No problem Boston. 95% of the time I have seen my rates beat anyone I have got an loan estimate from. The .05% that I have been beaten was the lender had a special niche for a certain loan type. Of course we all know I can’t throw out rates on here but anyone who has 5 minutes I can give a quote on the phone. With no fees I’m already saving borrowers $1000 to $1500 that most lenders charge for processing and underwriting. Also on purchase and refi if you have 20% down or 20% equity I can do an appraisal pre check to see if an appraisal is needed before doing anything on the file.
PMI? 
I do have a few different lenders that offer their PMI factor at lower % than standard %. Better credit scores and more people on the loan equals lower pmi also.
PMI is an exorbitant extra fee that’s charged to people who don’t have enough money to buy a house.
Which is ironic.
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Better to have PMI then to throw money away renting is what most people will say. PMI is a waste yes, but for those who can afford the monthly mortgage payment very easily but do not have the luxury of having 20% saved up, its still a good deal. People can always go with LPMI.
In 2005 I bought my first home in the second phase of a new development in Southern California. Lots of eager first timers moved in over the next 24 months, enticed by low down payments and tired of throwing away money on rent.
By 2010 about 1/3 of the homes in the community had been foreclosed, and the HOA was teetering on insolvency.
On neighbors’ front porches I would routinely see a dozen or more unopened FedEx envelopes with urgent documents inside, but the envelopes would never be opened because the occupants would never return.
Other homes had notices physically attached to the front doors, although to be honest I never went close enough to read them, because it made me sick to my stomach.
The couple across the street from me moved into their new home on the same day in 2005 that I did. One morning in 2009 I watched the father, a Marine, fighting back tears as he put his kids’ bedroom furniture into a moving truck. If memory serves his wife lost her job and his income alone wasn’t enough to sustain their expenses. But I never saw them again, so I couldn’t really ask what happened, nor would it have been polite.
I didn’t lose my home; I put down a significant down payment and had plenty of reserves, and by some miracle I remained continuously employed.
For several years, though, I wondered almost daily what I would do with a home that was hundreds of thousands of dollars underwater if I lost my job and ran through all of my savings.
That is my perspective, and my intent wasn’t to argue, but the risks of being financially unprepared to buy a house are enormously bigger than getting screwed on a 36-month car lease.
I’m passionate about steering people away from risky financial decisions that could impact them for decades to come, especially when consequences are preventable with some delayed gratification and a healthy savings account.
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Did any of the opportunistic bones in your body feel guilty for having put down all that money and making yourself ineligible to participate in the government largess of assisting people in the situation or your neighbors? If I were in that position, I would probably have been bitter. I’m in a house that is worth 60% of what I paid (and I am going to take the hit because of my downpayment, instead of the bank/govt), my neighborhood is a ghost town and I cant get out even if I wanted to. [Not trying to discuss whether the homeowner bailout was right or wrong, but since it happened, do you feel any bitterness about not being able to take advantage of it.]
Agree, if you are that far along circumstances are different. I seem to never have a mortgage for more than a few years, am either moving or refinancing in that time. Like you have a 3rd federal ARM, so enjoying low rate at moment. Doubt I will be in this house for more than a few more years, so not concerned about rate adjustments at this time.
It’s a good question, but no.
So many financially unsophisticated young families got caught up in the frenzy and weren’t really aware of the risks.
Some who should have known better chose to ignore the risks, but absent bad intent or unbridled greed, everyone deserves one reset in life.
I start resenting people the second time they f everything up and then put their hands out. 
ARMs are amazing financial tools when used for the right job, and Third Federal’s rate re-lock feature is absolutely awesome.
The fun part about having an ARM in a decreasing rate environment during the recession was watching the rate go down every year. $$$
Sometimes unavoidable and palatable, though.
If you’re coming out of let’s say, med school and starting a fantastic (and very easily employable) role, chances are you aren’t going to have plenty of savings. However, your salary may allow some pretty strong buying power.
Imagine two residents/fellows just out and about to really get paid for the first time. The debt…I don’t even want to guess. But, if they’re both specialists making north of 500K, a little PMI is really not a big deal.
I understand your perspective based on the goals you’ve described here, but PMI is cheap, and if it allows you to purchase a home in an appreciating market, the ROI can far surpass the cost of PMI.
When we bought our first condo in Boston for $262,500, 8 years ago, my PMI was under $80/month. 4 years later I sold it after more than 50% appreciation. Needless to say, 48 months of $80 in PMI was…trivial.
I think people often scare first/second time buyers into believing they must put 20% down. I strongly disagree if buying into a rapidly appreciating market. In places like Boston, you look at prices and think they’ll never go up, and they always do.
There is a risk/reward element to this, although I will note that the purchase I described above was in a rapidly-appreciating market. 
PMI pays for similarly-situated people who default at a much higher rate than those with conventional loans.
The default rates are higher because people with limited savings have few options when they encounter large unexpected expenses, they lose their jobs, or one spouse dies or gets cancer.
Is it always a horrendous idea? No. Does it work out sometimes? Of course.
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PMI is not a golden ticket and will not solve or replace wise financial planning or every bad luck situation but it may be a relatively low premium for allowing folks with less than 20% down payment to enter the market of mortgage. Yes, the optimal situation would be to save that 20%, have two equally distributed and completely independent incomes, spend less than 20% of your income on housing and have a layaway fund to cover at least 6 months of all your normal expenses at all time.
Being an immigrant I was happy to have enough time to build enough credit history to qualify for reasonably priced mortgage when my local market (Seattle) was yet in the range where for maxed out FHA loan I could get something more than a trailer in a shady area 2h drive away from my work. 20% down was out of the question. I had a contract where I was comfortable to take the commitment and the $200/mo PMI fee was well worth it.
Shit happens, economy changes, accidents/sickness can happen, wifes/husbands cheat, dogs run away. Having choices and options to chose from is what makes life interesting and unique.
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Now slightly off topic. Would it be wise to payoff a mortgage earlier or maxing out a retirement account if you have 20 years left till retirement?
401K is pre tax and it’s important to max that out
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Agreed. Max out all pretax and tax-deferred options first. 401(k), Roth/backdoor Roth, HSA (if applicable), etc. If your employer has an ESPP, max that too, unless the company is going down in flames.
For the mortgage, start with the money you’d otherwise pee down your leg every month.
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Hey Everyone,
I am looking to get pre-approved for a mortgage in Michigan. Anyone have any advice on who I should use for my mortgage?
I am a big fan of Zillow’s mortgage network.
Put in your details and get pricing from multiple mortgage companies without sharing your contact info first.
I’ve found 4 of the last 5 mortgage companies for me and for others that way. Quality companies with great service and very competitive rates/fees.
Awesome thanks!