Rates are down and so it's time to combine lots of little mortgages into a single loan with a lower interest rate and a small monthly cost.

This seems fairly understandable, the kind of thing that lenders do all the time. So I called one financing source with whom I have a very good "relationship" and within a short time the in-house mortgage expert was on the line explaining the joys of their programs.

Things were going great until I said, "well, gee, can you check my credit score."

You would have thought I was asking for nuclear secrets. It was explained that getting the credit score would mean obtaining a credit report. But, a credit report could not be obtained without a loan application, and a loan application -- which included an appraisal -- would cost $360.

Really? Are you sure? I'm enough of a good customer that the president of your august institution takes me to lunch and invites me to the Christmas party.

$360.

Is it $360 even if you only need a drive-by appraisal?

$360.

Well, okay, if that's your final answer, here's mine: I'd love to place my mortgage with you, but there are 10,000 alternative loan sources who would be elated to have my business and I'm going to check 'em out.

The lender asked that I fax a form so that money could be withdrawn electronically from my bank account to start the loan process. Good luck.

Instead, my first step was to go online. E-Loan has been a leader in the fight to make credit scores known and accessible to consumers, a fight for which it deserves much credit. Within a few minutes I had my credit score and was ahead $360.

Knowing that I had good credit -- enough, said E-Loan, "to get the very best credit and loan offers," the next question was where to get a mortgage.

The are various reasons to use one lender and not another, and certainly rates, fees and programs are concerns. In my particular case, having owned various properties for a long time, the decision was simple: I went back to the loan officer I've used for years.

Did he want $360 up front? No. Was he concerned that I had used E-Loan? No. Was he aware that I could quickly compare rates and programs with well-regarded financial publishers such as HSH Associates? Sure.

Like better loan officers, he knows there are hundreds of mortgage programs, each a little different from the rest. He won't promise the "best possible rate in the known universe" because he knows rates change constantly, money has a certain cost, and that apparently-low rates and lousy terms do not make a good deal. Instead, his offer is better: "Let me check around and find the best program for you. You check too in case I miss something."

We did the loan application over the phone, it took perhaps 45 minutes. Prior to our conversation I had organized information into various categories to speed the application process: income, debts, stock, retirement accounts, etc. The result was that all account numbers and contact information were available and in one place.

What I did I learn from this process?

• The folks at E-Loan have done consumers a huge favor. Any lender who believes that consumers can't readily obtain credit scores is going to lose a lot of business. We live in the information age, if you can't get what you want from one source then a few minutes on the Internet will allow you to get it elsewhere.

• If I didn't know several top loan officers I would at least look at online mortgage offerings. I would also pray that they have an 800-number, paper forms, and one central contact for each would-be borrower.

• I tried an online application with my lender. The form was simple, clear, and impossible for me to complete. Others might have better luck, but between electronic glitches, erasures, extra stuff that I wanted to put in, and PIN numbers with more numerals than nearby star clusters I was befuddled.

A reliable loan officer -- someone who has taken the time to learn the business -- is a huge asset. Problems get solved with a phone call or e-mail. There is communication. You get a competitive rate -- a real rate -- and a loan that can be delivered.

Now that's a "relationship."

For more articles by Peter G. Miller, please press here.

Published: June 1, 2001

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

Peter G. Miller, also known as OurBroker®, is the author of six real estate books -- including The Common-Sense Mortgage -- and is the original creator and host of America Online's Real Estate Center. Peter's weekly columns appear in more than 100 newspapers nationwide, he is also published in a variety of other media outlets and he is a frequent speaker at national events and conventions. Peter welcomes your questions, comments, and news releases via e-mail at .