Some real estate topics have more application to a home seller and some more application to home buyers. We've tried to cover the range in order to help you with the home buying or home selling experience and to make better, more confident decisions in the process. Often, a home seller will also shortly be a home buyer or, vice versa, so it's good to understand the considerations that both buyers and sellers face.
1. Why does Xtra Realty offer cash back to home buyers and home sellers and how is it done? Our cash back policy is the result of a few things. They all revolve around the "real estate commission." Historically, the real estate commission in a residential sale has been a pretty standard 6% that the seller is required to pay. In fact, 6% became so standard that some realtors are even offended by the idea of anything less. In other words, 6% became even more than a standard. It became an "entitlement." We don't see it that way. Actually, quite the opposite. A 6% commission is often disproportionate to the amount of work required to accomplish a real estate transaction. In addition, there is no large amount of time, cost, education or expense associated with obtaining a license to sell real estate. Under our plan you, as a seller or buyer we represent, are getting cash back from Xtra Realty from our portion of that 6% real estate commission. Or, to put it simply, we are reducing our own income to put more money in your pocket. See our Cash Back Policy. We keep overhead expenses low, minimize print advertising and rely on the 2 most powerful engines for marketing and selling residential property - the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) and a meaningful online presence (you being on this site is part of the proof of that).
2. What are the main considerations and general order of events in the home buying process? Once a home buyer identifies a home they'd like to buy, the buyer's real estate agent should have provided comparable sales information of surrounding and similar homes in order to establish a sense of the home's market value. Once that value is determined, the buyer makes a contract offer (generally on a Florida Realtor standard contract form). The contract offer typically gives the Seller a day or two to accept or reject the offer. After a period of negotiation and once the Seller accepts the offer, there is a contract. Within a few days of contract the buyer typically provides a check for a few thousand dollars as a good faith escrow deposit toward the contract. The deposit is held by an escrow agent pending the sale. Following contract, the buyer is now obligated to purchase the home generally except for three common contract contingencies - 1) a home inspection that is acceptable to the buyer; 2) the buyer's ability to obtain a loan; and 3) a formal appraisal of the home that is at least the value of the contract offer. The inspection typically must be performed within the first 10-15 days following contract. If the buyer is financing the home, loan application should be made to a bank or mortage brokerage firm almost immediately. The typically agreed financing terms in most contracts do not give the buyer more that 45 to 60 days to obtain a loan so it's important to start immediately. In Palm Beach County, the seller typically selects the Title Company or attorney who will act as the title agent in the transaction. The title agent is responsible to gather all the required documents (survey, HOA buyer approval, HOA estoppel letter establishing that there are no outstanding HOA fees, home owner's insurance) for "the closing" of the transaction and to prepare the deed. If there is a loan involved the lender will generally require of the buyer: a credit check, bank statement, 2 years' tax returns, proof of employment and pay stubs or 1099's if self-employed. The lender wants this documentation to establish buyer income, buyer monthly debt, and to determine a buyer "debt to income ratio" with which the proposed loan must conform. Generally a buyer's debt (including the debt related to the proposed home loan) cannot exceed approximately 45% of the buyer's gross income. Once the buyer is approved for the loan and given a "clear to close" from the lender or mortgage broker, the closing takes place.
3. What to expect when you decide to sell your home. In a residential real estate transaction the Seller lists his or her home with a real estate agent and agrees to pay the real estate agent a commission upon completion of the sale. The process starts with the Seller signing a Listing Agreement with a real estate agent to sell the Sellers' home at a specified price and to pay the real estate agent a specified commission upon completing a sale. The proposed commission may be 6% as noted above or, at best, maybe 5% with the idea that the real estate agent will split the 5% comission 50/50 with the selling agent (the real estate agent representing the buyer). In this case, each agent would earn a 2.5% commission at sale. The commission split is derived from the cooperative arrangement among real estate agents that is formalized through the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS). By the terms of the Listing Agreement, the Seller is not required to sell unless his or her real estate agent secures a buyer that is willing to pay the full list price. The Listing Agreement will also specify a term (period of time) for which the Seller has agreed to give the real estate agent the exclusive opportunity to sell the home. This period of time (term of the Listing Agreement) is typically not less than 6 months, but can also be for as long as one year. During this time, the Seller is obligated to the real estate agent so that only that agent can sell their home and earn a commission in the process.
