I'm a first time buyer and I never had to shop for a mortgage before so I would appreciate your insights on this process.

From what I have heard, many of the big banks that offer the best rates have stopped working with the mortgage brokers (and even if they hadn't, it would be cheaper to go to them directly anyway, is that correct)?

In this case, shopping for a mortgage consists of calling 5 or 6 banks, getting indications and going with the one that provided the best indication?

I understand that each time my credit is pulled my credit score is negatively affected and therefore I should avoid having it pulled multiple times. Does this mean that I should stick with a single bank once the ball gets rolling?

What's the ideal timing to aggressively start shopping? At the time the contract is signed? At the time the offer is verbally accepted?

Any other advice?