Realfinity Mortgage FAQ

Realfinity Mortgage, a wholly owned subsidiary of Realfinity, Inc., is a licensed correspondent lender. It leverages the Realfinity Origination platform, developed by its parent company, to provide an embedded lending solution for real estate agents. By partnering with various investors, Realfinity Mortgage offers consumers competitive rates and a wide range of loan products.

When you have your credit pulled for a mortgage, it typically does not have a significant impact on your credit score. To allow homeowners and homebuyers to shop around for the best rates, most lenders consider all mortgage inquiries within a specific period, usually 30 days, as a single inquiry. This means that you can have your credit pulled by multiple lenders without negatively affecting your score. Without checking your credit, a lender cannot approve you for a loan or provide an accurate rate quote, as credit is one of the many factors used to determine your rate. We recommend that you compare mortgage options from different lenders and get pre-approved. Realfinity Mortgage simplifies this process by providing access to loan options from multiple investors with a single credit pull.

No worries if you don’t have a specific property in mind yet but want to get pre-approved for a mortgage. You can skip entering the property address and instead focus on providing the expected purchase price and loan amount you’re seeking pre-approval for. This allows you to obtain a pre-approval letter, which can help you make offers at that price point. Once you’ve found a home, you can easily update the address on the pre-approval letter to reflect the specific property.

After submitting a mortgage application, you will receive a Loan Estimate from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which provides a clear breakdown of the costs associated with your mortgage. This includes expenses paid to third parties, your down payment, taxes, insurance, lender fees, and other costs that are combined into one amount known as “cash-to-close,” which may be overestimated. A dual-licensed agent will assist in understanding these costs and can address any concerns you may have to help you prepare for the closing process.

Your down payment amount depends on your personal financial situation. Many programs are available for borrowers who don’t have a 20% down payment saved for the home’s value. However, most of these programs require some form of mortgage insurance if your down payment is less than 20%. It may be worthwhile to consider not using all of your savings on a down payment and investing that money elsewhere.

It’s not necessary to meet your mortgage partner in person or even speak with them directly. Many transactions are now being conducted remotely, which can result in quicker and more efficient closing times. As a homeowner or homebuyer, Realfinity Mortgage tailors the experience to your needs and is available to assist you and address any inquiries you may have.

Unlike other mortgage brokers, Realfinity Mortgage is data intelligent, enabling you to make the right homeownership decisions based on investment-grade data. Thanks to our tech background, we have optimized processes, resulting in reduced costs that are passed on to homeowners and homebuyers.

Your rate lock can have an expiration date, but you can avoid this by selecting a suitable option when locking in your rate. Typically, rate locks have a duration of 30, 45, or 60 days, but Realfinity Mortgage’s investors offer extended locks of up to 150 days depending on your specific situation. The appropriate lock period will depend on when your closing is scheduled and the type of property you intend to purchase.

Your mortgage payment primarily includes the repayment of the principal amount borrowed and the interest charged on it. If you have put down less than 20% of the purchase price, then the payment will also include mortgage insurance. Additionally, you are required to pay for your homeowner’s insurance and real estate taxes, which are deposited into an escrow account held by your lender. Other expenses may also apply. The principal payment reduces the original amount borrowed, while the interest payment is the fee charged for borrowing the money. The taxes and insurance portions of the payment are held in escrow and paid by the lender to the respective parties when due. However, some borrowers may have the option to not use an escrow account for these payments. If an escrow account is used, it’s important to note that the responsibility of paying taxes and insurance directly falls on the borrower once the mortgage loan is paid in full.

Discount points, or simply “points,” are fees that can be paid upfront to lower the interest rate on a mortgage. These points can help you save money on interest over the course of the loan, but it’s important to consider the cost of the points versus the savings from the lower rate. In contrast to points, lender credits are when the lender gives you money to use towards closing costs in exchange for a higher interest rate. The cost of originating a mortgage varies by lender and is based on a number of factors, including the perceived lending risk and interest rates in the broader market. These costs are often factored into the discount points or lender credits offered to homebuyers.

In simple terms, an escrow account is a bank account where your money is held until it is due to be paid for things like taxes, homeowner’s insurance, and HOA fees. When you take out a mortgage, you pay an upfront amount into the escrow account and then make monthly payments for the life of the loan. The upfront amount can vary among lenders, but typically covers two months of cushion payments for both HOI and property taxes, plus the necessary amount of taxes to ensure the full amount is available when the tax bill is due. The reason these bills are paid through an escrow account is that the bank or lender who financed your mortgage has an ownership interest in your property and wants to ensure you make the necessary payments each month.

Mortgage insurance is a type of insurance that is required for buyers who make a down payment of less than 20% on their home purchase. The insurance protects the lender in case the borrower defaults on their mortgage. Once the homebuyer has 20% equity in their home, many lenders will no longer require mortgage insurance payments. However, if a homebuyer cannot afford a 20% down payment, mortgage insurance allows them to purchase a home that they might not otherwise be able to qualify for.