Mortgage Refinance - Anybody Use Ditech.Com? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Ken300D · #1 01-18-2004, 11:55 AM

I've let my mortgage refinancing task go long enough, and I think its time to get it done before rates climb back up.

I'm giving some consideration to www.ditech.com (a division of GMAC Mortgage) for several reasons - including their rates and ease of application.

Anybody here use ditech to refinance and have anything to share about the experience?

Ken300D

#2 01-18-2004, 01:54 PM

I checked them out right after I purchased my current house. I was having trouble selling the old one, and was considering combining the debts as I had alot of "hidden" equity in the new property.

Ditech was competitive with the industry on their rates. On a customer service level, they seemed very interested in responding to issues and questions as quickly as possible. The sole reason why I did not end up a customer of them was the condition of the house I bought was pulling down the appraisal too much from the acutal worth of the property. Because of this, the amount requested was higher than they were willing at the time to loan for my needs. We parted on good graces. I only wish that they would get rid of their dorky advertisements.

I will tell you one mortage comapny to stay away from. That is Citimortage. It took them over two MONTHS to work my refinance, AND they dropped over $700 in unplanned costs in my lap for a land survey that they should have already had on file. I also had to ride them CONSTANTLY to keep my paperwork in process. The sole reason why I put up with this was the hope that staying within the same mortage company would have simplified my process.

Ken300D · #3 01-18-2004, 04:34 PM

The mortgage on my first house was with Citicorp. One of the big pleasures of selling that house was getting rid of them.

I think they have thrown away a lot of money in Brazil and are taking it out on the US consumer.

I would like the idea of being back with GMAC again - had no problems with them on a previous car loan.

Currently my mortgage is with a small local bank. The big thing I have going with them is an agreement of no escrow. I pay my own real estate taxes and my own insurance. That has been quite nice and I'll miss that on refinancing.

But with the refinancing I'll save a ton. I hate to admit I'm still on 8-1/8%.

Ken300D

Botnst · #4 01-18-2004, 08:36 PM

My hard-fought, closely negotiated mortgage was sold by my local bank to Chase. Pi$$ed me off so bad that I moved my accounts. If I'd wanted a national group to deal with I'd have sought'em out.

To give Chase its due, I've had no problem with them and their online service is convenient.

Botnst

Larry Delor · #5 01-18-2004, 10:09 PM

I second that about Chase.

Botnst · #6 01-18-2004, 10:42 PM

Also, Chase refinanced my mortgage with a minimum of pain.

Even so, I'd still rather deal locally.

Botnst

G-Benz · #7 01-19-2004, 11:33 AM

Chase bought my refinance package a couple of years ago as well. No qualms.

Mortgage brokers will always be cheaper than banks, and they are willing to appraise higher and have less closing cost baggage than banks. The process is usually faster too.

What DOES happen, is that they sell the loan almost immediately, and you have no control over who the final bidder is...Citicorp, Chase, or Wells-Fargo...

placo1 · #8 01-20-2004, 11:15 AM

I recently refied my house and used www.bankrate.com Basically you input all your information on their webpage and they search for local lenders who offer the best rates. They place these lendors on a list showing their cost, points, rates and any other relevent information. You choose which option is best and the lendor contacts you the same day. They put together a good faith estimate and actually stick to the numbers.

It was by far the BEST lending experience I've ever had. Escrow was a very smooth 30 Days, NO ONE could match their rates, excellent service from the lender and very low fees. I even had another lendor say that they thought if was too good to be true.

This was the first lending experience I've had where terms weren't changed at the very last minute. I will definitely use them again.

Lebenz · #9 01-20-2004, 11:21 AM

FWIW, I’ve used Bankrate to find a broker 2x. The first time was okay, but not great. The 2nd was an absolute nightmare. No matter what, go with a well known company....

Edit: This doesn't imply that Bankrate itself is at fault, only some of the folks that list through them....

blackmercedes · #10 01-20-2004, 04:37 PM

I'm curious about the US mortgage market. Is it very competitive? How difficult is it to qualify for a mortgage and what percentage of downpayment do you require?

In Canada, we have had more competition entering the market in the last few years, but rates are pretty much the same unless you have some serious leverage with your institution. Thanks to short term locked-in periods, almost everyone is shopping at 1-5 year intervals.

I was going to use a mortgage broker this time (we're doing ours now) but my own bank came riding in with a rate that was so far below everyone else's it was stupid to think about switching.

What are interest rates like in the US right now? Our five year terms are generally going for about 5.2% or so. We're currently re-upping at 3.49%, which is the lowest I have ever seen. We took a variable rate mortgage, but we're at the prime lending rate minus 1.01%. Rates have to sky-rocket before I'm on the wrong end of the deal, and I'm free to lock in at any time for up to 10 years, but would have to take the prevailing rate.

Our bank covered all the costs (legal etc.) of renewing the mortgage. They coveral all the intial costs five years ago when we took out the mortgage originally. We paid the legal costs for the actual purchase of the house and the title, but paid no fees for the mortgage.

As to qualifying in Canada, conventional mortgages are quite difficult for anyone not upper-middle class to obtain. Your average Edmonton family income is about $33,000, which means that you can qualify for a $122,000 mortgage, but require 25% down. Since an average detached home is about $180,000, it's hard for the "average" family to afford the "average" home. We cannot tax deduct our mortgage interest, which makes a huge difference.

Kuan · #11 01-21-2004, 06:50 AM

Mortgage rates here are at an all time low. Conventional fixed rates with 20% down are something like 5.28%. For those without the 20% down there are lots of creative financing options. FHA loans for first time buyers require only 3% down but limit the amount you can borrow. Some lenders will loan you 95% but require you to get mortgage insurance. There are other forms of financing too like 80-15-5 where the bank issues two mortgages at 80 and 15 percent of the value of the home. You come up with the 5%. All mortgage interest is deductible but of course only if you itemize. If the interest is lesser than the standard deduction then you get no benefit at all.

Our home loan was through the credit union. It required two official trips. One to the credit union and one at closing. Absolutely painless.

Ken300D · #12 01-23-2004, 05:22 PM

In watching their posted interest rates for some time now, I've noticed that Ditech "games" their rates a lot. They'll try it high for a little while and then lower it back.

It's always a little bit higher for a weekend or holiday, when more people might have time to apply for financing.

Wednesdays and Thursdays seem lowest.

Ken300D

Rick Miley · #13 01-23-2004, 11:58 PM

A friend of mine is a realtor in D.C. and he told me a month or so ago never to go near Ditech. Wish I could remember details, but it was something about them never being satisfied with the paperwork and driving everyone involved crazy. We weren't even on the subject, but he just blurted out "If you ever refinance, stay away from Ditech!"