Intro: LendingTree Reviews
Navigating the murky waters of the financial world can be stressful and confusing. In this “LendingTree reviews” article, AdvisoryHQ News performs a detailed review of a company that is fast becoming one of the top online lending platforms: LendingTree.
The first thought that you probably have is, “what is Lending Tree?” And “how does LendingTree work?” Before using a service like LendingTree, it can be a great idea to check out some LendingTree reviews to find out more about what LendingTree can offer you.
However, scrolling through hundreds of online reviews and perusing multiple websites can be time-consuming and exhausting – not to mention the fact that the LendingTree reviews written by individual reviewers can often have personal biases that keep you from getting an honest opinion.
Image Source: LendingTree
In this LendingTree review, we will give you a full overview of the services offered, address any LendingTree complaints that we find in LendingTree.com reviews from actual customers, and discuss the pros and cons of using the company.
To start it all off, we will begin with the question “what is LendingTree”, followed by a history of how LendingTree came to be.
At the conclusion of this LendingTree review, we hope that you will feel equipped with the knowledge you need to make an informed decision about using LendingTree for your financial needs. Let’s get started!
What is LendingTree?
LendingTree is a financial services company that does not directly offer any financial services. That seems contradictory – but all that it really means is that LendingTree is a broker for financial services as opposed to a direct lender.
What you see below is the old logo for LendingTree, featuring the original company motto: “When banks compete, you win.”
This motto is appropriate because LendingTree acts as a marketplace for online lenders.
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Brief History of LendingTree (Lending Tree Mortgage Reviews)
When a person needs loans or other financial services, the burden is placed upon the shoulders of the individual to search through multiple banks and lenders to attempt to find the best deals for them.
This was the conundrum faced by a young accountant named Doug Lebda in 1996 – and he decided to do something about it.
Doug Lebda: Chief Executive Officer and Company Founder
After struggling to find the ideal mortgage for his first home, he had the idea of creating a space where, instead of individuals trying to find companies to help them, the banks and lenders would compete for the business of the individual.
Thus, LendingTree.com was established in 1998 with its headquarters in Charlotte, NC.
Growth of LendingTree.com | Reviews
Over the past years, LendingTree.com has grown substantially. According to a 2014 report by CNBC, the LendingTree has set up over 30 million loan requests and assisted in securing $214 billion in loans.
The company briefly merged with IAC (InterActiveCorp) in 2003, but was later merged with Tree.com.
Tree.com was dissembled in 2015 so that LendingTree could refocus on its primary brand.
The core services provided by LendingTree are home loans, home equity, and mortgage refinance. In the past few years, it has added student, personal, and business loans to its repertoire as well as a free credit score service.
Now that we have answered, “What is Lending Tree?” the next few sections of our LendingTree review will explore the specifics of the available services.
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Getting Started at LendingTree | Reviews
There are three simple steps to begin using the services at LendingTree.
- Fill out the online application for loans. There is just one form to fill out for each type of service, and it is doable in minutes. If you need any assistance, you can call 1-800-813-4620 at any time for help with your application.
- Receive multiple offers from lenders who are interested in your patronage. These offers are based off of your credit score and other financial information. Offers will be received by you in minutes.
- Choose the best offer for you. After you decide, you can work with a live company representative to complete the deal.
Best of all, this service is completely free for borrowers! Companies pay for the privilege of sending their offers to LendingTree customers; therefore, there is no cost for individuals looking for loans.
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LendingTree Reviews: Home Loans
Under the category of Home Loans at LendingTree, there are many different options available. We will focus on these loans but also briefly cover other types of services later in the article. These primary six options are:
- Refinancing
- Home mortgage loans
- Home equity loans
- Reverse mortgage loans
- VA loans
- FHA loans
LendingTree Reviews: Refinancing with LendingTree
There are multiple reasons why you might be interested in refinancing your mortgage. Some of the most common reasons include reducing your interest rate or changing the term of your mortgage. The best time to do this is when your credit score has gone up or if interest rates have dropped.
LendingTree.com offers a helpful Refinance Calculator to assist in your decision to refinance. You can also read the Frequently Asked Questions about refinancing on the main Refinancing page as well as use a quick instant Home Loan Refinance Rates tool to see what rates look like in your area.
LendingTree Mortgage Reviews: Choosing Home Mortgage Loans
If you are looking to buy a new home, then you will be more interested in a home mortgage loan and the LendingTree mortgage reviews.
LendingTree offers multiple tools to help you determine what mortgage option is best for you.
With the Home Affordability Calculator, you can find out how much you can afford to spend on a home. You can use the LoanExplorer to check out current mortgage rates, and you can also enter your specific information to get personalized offers.
If you are not ready to get personal offers but just want to check out some LendingTree mortgage reviews, then you can look at the Lender Ratings and Reviews section.
There, you can find actual customer ratings from individuals who have used the loan services. You can search by name and sort by lender type, rating, number of reviews, and location.
In addition to home mortgage lenders, you can use this search engine to find LendingTree.com reviews for personal, business, student, and auto lenders.
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Finding Home Equity Loans with LendingTree
If you have equity in your home, you can take out a home equity loan to exchange part of this value for cash. Not everyone realizes this, but the interest that you pay on home equity loans is actually tax-deductible!
If you are looking for some money to make home improvements or pay for an expense, like school or medical bills, a home equity loan may be right for you. LendingTree has many resources available for people who are interested in home equity loans.