4. How does Xtra Realty better the home-selling experience for the Seller? Xtra Realty's plan is to save you money in the process of selling your home. We do this by recognizing what the home-selling process really entails. The sale of at least 90% of all homes sold today is directly attributable to simply listing the home for sale in the MLS. This is a FACT. The MLS is the tool that all real estate agents and buyers rely upon for their information about homes that are available on the market. And the big, aggregated real estate websites, such as Realtor.com, Trulia, and Zillow, leverage the power of this MLS information by making it directly available to the public online. As a result, much of the heavy lifting in the sale process is now being done for us by the major exposure that an MLS listing gives your home. For home sellers, we recognize this fact along with one other practical consideration. It takes much less of our time to list and sell a home than it does to represent a buyer and often spend days taking the buyer around to view countless homes in the target market. What we save in time and marketing expense, we can pass on to you, as a home seller, in the form of much reduced commissions. In fact, in most cases, we'll save you at least 2% on the sale of your home. For a $400,000 home, that translates to $8,000 more in your pocket. See our sliding commission scale. The greater the value of your home, the more we will save you.
5. As a buyer do I need a mortgage pre-approval before finding a home? A mortgage pre-approval is not an absolute requirement, but it's something that every buyer should obtain before proceeding to look for a home. First, a thorough mortgage pre-approval will alert you to possible issues with respect to getting a loan. You may find an issue on your credit report. You may learn that, due to lending requirments and your income and debt history, you can't afford as much home as you may have believed. In short, the mortgage pre-approval sends you, as a buyer, out looking for a home with a lot more confidence and assurance of what you can afford and will be able to buy. You're armed and ready.
6. What types of loans are available to home buyers currently? The residential loan market constantly changes so what was true today, may not be the case tomorrow. Since the great recession, home lending has returned to a more normal profile so, if you're the market for a home and have a decent financial history, there should be a loan type for you. The most standard loan is the 80-20 loan, meaning that the buyer is expected to make a down payment equal to 20% of the home purchase price with the lender financing the other 80% of value. There are variations of this where the lender, at the same time, will do a 10% second loan in order to reduce the down payment to 10% of the purchase. However, once the total loan amount exceeds 80% of the home value (as determined by appraisal) - this is referred to as "LTV" or loan to value - the borrower is also required to pay "mortgage insurance" insuring against default on the loan. Mortgage insurance can be in the range of a few hundred additional dollars per month. FHA loans and VA loans (veterans only) require very little money down, but also require mortgage insurance. FHA also generally has less stringent requirements with respect to acceptable credit scores. So, if your credit score does not qualify you for the more traditional loan, you may still qualify for FHA.
7. How important is my credit score with respect to getting a loan? The answer is very important. Generally a credit score of 720 or better will qualify a buyer for the best mortgage rates available. Your credit score not only helps you to qualify for a loan, but it also determines the interest rate you will receive on the loan. In general, the better your score, the lower the interest rate you will receive. Lenders set up brackets based on credit score so you can find yourself a mere one point away from a significantly better interest rate. The good news is that there are ways to manipulate your credit score. For example, it's highly advisable, and entirely within your control, to keep your credit card usage at no more than 25% of your available card balance. Restrained credit card usage is a real point gainer when it comes to credit scoring. If you had an old debt that has been in collection status, that debt can also be paid and immediately following payment your mortgage broker can perform a "rapid rescore" to improve your credit score overnight. The main point is that credit score is something that deserves your attention.
8. Is now a good time to sell my home and where do I set the price? Many Realtors will tell you that there's no bad time to buy or sell a home, but to our thinking, timing does matter. It's also very important to recognize that, when it comes to residential real estate, we shouldn't be talking about "the market" in general. We need to be talking specifically about your home and your neighborhood, because the market forces in residential real estate can really be that sensitive to locality. What's happening in one neighborhood may not be reflective of what's happening in another. Residential real estate is intensely local and we treat it that way. It's a reason why this website is set up by individual community so that the focus is where it should be - on thinking local. It's important to understand the specifics of each neighborhood and what's happening with homes sales and home prices within that neighborhood. The price for your own home, as long as we're realistic about it, will be based on comparable home sales in your neighborhood, the added visual appeal that can be created in your home, and some good logical reasoning applied to the numbers that we have to work with. It's a numbers game and we think that we've been pretty good at it. Any home sells in any market as long as it's priced right and marketed represented well.
