Two Loan Estimates, side by side — with the lender’s markup pulled into the light
The Loan Estimate is a standardized form, so every lender’s numbers sit in the same boxes. This tool compares only what a lender actually controls — Section A and your rate — and sets aside the costs that are the same no matter who you pick. That’s the honest apples-to-apples nobody hands you at the closing table.
When two lenders quote you, the bottom-line numbers rarely match — and most of the gap is noise. Transfer taxes, your property-tax escrow, your homeowner’s insurance, the title company you can shop yourself: those cost about the same regardless of which lender you choose, and shuffling them is exactly how a quote gets dressed up to look cheaper. A lender really only controls Section A (their origination charges), a sliver of Section B (the vendors they pick), and the rate. So that’s what this tool puts in the spotlight. Enter two estimates and it tells you who’s actually cheaper — and flags the tricks.
— Matt Mergo · NMLS #563819What a lender actually controls
Section A — Origination charges. Fully the lender’s: points, application, underwriting, processing. This is the real number to compare. The rate is the other half — a lower rate bought with higher fees isn’t cheaper, it’s rearranged.
A little of Section B (appraisal, credit, flood cert) — the lender picks those vendors, so there’s minor influence. Everything else — the title you can shop, government transfer taxes, prepaid interest, insurance, escrow — is the same for both, and shouldn’t decide who you pick.
Background reading: Same rate, $8,000 apart, how lenders make cash-to-close look smaller, and what APR really tells you. To fold fees into a single rate yourself, use the APR calculator.
These are the same no matter which lender you pick — enter them only to see your total cash to close. Don’t let them decide who you choose.
These are the same no matter which lender you pick — enter them only to see your total cash to close. Don’t let them decide who you choose.
This is an educational comparison, not an offer of credit or a Loan Estimate. It compares the figures you enter and focuses on lender-controlled costs (Section A and the note rate); the “estimated APR” folds your Section A and B into the rate and is a simplification of the CFPB APR calculation — the APR printed on page 3 of each Loan Estimate is the authoritative figure. Monthly figures are principal and interest only unless you add escrow. Always compare Loan Estimates dated the same day, since pricing moves daily. Forest Hills Mortgage · Matt Mergo, NMLS #563819. Equal Housing Opportunity.