How is Manhattan Mortgage?

As buyers, we have used Melissa Cohn at MM on two properties and 3 refinancings. Very professional and she made it easy. We went with her initially because she had the best rates and she came highly recommended. Interestingly, when we were buying this last time, when we presented offers, seller's brokers liked the fact that we had pre-approval from Melissa at MM. (I am not connected to her in any way, have never met her, only spoken to her on the phone.)

I almost went to settlement last year using a MM broker. My experience was very positive and they only charged an app fee of, like, $350. The bank paid for the broker. I think the advantage of using a broker is that there is some degree of transparency/handholding throughout the process of obtaining financing and a commitment. In essence, there are no surprises. They can also surmise early on where there are deficiencies in your application and can help expedite the application process overall. Ratewise, I think it was a bit of a wash.

Yes, have the pre-approval letter in hand when you make an offer on a property. It totally gives you an edge when you are dealing with a multiple-bid situation.

Manhattan Mortgage is known in NYC as being a very respected and professional company. This does NOT mean that you will get necessarily get the best rate from them OR the cheapest fees/closing costs. It does, however, mean that their agents and practices can be -- for the most part -- trusted. They have a reputation for being thorough and straight-forward. Best to shop around to see what deal works best for YOU, but they do have a good name and history in the industry.

That being said, MM has now been acquired by "Guaranteed Rate" (a company whose name I do NOT like the sound of). So really, there is no more Manhattan Mortgage. Has anyone had any experience with them since the recent takeover? I am wondering how their policies, fees, and business practices have changed. Anyone have any prior experiences with Guaranteed Rate?

why not deal directly with a bank? Like Astoria Savings that's probably where they take your paperwork to anyway. Why pay the extra commission?

renterjoey-
there are several threads about going w/ a broker vs. direct to a lender. see those threads. :)

I've worked with Cory Freilich from MM for a number of years - closed purchases & refinances. He's very good - knowledgeable, thorough, responsive - always on your side. He'll go out of his way to make transaction easier/cheaper for you ( e.g., waive appraisal when possible, have a contingency plan with another bank and so on ). Most importantly - we always closed.

Since Guaranteed Rate acquired MM, I closed a refi transaction with him - great rate/no issues.

Regarding current policies, fees, business practices.

Guaranteed Rate is a bank; therefore, disclosures changed, but that's mostly irrelevant on consumer side. They can use Guaranteed Rate OR broker to other lenders, which adds flexibility.

The application fee is $150 ( for guaranteed rate ) and it's a part of $990 flat origination fee ( if you go with them as a lender ). I don't know yet the fee structure if you go with them as a broker.

One other positive for me is that Guaranteed has a presence in most of the states so he is refinancing my property a couple of thousand miles from here, which is a huge convenience for me.

Similar to Bird10023’s disclosure above, I’m not connected to Cory Freilich in any way, & I’ve never met him in person.

I used Manhattan Mortgage on my first property. Very disappointed. The rate I got was very uncompetitive. Since then I found nobody works on your behalf better than you yourself. There's just no substitute for shopping around and doing your home work.

Riversider-
seems like you had an unusual experience, from what I've heard. Who was your broker? Was it just a matter of the rate? Or were there other things that you didn't like about the company/how they handled things?

This went back a while. I had pristine credit.The broker just didn't shop around and provided no assistance with regards to the rate lock. I got less service than if I had dealt directly with the lender which is what I wound up doing the next time. My own personal experience is not to work with the brokers but to take matters into my own hands.