9. What can I do to positively affect the perceived value of my home? There are literally hundreds of articles on this topic mostly saying the same common sense things. Have you made the best of your home's curb appeal? Not by spending a ton of money, but by doing the little, less costly things that improve appearance. Maybe your home, sidewalks, driveway would benefit from an inexpensive pressure washing. A few flowers, plants and fresh mulch also go a long way toward improving appearance. Keep the lawn and hedges nicely maintained. If you have rust stains from sprinklers hitting the house there are products from the hardware store that can work wonders. In the interior, you can do two things that cost literally nothing. Bring clutter to an absolute minimum. Be aggressive about it. If in doubt throw it out, or at least store the item away somewhere. Minimize the big displays of family photographs. Potential buyers psychologically need to see the home as their own. Seeing your family's faces ruins the illusion - unless your family is comprised of all model quality beauties and you believe the buyer will greatly aspire to live in the home simply because you've lived there. Be aware of odors in your home. It's not just pet odors that can be a turn off for some people. Even smelling grandma's lilac water can subconsciously trigger the wrong signals in some would be buyers. Fix the little things that are obviously broken. It doesn't take much money for these minor repairs and removing these little imperfections from the home sends a better message about how the house was maintained and cared for. Before you spend any significant money making changes or improvements to your home in preparation to sell, discuss the modifications with a knowledgeable real estate professional. They can help you make the right decision of whether or not to spend that additional money for a better return on the sale price of your home.
10. How are appraisals done and how can they possibly affect my real estate transaction? Let's start by understanding one important thing. An appraisal is something we have to work with, for getting loans, for meeting contract contingencies, etc., but appraisals are not the ultimate determination of a home's value. Think in terms of a range of value for your home (probably a 5% to 10% range) and somewhere in that range is the home's value. We can be in the low range or in the high range with neither figure being "wrong." An appraisal is not a price tag. Appraisals are performed by qualified, certified appraisers, by comparing the appraised home (the subject) to generally at least three local similar homes (the comparable homes). In general, the closer the comparable is to the subject the better (if you live in a particular development, ideally the comps should be coming from within your own development). Also, size matters. You generally don't compare a 2,500 SF comparable to a 4,000 SF subject home. All other things being equal, an extra bedroom can get you $5,000 or more in the appraised value. A pool can be worth as much as $15,000 in value, and an extra bathroom - $7,000. It's common sense, but it's also somewhat subjective. The subject home's value is determined by comparison and adjustments in price to the comparables. If the comparable home has a pool and the subject home does not, it would result in the value of the comparable's price being reduced by $15,000 to make it equivalent to the subject by taking away the value of the pool. Conversely, if the subject home has a pool, but the comparable does not, the appraiser would increase the value of the comparable by $15,000 to make an apples to apples comparison with the subject home. The values obtained by making these value adjustments to the comparables are then averaged to obtain an estimate of value for the subject home. It's important to pay attention to the details of an appraisal. Everybody makes mistakes, including appraisers. We've had multiple instances where we've been able to influence and change appraised values based on getting the facts right and making valid comparisons. An appraisal can determine the amount of a loan and, in the worst case, whether a transaction can even move forward or be cancelled. It pays to understand the mechanics behind the valuation.
11. What are my objectives in buying a home? There are, in general, two competing schools of thought on this. One says that getting a good value is the most important thing. After all, a home, for most families is their biggest investment. The other school of thought says that a "home" and feeling that you're in the right place with family and for schools is important, even more important than the financial or investment aspects in the home. Our belief is that you can have and should stand to achieve both of these objectives. We tend strongly toward the idea that a home should, first and foremost, be a good investment for you (defined by variables that we can discuss and quantify), but that home should also satisfy your emotional needs and those of your family. It should feel like home. You shouldn't have to choose between one school of thought or the other in your home choice. We can greatly help with that.
12. Should I seek a home loan from a bank or go the route of a mortgage broker? We suggest that, as a potential home buyer, you pursue both. Check with your bank or a competing bank on their home loan specifics, but also find a good mortgage broker. The advantage of the broker is that they have a much broader selection of loan types with which to work. You may not realize it, but there are many types of home loan products available and many people need this flexibility to find the loan that best fits their specific circumstances. Banks can be limited by fewer loan products and more restrictive guidelines for making a loan. By checking with at least one bank and one broker you can make a better determination of what's best for you.
