Peter Zomick, vice president for sales and marketing for Optimum
Mortgage Group in Charlotte, says borrowers often make three
mistakes when shopping for loans:
They ask only, "What's your going rate?" when they call
the lender, he said in a recent e-mail. In fact, the lowest
"going" rate might not apply or might not represent the
best loan for a particular situation. They choose only between 15-
and 30-year loans, ignoring other products, and don't check out
lenders with such agencies as the Better Business Bureau.
Which brings me to this: What can you discover about a lender
when you call the Better Business Bureau?
In fact, more than you could a while back.
The Better Business Bureau of the Southern Piedmont recently
changed its format to provide more detailed information about
complaints against businesses, said Tom Bartholomy, president and
chief executive. Before the change, the bureau just shared a rating,
without specifics.
Now, for instance, if someone has complained that a lender has
refused to honor a locked-in interest rate, you can learn that.
Bartholomy said the bureau gets lots of complaints about lenders
when the housing and refinancing markets are hot. Lenders rank in
the top 10 categories of businesses that consumers complain about.
He agrees that you ought to check bureau reports when comparing
lenders, and be sure to ask how any complaints were resolved. (There
are no complaints on the record, by the way, about Optimum.)
You can reach the bureau by telephone at (704) 527-0012. Its
online site is
