If you're in the market for a home loan, Countrywide would be a good place to start looking. Friendly customer service, rapid response time are the first to qualities you will be happy to encounter. As a first time home-buyer, I was quickly put at ease by the professionalism Countrywide offered. I felt like I was dealing with the right company from the beginning.

Some great programs they offer include the "lock & chop", where you can be locked in at a certain rate, but if the rates decline before you actually sign the documents, the rate on your loan is automatically lowered to match the current rate. Keep in mind that this does not mean you will get the absolute best rate with Countrywide. Comparatively speaking, the rates they offer seem to be about 1 to 2 percent higher than rates with similar companies for the same type of client.

They are easy to contact: by phone, mail, email and online. Payment receipt can be confirmed via e-mail or obtained by accessing their convenient web-site 24 hours a day. Your bill is sent by mail promptly after receipt of your payment to update you on your new principal balance and the present escrow balance. Also available for more specific information is their customer service staff which can be reached by phone.

Something to consider when mortgage shopping is the ability to impound taxes and insurance in an escrow account. Some lenders do not offer this as an option in order to control administrative expenses. Countrywide is not one of them. By an incremental increase in your monthly mortgage payment, they will pay your homeowner's insurance and property taxes when they come due. This is the purpose of an escrow account; it holds the money for insurance and taxes until those payments are due. Impounding is the process by which the lender collects and holds on to the money until payment is to be issued.

I work in real estate and have yet to receive a complaint from a client regarding this lender. Some concerns have come up regarding rate issues; as mentioned earlier, better rates are often found with other lenders. If you're willing to pay a little extra for those little extras which make a financing experience easier, Countrywide is worth contacting. If you are only concerned with getting the absolute best rate possible, you probably want to look elsewhere. In this case, though, I think you get what you pay for. That little extra is worth it to me.

Recommended: Yes