Intro: Imortgage Reviews
Prior to the 2008 housing crisis, most individuals and families sought home mortgages at major banks. Whether it’s out of distrust for these banks, accessibility, or necessity, this is no longer the case. In the new mortgage landscape, both specialty banks and non-bank lenders are becoming more popular. In fact, as of February of this year, Quicken Loans was the second largest residential mortgage lender and servicer after Wells Fargo.
Overall, more home loans are made from nonbanks than from banks. One competitor in this nonbank lending space is imortgage. Through this review, you can learn about imortgage’s offerings.
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Imortgage’s History
Imortgage was established in 1999 in Scottsdale, AZ, to be a builder-based mortgage banking company with a consumer-friendly system. After making an expansion in 2007 to keep up with market changes, they are now a retail business channel. In 2013, imortgage joined the loanDepot, LLC family of brands.
The Target Audience For imortgage
Imortgage’s website advertises to any and all homebuyers, not just one particular group. This includes first-time homebuyers, people who own a home but are looking to downsize, and renters looking for a change. People looking to refinance their home are also included.
On their website, they describe a commitment to three major points:
- A proven track record
- Financial strength
- Integrity
That commitment to integrity has helped them earn “a reputation as one of most well respected companies in the industry.”
Imortgage is open to buyers in any price range, though some individual consultants may have more expertise in one area than others, which varies from branch to branch.
In fact, one of the most important things to note when considering imortgage is that its 85+ local branch offices are spread among only 17 states. These states are:
- Alabama
- Arizona
- California
- Colorado
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Nevada
- North Carolina
- Oregon
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Washington
- Wisconsin
If you’re not looking to buy a home in one of these states, you’re probably better off pursuing another lender for your mortgage.
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While imortgage promotes itself primarily as a resource for homebuyers, they mention partnerships available for those who may tangentially need their services—particularly homebuilders, real estate professionals, and financers.
For home builders, the main perks listed are:
- Selling more new construction homes
- Having timely closings
- Experiencing higher profitability
- Improving customer satisfaction
If you’re a homebuilder in one of the listed markets and are having any trouble in the areas listed, or are just starting out and looking for a way to increase your profile, pursuing a partnership may be worth it for you.
As a real estate professional, some benefits of a partnership may be:
- Loan generation and customization
- Mortgage processing and underwriting
- Regulatory paperwork
- On-time closings and deals
While imortgage mentions that customers can find real estate professionals through the site, professionals trying to expand their customer base and profits may find a partnership valuable.
To sum up, when deciding whether imortgage fits your needs, ask yourself:
- Am I looking for a home in one of the states listed earlier?
- Am I ready to move forward on purchasing a home and need financing?
OR
- Am I a real estate, finance, or homebuilding professional trying to expand my audience in the mortgage space, as well as keep loan trouble from impeding my business?
If either of these scenarios is the case, imortgage may suit your needs. We will discuss some basic sections and tools geared toward the mortgage novice later.
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How to Use imortgage
The imortgage website offers three paths toward mortgage purchasing. You can select or search for a branch in your area, search by loan consultant, or fill out a basic inquiry form on the website itself. This inquiry is not a formal application, and you will be required to fill out an application in the event that you choose to move forward with a house purchase.
These three options basically separate how you get started based on your familiarity with your local imortgage branch and staff. If you already have a consultant in mind from a past review or recommendation, search imortgage for the contact information. A very important thing to note is that each loan consultant has an individual page on the website to help inform your decision.
If a branch office is located near you, search by branch office to make contact that way. If you don’t have a branch office nearby, you can fill out the online inquiry form.
After making initial contact, much of what goes on afterward, from how quickly you move to the nature of the mortgage, is up to you, based on your imortgage consultant’s advice, your financial situation, and the home or homes you’re interested in.
For those who aren’t ready to make this step but still want to learn more about mortgages and their options, there are several tools available. Note that information gained in these areas is informal and does not constitute legal or financial advice.
The FAQ section is rather basic, with questions such as “What Is the Best Way to Search for A Home?” “How Much Should I Offer on A Home?” and “What Are the Benefits for Being Pre-Approved for a Mortgage?” The answers for these questions are not very in-depth, but they may be help you think of other things to ask or ponder before a face-to-face meeting with a mortgage professional.
The other two sections, the Mortgage Glossary and Mortgage Calculator, are more extensive and probably more useful, especially for novices. The glossary has definitions for an extensive list of mortgage-related terms, while the calculator gives you hypothetical monthly payments. You can change the following factors on the calculator:
- Mortgage amount
- Term in years
- Interest rate
- Annual property taxes
- Annual home insurance
While neither will substitute for a professional’s counsel, that’s not really the intent. As a general resource for learning more about mortgages and running some basic early planning math, both tools are very valuable.
Imortgage Reviews
Before looking at imortgage reviews online or otherwise, it’s important to note that many of reviews are based on one mortgage dealing, often with one consultant. As a result, positive or negative, the full picture may be hard to piece together, but several common threads can be inferred across multiple interviews.
One positive point that was reiterated by several reviews from different sources, branches, and consultants was a relative ease in beginning the process. Many of these reviewers did not use imortgage as an initial choice, but ran into an issue somewhere else and found imortgage as an alternative. These positive reviews also commend the attitude and knowledge of the staff they worked with. Again, the majority of these reviews praise the individual imortgage consultant.
Imortgage Complaints
There is a strong presence of imortgage complaints as well. Unlike the positive reviews, they all seem to hone in on a few specific areas. The most common complaint recorded was issues with miscalculations of mortgages. The customers who have complained said that they were left on the hook for certain payments either due to delays or improper math, resulting in higher costs than expected.
The other common imortgage complaint was the aforementioned delays and difficulty in reaching customer service to resolve the issue. Several instances of charges being taken from accounts that surprised customers were also included. It’s important to note that many of these complaints were based on singular experiences. Because of this, experience may vary from branch to branch, as can be seen from the variance between positive and negative customer experiences.
To date, reviews or opinions about individuals who have entered partnerships with imortgage are almost nonexistent, so it’s hard to determine the company’s success in that area. Most likely, it depends on who at imortgage you are partnered with.
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Conclusion
With non-bank lenders becoming more and more necessary to those seeking mortgages, it’s easy to see the demand for companies like imortgage. Whether or not imortgage is a front runner among them is difficult to say.
Rather than relying on overall imortgage reviews, the best thing you can do is find as much as you can about your potential branch and consultant. Judging from the number of positive reviews, there are individuals with imortgage who are skilled and diligent in their work. The best thing you can do for yourself and your future home is to make sure that you are working with one of them.
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