an interest rate decision. In those cases you may or may not want to take a gamble. In the end you can either raise or lower your interest rate by a few dollars monthly by making a smart and informed decision.

- Be careful of the different types of loans out there.
We recommend that you avoid many of the new types of loans being recommended. Yes, you will be able to afford more house, but they may be dangerous to you down the line. Avoid interest only loans along with a vast majority of adjustable rate mortgages. If it is possible, get less of a house and get the standard 30 year fixed rate mortgage.