I read an article in the July 19, 2009 Toledo Blade titled Mortgage Closings Subject to Tighter Rules that I'd like to summarize and comment on.  By the end of this month the a number of new rules will be put into place that may help buyers understand mortgage costs better and be able to make some cost saving decisions.  These include.lenders be required to...

•  give buyers a statement of all the mortgage costs within 3 days of applying for a loan.  And importantly, not be allowed to charge any fees other than for a credit check until the buyer has had a chance to review all the figures.  It would be a good idea for buyers to apply with a few lenders either banks or mortgage brokers and have both estimates to compare before putting forth money for an appraisal and perhaps other fees that could cost $100's.
• supply what is known as a Truth in Lending Disclosure which lists again all the costs, interest rate, monthly payments and total mortgage cost over the length of the loan 3 days before closing.  Now the requirement is 1 day before, but even here in the Toledo,Ohio area, we often don't see the TIL until we sit down at the closing table.  If the annual percentage rate increased by more than 1/8%, a new TIL disclosure needs to be done and a wait of 7 days to close. 
• deliver the home appraisal to the buyer 3 days before closing although buyers can waive this rule.  The appraisals are done before the final underwriting so this shouldn't be a problem.  Buyers do want to see that they aren't paying more for a home than the appraised value.

These new rules may make it harder to set certain closing dates since the lenders are likely to have trouble always supplying the disclosures in time and estimating the final costs closely enough.  But, they do give buyers a chance to keep their mortgage costs down and not overpay for homes.