4 Reasons To Choose Your Loan Officer Before Your Realtor

While there is no "right" way to go about choosing a loan officer or a Realtor to work with, one thing is clear - you are going to need to choose both a Realtor and a loan officer if you are going to buy a home and finance it.

Probably the most popular method of selecting a Realtor is finding a house - either online or offline -- and calling the listing agent who has the house for sale and begin by asking "can I see this house?" While there is nothing technically wrong with the process, there is another way that you could potentially find both a loan officer and a Realtor - and it may end up saving you both time and money.

Start by calling a loan officer.

You can find loan officers anywhere - they lurk in the newspaper, on the internet, at your local bank - they are not that hard to find. Once you find a loan officer, be sure to interview at least a couple before deciding which one to work with. Choosing a loan officer is a lot like choosing any other service provider - be sure to find someone that you are comfortable working with, because the process of getting a loan takes at least a month - sometimes longer.

Here are 4 reasons to choose a loan officer before you choose a Realtor:

1. Choosing a loan officer first will help you first know how much you can spend - before you go out and start shopping for homes.
2. Your loan officer will know who the best Realtors are in the area where you want to buy your house. Believe it or not, there are good Realtors and bad ones - and your loan officer will know both.
3. Your loan officer can give you "honest" advice about the differences between different parts of town. Since you know they aren't trying to sell you in one direction or another, they can be a helpful resource of what the local "scene" is wherever you are looking to buy a house.
4. Choosing a loan officer first doesn't mean that you are required to use that loan officer - but it will give you an idea of how much you can spend. Choose a Realtor first and there is a good chance that they will have you sign a form that says you are required to use them as your buyer representative.

Are there other advantages to choosing a loan officer first?

Maybe... but these 4 are usually enough to look for a loan officer first rather than a Realtor when buying a home.

Justin McHood is a loan officer living in the Phoenix, Arizona area. You can find Justin on Facebook, Twitter, ActiveRain or LinkedIn and he is happy to answer any mortgage-related questions that you may have.

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