Retirement & Financial Planning Report

When you take out a mortgage, you can protect yourself from unexpected and unnecessary closing costs:

* Research lenders’ fees rather than focus solely on interest rates. The lowest rates sometimes come with the highest closing costs, which can be in the thousands of dollars.

* Get the lender’s good faith estimate of closing costs as soon as possible. Some lenders will provide it before you even file an application.

* If you haven’t received a good faith estimate from a lender within three days of making an application, query the lender about fees. If you see a $500 processing fee, for example, find a lender that doesn’t charge application, processing, underwriting, or document preparation fees.

* Get the settlement statement early. Generally, lenders provide the settlement statement detailing final costs at the closing table but borrowers should ask for that information in advance. There should be no surprises at the closing table.