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Paid $900 for a 'free' appraisal that almost killed my refi, learn from my dumb mistake
Three months ago I went with a lender who promised a free appraisal on my cash out refi, and I got so excited I didn't read the fine print. Turns out the appraisal was only free if I closed, and if I backed out I owed the full $900 fee. The appraisal came back $18k lower than I needed, so I had to either walk away owing money or take a worse rate. I took the worse rate, which cost me about $60 more a month over 30 years, all because I rushed the paperwork. My cousin in Portland did the same loan with a different guy and just paid the $650 upfront with no strings. Has anyone here found a lender who is actually upfront about which fees stick if the deal falls apart?
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lucas_perez6d ago
I mean, is $60 a month really the disaster here? That's a couple pizzas. Yeah the free appraisal thing is sneaky but you still got the cash you needed and closed the loan. Your cousin paid $650 upfront so he's out that money either way, you just paid yours through a slightly higher rate spread over time. Honestly the bigger lesson is reading the fine print, which you already said. Lenders pull this stuff because people don't read, that part isn't news. Seems like you came out okay compared to some horror stories on here.
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