I'm a bit of a novice with this stuff, so please excuse my ignorance. We want to refinance. Who should we call? A broker who will shop around for better rate but who may or may not be working in our fiduciary interest? Or a financial institution who's certainly not going to shop around for a better rate but wants our business. What kind of financial institution (behemoth bank, local bank, credit union)? (I absolutely do not want to use the bank that holds the loan because they're fascist bully-boys.) One other question. I'm comparing rates on the internet. I have found three (I assume) unrelated institutions which are using the exact same www interface and verbatim language but with wildly different rates. What gives?
I am just about done refinancing. Going from 5.5% down to 3.5%. I am currently with a medium-sized bank. I am refinancing with a local credit union. Based on the last several years, I am pretty much done with large commercial institutions. I will only deal with local banks or credit unions. You can work with a broker, but they are generally bound by what rates are out there. Or just call 4 or 5 local banks. Be knowledgeable about the current rates (the business section of the local paper will print them). If you know any real estate agents, they generally know several mortgage people and can give you a trusting name to work with.
I'll also add, know the difference between 15, 20 and 30 yr rates & conditions (can you pay early. Run some mortgage amortization calculator (google to know your debt load). And as always, careful with Variable rates and teaser rates.