1. Why does Xtra Realty offer cash back to home buyers and home sellers and how is it done? Our cash back policy is the result of a few things. They all revolve around the "real estate commission." Historically, the real estate commission in a residential sale has been a pretty standard 6% that the seller is required to pay. In fact, 6% became so standard that some realtors are even offended by the idea of anything less. In other words, 6% became even more than a standard. It became an "entitlement." We don't see it that way. Actually, quite the opposite. A 6% commission is often disproportionate to the amount of work required to accomplish a real estate transaction. In addition, there is no large amount of time, cost, education or expense associated with obtaining a license to sell real estate. Under our plan you, as a seller or buyer we represent, are getting cash back from Xtra Realty from our portion of that 6% real estate commission. Or, to put it simply, we are reducing our own income to put more money in your pocket. See our Cash Back Policy. We keep overhead expenses low, minimize print advertising and rely on the 2 most powerful engines for marketing and selling residential property - the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) and a meaningful online presence (you being on this site is part of the proof of that).
2. What are the main considerations and general order of events in the home buying process? Once a home buyer identifies a home they'd like to buy, the buyer's real estate agent should have provided comparable sales information of surrounding and similar homes in order to establish a sense of the home's market value. Once that value is determined, the buyer makes a contract offer (generally on a Florida Realtor standard contract form). The contract offer typically gives the Seller a day or two to accept or reject the offer. After a period of negotiation and once the Seller accepts the offer, there is a contract. Within a few days of contract the buyer typically provides a check for a few thousand dollars as a good faith escrow deposit toward the contract. The deposit is held by an escrow agent pending the sale. Following contract, the buyer is now obligated to purchase the home generally except for three common contract contingencies - 1) a home inspection that is acceptable to the buyer; 2) the buyer's ability to obtain a loan; and 3) a formal appraisal of the home that is at least the value of the contract offer. The inspection typically must be performed within the first 10-15 days following contract. If the buyer is financing the home, loan application should be made to a bank or mortage brokerage firm almost immediately. The typically agreed financing terms in most contracts do not give the buyer more that 45 to 60 days to obtain a loan so it's important to start immediately. In Palm Beach County, the seller typically selects the Title Company or attorney who will act as the title agent in the transaction. The title agent is responsible to gather all the required documents (survey, HOA buyer approval, HOA estoppel letter establishing that there are no outstanding HOA fees, home owner's insurance) for "the closing" of the transaction and to prepare the deed. If there is a loan involved the lender will generally require of the buyer: a credit check, bank statement, 2 years' tax returns, proof of employment and pay stubs or 1099's if self-employed. The lender wants this documentation to establish buyer income, buyer monthly debt, and to determine a buyer "debt to income ratio" with which the proposed loan must conform. Generally a buyer's debt (including the debt related to the proposed home loan) cannot exceed approximately 45% of the buyer's gross income. Once the buyer is approved for the loan and given a "clear to close" from the lender or mortgage broker, the closing takes place.
3. What to expect when you decide to sell your home. In a residential real estate transaction the Seller lists his or her home with a real estate agent and agrees to pay the real estate agent a commission upon completion of the sale. The process starts with the Seller signing a Listing Agreement with a real estate agent to sell the Sellers' home at a specified price and to pay the real estate agent a specified commission upon completing a sale. The proposed commission may be 6% as noted above or, at best, maybe 5% with the idea that the real estate agent will split the 5% comission 50/50 with the selling agent (the real estate agent representing the buyer). In this case, each agent would earn a 2.5% commission at sale. The commission split is derived from the cooperative arrangement among real estate agents that is formalized through the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS). By the terms of the Listing Agreement, the Seller is not required to sell unless his or her real estate agent secures a buyer that is willing to pay the full list price. The Listing Agreement will also specify a term (period of time) for which the Seller has agreed to give the real estate agent the exclusive opportunity to sell the home. This period of time (term of the Listing Agreement) is typically not less than 6 months, but can also be for as long as one year. During this time, the Seller is obligated to the real estate agent so that only that agent can sell their home and earn a commission in the process.
