Are brokers allowed to lock in your rate without my permission?

Short answer: yes. Your loan officer can lock the interest rate at any time, thou it should have been discussed ahead of time. It really depends on what the company policy is. Personally I decide with my borrower when to lock the rate, and I prefer to wait until after the underwriting approval, so that I can use a 15 day lock with better pricing. But there are companies that lock the interest rate almost right after initial disclosures are signed.Keep in mind that your loan officer can change the interest rate up or down, as long as they use the pricing sheet that was available at the time of the lock. Otherwise it will cost you.

I disagree with Dana. I do not believe any broker/lender/banker should lock someone's interest rate unless they have specifically requested it. I only lock the rate on my loans after receiving written verification from the borrower that they understand the rate and fees and are choosing to lock.

It depends. It may be company policy for some places to lock it immediately or after underwriting approval. Generally, I'd say it's something that needs to be discussed with each transaction. Just by the nature of the authorization paperwork you sign, you have given consent for your loan officer to make that judgment call. After providing you with a Good Faith Estimate, most lenders are requiring an "Intent to Proceed" form. We have a specific form in our disclosures that talks about lock vs. float. Most clients prefer not to be involved in the specific timing of the rate lock, as long as the pricing is the same or better than already discussed. These last few years, many loan officers have gotten "trigger happy" with the volatility in the rates in order to protect their clients' interests I the transaction. Personally speaking, I generally don't like using 15 day locks, because it exposes the client to too much risk during waiting periods with underwriting; this really favors the lender, because of the high percentage of pull through they get with locks. I say don't get upset with your loan officer, as the lock was probably with completely good intentions to protect the pricing you already discussed; floating your rate often comes with more risk than locking. Better to have a rate you're unhappy with, than not have a rate that may never be! As already mentioned, if it is locked, then the rate itself is not unmovable, it can be adjusted on the same day's pricing with different structure. If it is a big problem, then ask about float down options or, if they are in fact a real broker, another fix might be to have them move your loan to a different lender they work with. Best of luck to you!

It depends, at the very least your broker SHOULD be discussing options with you and letting you make the decision as to whether to lock or wait. They also should be discussing options with as far as WHAT rate and points combination you might want to choose. (there are rare cases where there might not be multiple options, but if this is the case then it should be communicated as such) Please make sure that you speak with an experienced lender who will lay out various options and intelligently discuss the pros and cons of each with you. I'm happy to help with the financing or just give you advice. If you need more information, or a competing rate quote call, email or use my live support button to discuss or get in touch with me. Web Address for live chat or quote is: http://www.loansfromrob.com/quote/ Email is robertlh66@verizon.net and direct phone is 240-752-7549. Good Luck -- Rob Hanson

I generally agree with all of these responses, and let me tell you why. Your lender has sent you paperwork with a rate on the mortgage respa package for you to sign. This 99.99% of the time means that you and your loan officer have already spoke about the rate. Have you signed and returned the mortgage packet back to your loan officer and your have signed the "intent to proceed", and have you received a GFE? If so, then yes, I believe the loan officer is working on good faith that the rate between the two of you is a given that when it is time for the loan to be locked that it is done. I do however, believe that as quickly as rates could change, we should lock if we see rates changing. I do not believe that anyone at this point should wait on rates to go lower. It is to much of a gamble and if the rates jump your out of luck on the rate that you initially discussed with your loan officer. I see advertisement all the time " LOCK YOUR LOAN NOW", there is certain criteria involved with locking a loan and I am sure each lender is different, but when it comes right down to doing the right thing, I am not going to lock a loan based on what a customer has told me...no way.