Promenade -- Loans and Rates I have, which may come as a shock to some of you, pretty good credit. So getting approved for the loan was not a problem, and rates are still pretty good. Not as good as they once were (my last mortgage was 5.75%), but I expect to get a pretty good rate nonetheless. My original GFE's quoted a rate of 5.875% (with one point, as of 5/14/2007), but when I signed my first lock a month-and-a-half later, the rate had jumped to 6.25% (again, with 1 point), and 6.875% without. So I signed a rate-lock agreement in late June with 1 point (1 point = $3,500) which capped my interest at 6.5% with a "one time" 60-day float-down. On October 29th, I was within my 60-day one-time float, and was able to lock at 6.375% with no points, so I get my $3,500 back. Now, in talking to the loan agent, I asked what would happen if rates were lower still when it came time to close, and her reply was that I had already excersized my one-time float down option. Hmmmm... During my previous home buying experience, I had called the lender daily for rates and locked every time the rate was lower. The previous lender had the same terms as this lender (one-time float down), but I got several float downs during the 60 days before closing. In fact, once, my broker had failed to obtain the lock I had asked for, and the next day the rates went up. I called the bank directly and explained what my rate was supposed to be and they fixed it. This caused my broker some degree of consternation, as I was not supposed to talk to the bank directly. Ooops -- my bad. So I know rate locks can be negotiated almost daily. Yet this lender seems to be taking a pretty hard line. Her explanation was that it was a "buyers market", so the loan agents were extra accommodating. This was in 2001, when housing prices and demand had been skyrocketing for years. I thought that was a "sellers market", but what do I know. Nowadays, houses stay on the market for months, even after several price reductions. To my way of thinking, this is when the loan-agents need to be very nice to help close the sale. Again, I am just dumb, I guess. I explained to her that if the rates are lower when it comes time to draw up the documents, I would expect to get the better rate -- my lock or the current rate if it is lower. She indicated I would forfeit my point deposit if I did that, and I indicated she would lose the sale if she did that. As things now stand, I have a 0-point lock at 6.375% and a "finalization meeting" around November 29th. We'll see what happens, but either way, 6.375% is not too bad.