Do-It-Yourself

Fifty years ago almost no one did home improvements himself.   They called a contractor.   But in the 1950’s, suppliers to the housing industry started making things that a homeowner could install himself.   You could install a new bathroom faucet yourself instead of calling a plumber.   People who were reasonably handy could save a lot of money.   Of course, today the best testimony to the success of the do-it-yourself movement has to be Home Depot. Do-it-yourself is here to stay.

The Internet has had a similar effect on many aspects of our life.   I use it for research on practically everything now.   Tons of information are available on the web that previously was available only by going through some intermediary.   The real estate industry’s Multiple Listing Service is a great example of that. You and all other potential homebuyers now have access to information about every home in America that is listed for sale.

Many real estate agents feared for their jobs when this potential was first explored.   They felt that if this information was available to consumers, no one would come to them.   Of course, as it turned out, they did not lose their jobs.   In fact, I think that this development has actually improved the status of the real estate agent because it emphasizes what the agent really brings to the table: knowledge and experience. You can’t get those on the web, and it turns out that those are really far more important factors than that information that the agents were so desperate to protect.

You are probably thinking that the same story could be told about investing too.   Billions of dollars were lost by people who tried do-it-yourself investing. Most of them have now figured out that that investment professional really was providing something of real value.

This is also true of the mortgage business. There are something like 50,000 mortgage websites where you can find out about mortgage rates. You can have access to much of the rate information that mortgage professionals have.   But the amount of information is staggering.   One database I know of contains over 100,000 entries, and it changes daily.   How in the world does anyone sift though 100,000 pieces of data in a meaningful way?  

Again we find that the important thing is not the rate information and the availability of all of those programs. The key issue is how to figure out which of those is best for you. And that’s a job that a mortgage professional can do with you better than you can do it yourself.   It involves counseling, what a good professional does best.

The process starts out with a discussion about goals. Once they have been established, you can determine which of all those programs is most suitable for helping you meet those goals.   Then you can turn to an analysis of which lender offers the best rate on that program.   Finally, you can analyze which of the dozen rate versus fee options are most appropriate for you.

Does this pay off?   I can guarantee that it does. In most cases, do-it-yourself mortgage shoppers may have the information, but they simply do not know how to go through the process.   Bluntly, they make mistakes and these mistakes are NEVER ones that save them money.   They are all ones that cost more money.  

In my practice, we routinely save people $10,000 compared with what they would have done as do-it-yourself mortgage shoppers. I think that you can find a professional in your state who can provide similar assistance to you with similar results.

Go for it!