PenFed has a deal with 5/5 ARM 30yr mortgage at around 3% where they "cover" the closing costs. I'm saying "cover" as I'm sure they are baking it into the interest rate which may have been 2.9% if it had not been for them paying closing costs.

We got this mortgage a few years back, with the intention of paying extra the first five years in order to reduce risk down the road should the interest rate go up at 6th year. The interest rate increase is capped at 2%.

No it doesn't. I've had the seller split it, and am kind of tired of the "this market is so insanely hot you need to immediate hand over all your money and waive all your rights" posters. When a market gets hot, sellers primarily take advantage by increasing asking price.

Anonymous wrote:OP, you could also ask the seller to pay them.

you are still paying for it.
Your offer has to cover the cost for them to even consider you

I line to get a few good faith estimates and put the line items from each of them in a separate spreadsheet. Then I push each lender to get to the lowest number line item by line item. Invariably, the cheapest GFE is still higher than the others for a few categories.

Challenge all junk fees, especially any tacked on between receiving the final HUD-1 and the papers actually delivered to the closing table.

That's not really happening post-2009. There are stringent rules about delivering the final HUD-1 in advance of closing and having the actual HUD-1 match it at the table.

We used a Redfin agent and got $10,000 back. Everything went smoothly...

OP, you could also ask the seller to pay them.

Anonymous wrote:If you use a Redfin agent, they refund half of the commission.

Yeah, but then you'd have to use a Redfin agent.

If you use a Redfin agent, they refund half of the commission.

Pay your homeowner's insurance yourself rather than at closing. Then you can pay with your credit card, get points, and pay it in a month. Otherwise, they roll it into closing costs.

I agree to shop around for title insurance. Look at Entitledirect.com
Try to negotiate any fees that the broker/lender tries to add on.

You can ask the sellers for their title insurance from when they purchased the home. If it was fairly recent (less than five years) some title companies give a re-issue rate on the title insurance.

You can and should shop for your own title insurance. Call around for a couple of quotes. You may get push-back from the agents involved, but it's your right. (Note: Do not forego title insurance for yourself, however).

Challenge all junk fees, especially any tacked on between receiving the final HUD-1 and the papers actually delivered to the closing table. Any "document processing fee" or "underwriter fee" or "document review fee."

Don't let your agent charge you some additional fee on top of the huge commission they're already receiving. Wise agents just eat that fee themselves if their broker insists on it, so just ask.

You may have to threaten to walk from the closing table, btw. But you can do it.

Use a credit union that is offering a special on closing cost.

I would appreciate any tips on how to save on closing costs when buying and selling the house.