Don't sign a mortgage until you've spoken to them!
Written: Jan 24 '00
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Pros: excellent customer service, competitive rates, a variety of mortgage products
Cons: a fee is charged for the automatic payment option
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| uniwiz87's Full Review: Norwest |
I was first introduced to Norwest when the mortgage company I was signing up with sold my mortgage to them on the day of closing (a common practice, so I am told...and it cost me an extra $75, too). But I was not disappointed with the switch. Norwest assumed my mortgage with a minimal amount of fuss and bother and NO delay in payment processing.
The first great thing I found about Norwest is that there is no coupon book to lose. They send out monthly bills giving you a clear and detailed description of just where the money from your last payment went, how much was applied to interest, the principle balance and escrow. They also indicate escrow payments made to pay taxes, insurance. etc. which is very helpful in tracking and being sure these payments were made on time in case the recipient makes an error. And there is a clear accounting of you total principle balance at the bottom of each statement. The current payment, as well as the due date, are clearly listed. And the late payment fees which will be charged and the date they will be assessed are also listed on the payment coupon.
They also provide several billing options. You can have your payments deducted directly from your bank account, but there is a monthly charge for this. They suggest that this charge is minimized by the fact that the payments are deducted semi-monthly (1/2 on the first and 1/2 on the 15th of the month) which saves you a pretty good amount in interest over the life of the loan. I have opted to continue paying the old-fashioned way...I can send two payments a month and get the same savings.
In addition, where most banks only make escrow adjustments once a year, Norwest has made two adjustments at my request, based upon changes in my tax rate and the elimination of my sewer tax, in the middle of the year.
The real value I have found with Norwest was when I was looking to refinance my mortgage. I had originally signed up with a variable rate mortgage (a long story), but wanted to take advantage of the dropping mortgage rates last year. I shopped around and found several companies more than willing to refinance my mortgage now that I had an established payment history (and it was a good one, too). But very few of them were willing to work with us like Norwest did.
The first thing they did was to outline all of my financing options, especially considering my high debt/income ratio. The second thing they did was to overlook these numbers and look, instead, at how committed my husband and I were to our home. They accepted letters explaining why our home was so important to us (my grandparents live right around the corner from us) and also considered my projected income (I am a city employee with regular contractual raises). And finally, they used logic (something many banks don't seem to use) and looked at the fact that our payments were going to be lower than what we had been paying regularly and on time for the past 15 months.
Norwest came up with a better package than any of the other banks. They never treated us like they were doing us a favor. Instead, we were made to feel that our business was valuable and that they would go out of their way to keep us as customers. They waived many of the fees normally associated with closing and did some extra paperwork to get us a refund of some of the fees we had paid when we first bought the house.
The service representative we dealt with made himself available at all times, even giving us his home telephone number. He kept in constant contact with me to keep me updated on exactly where our loan stood and what was coming next. He answered every question and explained every step as we went along. He also informed us that they do not work on commission, but are paid bonuses based on their customer satisfaction ratings ( a simple survey we were asked to fill out after our loan closed).
I don't plan on selling this house any time soon, but if I do need another mortgage any time in the future, Norwest will always have my business.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
uniwiz87
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Member: Dawn
Reviews written: 28
Trusted by: 7 members
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