One link from LendingTree that might be especially helpful when considering these loans is an informational article about the difference between a home equity loan and a home equity line of credit (HELOC).
This article is just one example of the many articles available at LendingTree. Every time you check out a different service, you will find links to other articles about that service. These can be a valuable resource for more information about whatever service you are most interested in.
LendingTree Reviews: Choosing a Reverse Mortgage Loan with Lending Tree
The following loans we will discuss (reverse mortgage, VA, and FHA loans) are all for specific populations. For example, reverse mortgage loans are only available to borrowers who are 62 or older and can only be taken out if you have significant equity in your home.
LendingTree provides a Reverse Mortgage Calculator to check out your options. Obtaining a reverse mortgage can be a great way to get retirement funds and achieve greater financial independence in the later years of life.
LendingTree Reviews: Obtaining VA and FHA Loans
Many people do not even realize that they are eligible for VA loans or FHA loans, so the fact that LendingTree puts these options right on its Home Loans page is quite considerate.
VA loans are available for anyone who is a current service member, veteran or even a spouse. The LendingTree VA loan page has helpful information to help you determine if you qualify for one of these loans. They offer certain benefits over other loans, including no down payment and no required mortgage insurance.
FHA loans are specifically for less affluent people who need help getting loans. Since the loan is federally backed by the Federal Housing Administration, there is automatic insurance for the lender.
LendingTree Reviews: Other Types of Loans and Services at LendingTree
In addition to home loans, LendingTree can also help you find lenders for services like auto, personal, and business loans. You can also find out information about credit cards and your own credit score.
The site is set up in a similar way for all of these categories. You can find calculators and tools to check out general options before you input your information for personalized offers.
You will also find helpful blog posts and informational articles for every topic imaginable regarding borrowing funds. As mentioned above, you can also look up LendingTree reviews for all of the lenders that the company works with, written by actual customers.
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Too Good to Be True? LendingTree Complaints, Pros & Cons
The primary goal of LendingTree is to make it easier for interested borrowers to find lenders. While this is an excellent idea in theory, the customer reviews online seem to indicate that there has been some difficulty putting it into practice.
Interestingly, most of the LendingTree reviews online do not criticize the website itself or the loans that people choose from the personalized offers. Instead, there seems to be a major problem with the dissemination of personal information after making an account on LendingTree.
Let’s check out some LendingTree reviews. First, we will share the overall ratings and then comment on some of the specific LendingTree complaints.
First of all, we will start with an external agency, the Better Business Bureau. LendingTree is a BBB-accredited business and has been given an A+ rating by the company.
This positive rating is mainly due to the length of time it has been in business, the complaint volume relative to the size of the company, and the response and resolution of 427 registered complaints. The BBB has 34 LendingTree reviews, of which 10 are positive, 2 are neutral, and 22 are negative.
On the website ConsumerAffairs.com, LendingTree has a relatively positive rating: 4/5 stars. This rating is based on 109 ratings and 489 reviews. Many reviewers here found it simple and easy to choose the correct loan for their respective situations.
However, there are multiple other sites with LendingTree.com reviews that are much more bleak. The company has a rating of 1.3/5 based on 39 customer reviews at CreditKarma.com, and 87% of reviewers gave it just one star!
LendingTree also has its own page on PissedConsumer.com with 19 complaints, a rating of 1/5 stars on Yelp.com, and a feature article on ThreeThriftyGuys.com that is not extremely positive. What is everyone so angry about?
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The Problem with LendingTree (LendingTree Complaints)
The primary complaint across all of these negative LendingTree reviews is the fact that many potential borrowers received massive amounts of emails and phone calls – to the point of harassment – by banks and lenders.
Customers stated that they started getting calls immediately after submitting their information. For people who were interested in viewing offers exclusively online, these extremely pushy bank and company representatives were quite a turn-off.
Another key LendingTree compliant was that consumers’ personal information were being shared beyond the approved LendingTree affiliates. For example, multiple people who were interested in car loans started getting calls from car dealerships!
In addition to this, some reviewers that posted negative LendingTree reviews and LendingTree complaints mentioned that, due to the fact that multiple lenders started making credit inquiries on them, their credit scores actually dropped before they even started working with a lender.
This dissemination of personal information has caused some customers to call LendingTree out as a scam. However, the positive reviews demonstrate that some customers have actually been able to use the company for its intended purpose, and they have successfully found loans with great rates.
Is Using LendingTree.Com Right for Me?
LendingTree.com offers to connect you with banks and lenders who will compete for your business. However, it seems like it may be too good at its job, and it can overwhelm you with excessive deals by allowing your personal information to spread far and wide.
How can you use LendingTree.com for your benefit without making a whole bunch of new financial friends that you do not want? The website still has some great resources for people who are looking for loans and other financial services, such as calculators and articles. All of these are free and do not require you to give personal information.
If you are still interested in seeing the personalized offers at LendingTree, there is nothing wrong with filling out the loan application – just be aware that you may start being contacted by many lenders, and it could affect your credit score.
Some customers who wrote LendingTree reviews were satisfied with the loans that they found through LendingTree, but many also experienced negative repercussions. As with many financial decisions and situations where you need to give out personal information, proceed with caution.
While it has its fair share of issues, LendingTree is still a valid online marketplace with resources for finding loans and other financial services. After reading this LendingTree review, we hope that you feel armed with the knowledge you need to make a decision on whether using LendingTree is right for you.
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