4. How does Xtra Realty better the home-selling experience for the Seller? Xtra Realty's plan is to save you money in the process of selling your home. We do this by recognizing what the home-selling process really entails. The sale of at least 90% of all homes sold today is directly attributable to simply listing the home for sale in the MLS. This is a FACT. The MLS is the tool that all real estate agents and buyers rely upon for their information about homes that are available on the market. And the big, aggregated real estate websites, such as Realtor.com, Trulia, and Zillow, leverage the power of this MLS information by making it directly available to the public online. As a result, much of the heavy lifting in the sale process is now being done for us by the major exposure that an MLS listing gives your home. For home sellers, we recognize this fact along with one other practical consideration. It takes much less of our time to list and sell a home than it does to represent a buyer and often spend days taking the buyer around to view countless homes in the target market. What we save in time and marketing expense, we can pass on to you, as a home seller, in the form of much reduced commissions. In fact, in most cases, we'll save you at least 2% on the sale of your home. For a $400,000 home, that translates to $8,000 more in your pocket. See our sliding commission scale. The greater the value of your home, the more we will save you.
5. As a buyer do I need a mortgage pre-approval before finding a home? A mortgage pre-approval is not an absolute requirement, but it's something that every buyer should obtain before proceeding to look for a home. First, a thorough mortgage pre-approval will alert you to possible issues with respect to getting a loan. You may find an issue on your credit report. You may learn that, due to lending requirments and your income and debt history, you can't afford as much home as you may have believed. In short, the mortgage pre-approval sends you, as a buyer, out looking for a home with a lot more confidence and assurance of what you can afford and will be able to buy. You're armed and ready.
6. What types of loans are available to home buyers currently? The residential loan market constantly changes so what was true today, may not be the case tomorrow. Since the great recession, home lending has returned to a more normal profile so, if you're the market for a home and have a decent financial history, there should be a loan type for you. The most standard loan is the 80-20 loan, meaning that the buyer is expected to make a down payment equal to 20% of the home purchase price with the lender financing the other 80% of value. There are variations of this where the lender, at the same time, will do a 10% second loan in order to reduce the down payment to 10% of the purchase. However, once the total loan amount exceeds 80% of the home value (as determined by appraisal) - this is referred to as "LTV" or loan to value - the borrower is also required to pay "mortgage insurance" insuring against default on the loan. Mortgage insurance can be in the range of a few hundred additional dollars per month. FHA loans and VA loans (veterans only) require very little money down, but also require mortgage insurance. FHA also generally has less stringent requirements with respect to acceptable credit scores. So, if your credit score does not qualify you for the more traditional loan, you may still qualify for FHA.
7. How important is my credit score with respect to getting a loan? The answer is very important. Generally a credit score of 720 or better will qualify a buyer for the best mortgage rates available. Your credit score not only helps you to qualify for a loan, but it also determines the interest rate you will receive on the loan. In general, the better your score, the lower the interest rate you will receive. Lenders set up brackets based on credit score so you can find yourself a mere one point away from a significantly better interest rate. The good news is that there are ways to manipulate your credit score. For example, it's highly advisable, and entirely within your control, to keep your credit card usage at no more than 25% of your available card balance. Restrained credit card usage is a real point gainer when it comes to credit scoring. If you had an old debt that has been in collection status, that debt can also be paid and immediately following payment your mortgage broker can perform a "rapid rescore" to improve your credit score overnight. The main point is that credit score is something that deserves your attention.
8. Is now a good time to sell my home and where do I set the price? Many Realtors will tell you that there's no bad time to buy or sell a home, but to our thinking, timing does matter. It's also very important to recognize that, when it comes to residential real estate, we shouldn't be talking about "the market" in general. We need to be talking specifically about your home and your neighborhood, because the market forces in residential real estate can really be that sensitive to locality. What's happening in one neighborhood may not be reflective of what's happening in another. Residential real estate is intensely local and we treat it that way. It's a reason why this website is set up by individual community so that the focus is where it should be - on thinking local. It's important to understand the specifics of each neighborhood and what's happening with homes sales and home prices within that neighborhood. The price for your own home, as long as we're realistic about it, will be based on comparable home sales in your neighborhood, the added visual appeal that can be created in your home, and some good logical reasoning applied to the numbers that we have to work with. It's a numbers game and we think that we've been pretty good at it. Any home sells in any market as long as it's priced right and marketed represented well.
