Florida Mortgage & Rate Information

Shopping for a mortgage in Florida is not quite the same as shopping for a mortgage in other states.

It seems in Florida there are mortgage companies on every corner.

We don't offer you the big glass office with the marble floors, but what we can offer you are the lowest available mortgage rates in Florida.

We have negotiated special agreements in order to allow us to offer you the lowest Florida Mortgage Rates available along with the lowest overall lender costs available in the Florida market.

If you are getting a mortgage in Florida and you want the best rate then you must speak with us before you close on your loan.

Comparing Estimates

If you are trying to compare 2 estimates there are a couple of things that you should look for.

The first thing I always look for on a Florida Mortgage Estimate are the State Intangible Tax, & State Tax Stamps. These are taxes that are required on all Florida Mortgages by the state of Florida.

If your Florida Mortgage estimate does not have estimated charges for the Intangible Tax & Doc Stamps then you should immediately be concerned about the credibility of the estimate.

The Next thing to make a note of are the estimated property tax and homeowner's insurance amounts. Make sure that the monthly tax and insurance amounts are the same on both estimates.

There will also be 3rd party title fees which will be listed on your estimates. There are Title companies everywhere in Florida who will close your mortgage cheap.

Ask your lender if you can select your own title company and if so call around and get some quotes. Shopping these costs can save you several hundred dollars on your title and closing costs.

If your lender says you cant select your own title company then call another lender.

Confirm your Lender is Properly Licensed in Florida to Provide Mortgages. You can check here:

Florida Mortgage License Search

 To sum it up, the most imprtant things that need to be compared are the interest rate and the TOTAL LENDER FEES.

There are only 4 types of closing costs for a Florida Mortgage:

• Pre-Paid Items
• 3rd Party Costs (Appraisal, Title, Closing)
• State/County Taxes/Doc Stamps
• Lender Fees

   Pre-Paid Items

Since your taxes are set by the county, your insurance premium amounts come from your insurance agent that means the Pre-Paid Item Catagory will be the exact same no matter who your lender is. This means the amounts for these costs will not vary from lender to lender and thus should not ultimately have any impact on your decision. I only mention this because some companies underestimate these costs or leave them off all together in order to make their estimates look less expensive. 

3rd Party Costs

There are a couple of services that you must have in order to close on your Florida Mortgage.  The first of the 2 main services that require 3rd parties. The first is the appraisal. The appraisal fee should be very similar everywhere and should range from $350-$450 depending on your area. The second is the title work and closing of the loan. We have already talked about selecting our own title company. Based on this, the title and closing fees will also be the same no matter what lender you select.

State/County Taxes/Doc Stamps

These costs are set by the state and count of the property being refinanced and will not vary at all from lender to lender.

As you can see so far, the first 3 catagories of closing costs are completly controlled by you or by set forces beyond anyone's control. These costs apply no matter what lender you select.

The reason I am pointing this out is because some lenders may leave off or underestimate the large majority of the fees listed and explained above.

If you are doing a Florida Mortgage and any of these fees or charges are not listed ask your loan officer why.

This leads into the last and most important part of the estimate, the Lender Fees.

Lender Fees

 Lender Fees can and will vary widely from lender to lender.

The First concept to understand is that your interest rate and your lender fees are directly related to each other. They work directly opposite of each other. For example, the lower the rate the higher the lender fees, or vice versa. You can go to either extreme or pick a happy medium.

In order to compare lenders you must make sure that you are comparing estimates that were prepared the same day. You must also make sure that you are comparing estimates with the same interest rate.

Assuming you have estimates from the same date at the same rate, now add up all of the lender fees from lines 801-900 and compare the totals. Whichever estimate has the lower number should be the better loan.

From here you should always get a Rate lock Confirmation With Expiration Date Acompanied with a Good Faith Estimate of the Fees from your lender.

Express to your loan officer that if you get to closing and the lender fees are different from this estimate that you will not proceed with the closing under any circumstances. 

Armed with the tips above your Florida mortgage shopping experience should allow you to get the very best  mortgage rate for your Florida Residence.

Providing The Best Mortgage Rates Available To The Following Areas of Florida

Arcadia	Boca Raton	Boynton Beach	Bradenton
Brandon	Cape Coral	Clearwater	Clewiston
Crestview	Daytona Beach	Deerfield Beach	DeLand
Delray Beach	Deltona	Destin	Englewood
Fort Lauderdale	Fort Meyers	Fort Pierce	Fort Walton Beach
Gainesville	Hollywood	Homosassa Springs	Jacksonville
Key West	Kissimmee	Lake City	Lakeland
Lynn Haven	Marathon	Marco Island	Melbourne
Miami	Miami Beach	Naples	North Fort Myers
North Miami Beach	Ocala	Okeechobee	Orlando
Ormond Beach	Osprey	Palatka	Palm Bay
Palm Coast	Panama City	Pensacola	Pompano Beach
Port St. Lucie	Punta Gorda	Saint Augustine	Santa Rosa County
Sarasota	Sebastian	Sebring	Spring Hill
St. Petersburg	Tallahassee	Tampa	The Villages County
Titusville	Venice	Vero Beach	Wauchula
West Chapel	West Palm Beach	Winter Park

Advertised Rates are based on purchase/refinance, 80% loan to value, and location estimates made for a single family, primary residence. They are for consumers with a credit rating of 740 or higher and are valid for the date shown, but may change without notice. Rate, terms, pre-paid finance charges, and APR may vary based on factors such as creditworthiness of the applicant(s), income verification of the applicant(s), type of property being financed, loan amount, and geographic location of the property.