Your new home may be the most significant purchase you make in your lifetime; and the process of finding and closing on a home can be immensely stressful, whether you’re a first-time buyer or an experienced homeowner looking for your next home.
Working with a strong, reliable, local lender can help you get the right mortgage to fit your needs, close on your home timely, and minimize stress along the way. Here are some of the top reasons to consider a local lender:
Experts on the Local Market and Local Decision-making
Local lenders spend every day working in local markets and develop a deep understanding of market trends. This expertise helps local lenders come to decisions timely on loans.
At Cambridge Savings Bank, all loan decisions are made by professionals with years of experience with the local housing market. We work to accommodate our buyers’ needs in the competitive purchase market and help customers close on time.
Local Banks Can Help You Find the Right Loan Product
Local lenders provide the facetime and personal attention needed to thoroughly explore available options and match you with a loan that fits your unique situation. Some local lenders offer nontraditional loans that may be difficult for borrowers to find elsewhere, including affordable options.
Through partnerships with state-sponsored enterprises and portfolio products, local banks offer a variety of innovative and flexible loan products that are designed to help expand access to mortgage funds for people who may not qualify for more traditional products. For example, the Massachusetts Housing Partnership’s ONE Mortgage program offers a variety of great benefits to borrowers like down payments as low as 3% and a low, fixed interest rate. Cambridge Savings Bank is proud to be an approved lender for the ONE Mortgage.
Some local lenders even have portfolio products—unique products that are not available from other lenders—to help buyers enter the housing market. Cambridge Savings Bank offers a CSB 100 mortgage—a low or no down payment option available to first-time and repeat home buyers with up to 100% financing available for qualified buyers. To learn more about these and other nontraditional mortgage products, please contact a loan officer.
Strong Professional Networks
Local lenders’ yearslong working relationships with real estate agents, attorneys, and other home professionals facilitate smooth closings and can serve as a valuable resource for new homeowners who need professional services.
When local lenders work with the same agents and attorneys year after year, they develop shared expectations for how loan commitment and closings should work and continuously learn how to improve that process for customers. When you work with a local lender, you can also leverage our professional networks to get referrals to qualified real estate agents and attorneys to assist with closing. When you choose a trusted local lender, you reap the benefits of their experience and reputation within the local real estate community.
Reinvesting in Your Community
Buying a home means planting new roots in a city and developing close connections to your new home. Doesn’t it make sense to get your mortgage through a local bank with similar ties to your community? Local banks are deeply connected to the communities we serve through charitable giving and volunteer work. For example, Cambridge Savings Bank is committed to donating 6% of our earnings to our communities. In 2021, we donated more than $2 million dollars through Cambridge Savings Charitable Foundation and Bank. When you choose a local lender for your mortgage, you can feel good knowing that you’re supporting a bank that gives back.
Personalized Service Complements Digital Convenience
Working with a local lender means working with a partner who is committed to helping you through the mortgage process every step of the way. Feeling confused about pre-qualification, fixed vs. adjustable-rate mortgages, or whether you qualify for an affordable loan program? You can reach out to our loan officers online or arrange to meet with one face-to-face in a branch, in your home, or in a coffee shop. Once you’re confident that you’re headed in the right direction, you can choose to complete the application process online or in-person depending on your preference. Working with a local lender offers the right balance between personalized service and digital convenience.
Thinking about buying a home? Check out our products and rates at cambridgesavings.com/mortgage.