9. What can I do to positively affect the perceived value of my home? There are literally hundreds of articles on this topic mostly saying the same common sense things. Have you made the best of your home's curb appeal? Not by spending a ton of money, but by doing the little, less costly things that improve appearance. Maybe your home, sidewalks, driveway would benefit from an inexpensive pressure washing. A few flowers, plants and fresh mulch also go a long way toward improving appearance. Keep the lawn and hedges nicely maintained. If you have rust stains from sprinklers hitting the house there are products from the hardware store that can work wonders. In the interior, you can do two things that cost literally nothing. Bring clutter to an absolute minimum. Be aggressive about it. If in doubt throw it out, or at least store the item away somewhere. Minimize the big displays of family photographs. Potential buyers psychologically need to see the home as their own. Seeing your family's faces ruins the illusion - unless your family is comprised of all model quality beauties and you believe the buyer will greatly aspire to live in the home simply because you've lived there. Be aware of odors in your home. It's not just pet odors that can be a turn off for some people. Even smelling grandma's lilac water can subconsciously trigger the wrong signals in some would be buyers. Fix the little things that are obviously broken. It doesn't take much money for these minor repairs and removing these little imperfections from the home sends a better message about how the house was maintained and cared for. Before you spend any significant money making changes or improvements to your home in preparation to sell, discuss the modifications with a knowledgeable real estate professional. They can help you make the right decision of whether or not to spend that additional money for a better return on the sale price of your home.
10. How are appraisals done and how can they possibly affect my real estate transaction? Let's start by understanding one important thing. An appraisal is something we have to work with, for getting loans, for meeting contract contingencies, etc., but appraisals are not the ultimate determination of a home's value. Think in terms of a range of value for your home (probably a 5% to 10% range) and somewhere in that range is the home's value. We can be in the low range or in the high range with neither figure being "wrong." An appraisal is not a price tag. Appraisals are performed by qualified, certified appraisers, by comparing the appraised home (the subject) to generally at least three local similar homes (the comparable homes). In general, the closer the comparable is to the subject the better (if you live in a particular development, ideally the comps should be coming from within your own development). Also, size matters. You generally don't compare a 2,500 SF comparable to a 4,000 SF subject home. All other things being equal, an extra bedroom can get you $5,000 or more in the appraised value. A pool can be worth as much as $15,000 in value, and an extra bathroom - $7,000. It's common sense, but it's also somewhat subjective. The subject home's value is determined by comparison and adjustments in price to the comparables. If the comparable home has a pool and the subject home does not, it would result in the value of the comparable's price being reduced by $15,000 to make it equivalent to the subject by taking away the value of the pool. Conversely, if the subject home has a pool, but the comparable does not, the appraiser would increase the value of the comparable by $15,000 to make an apples to apples comparison with the subject home. The values obtained by making these value adjustments to the comparables are then averaged to obtain an estimate of value for the subject home. It's important to pay attention to the details of an appraisal. Everybody makes mistakes, including appraisers. We've had multiple instances where we've been able to influence and change appraised values based on getting the facts right and making valid comparisons. An appraisal can determine the amount of a loan and, in the worst case, whether a transaction can even move forward or be cancelled. It pays to understand the mechanics behind the valuation.
11. What are my objectives in buying a home? There are, in general, two competing schools of thought on this. One says that getting a good value is the most important thing. After all, a home, for most families is their biggest investment. The other school of thought says that a "home" and feeling that you're in the right place with family and for schools is important, even more important than the financial or investment aspects in the home. Our belief is that you can have and should stand to achieve both of these objectives. We tend strongly toward the idea that a home should, first and foremost, be a good investment for you (defined by variables that we can discuss and quantify), but that home should also satisfy your emotional needs and those of your family. It should feel like home. You shouldn't have to choose between one school of thought or the other in your home choice. We can greatly help with that.
12. Should I seek a home loan from a bank or go the route of a mortgage broker? We suggest that, as a potential home buyer, you pursue both. Check with your bank or a competing bank on their home loan specifics, but also find a good mortgage broker. The advantage of the broker is that they have a much broader selection of loan types with which to work. You may not realize it, but there are many types of home loan products available and many people need this flexibility to find the loan that best fits their specific circumstances. Banks can be limited by fewer loan products and more restrictive guidelines for making a loan. By checking with at least one bank and one broker you can make a better determination of what's best for you.