When you have found the home that you want and are ready to secure a home loan, make sure that before sign the final docs, you compare loans. Your loan is negotiable and with good preparation you can get the terms and rates you want.

To begin, you should first shop for loans with different lenders. These could be commercial banks, thrift institutions, credit unions or mortgage companies. Each bank, credit union or thrift will give you their rate. A mortgage broker represents many lenders so they can provide you with several quotes to compare. Be aware that a mortgage broker is not obligated to find you the best rate, so you still have to shop around and compare for yourself. You should consider contacting more than one broker. When you work with a mortgage broker, they are going to get paid a fee for their service, which may be separate from the lender, so be sure to ask your broker how they will be compensated.

In order to compare home loan quotes, you’ll need to get the following information from each lender.

Rates –Find out if the rates quoted are the lowest for that day or week. Find out if the rate is fixed or adjustable. Fixed means you pay the same amount each month for the lifetime of the loan. An adjustable loan means that your monthly payment will change, up or down with interest rates. Also find out about the APR (annual percentage rate.) This will include broker fees, points and certain other charges that may be required to pay, expressed as a yearly rate.

Points – Are fees paid to the lender and/or broker.

Fees – These are additional expenses for loan origination, transaction, settlement and closing costs. Ask for an estimate of additional fees.

Down Payment – find out how much each lender will require as a down payment. This could range from 20% down to as little as 5%.

Once you have your comparisons, you are in a very strong position to negotiate. Since a home purchase will be one of the largest purchases you will ever make, it makes good sense to compare home loans before you make your final decision. Then when you do decide to move ahead with a lender, you will feel confident that you, shopped, compared and negotiated your way to a very good deal!