Pricing tends to get worse Thursdays in anticipation of any Friday economic news. Employment data is often released on Friday for example. Friday is rarely a great day to lock also if there's a 3 day weekend ahead. There's too much risk over those 3 days to push out great pricing, only to have events warp the market when you can't do anything about it. That said, lenders have the ability to lock in Friday's pricing as late as Sunday evening. If Friday is bad, then Saturday something goes sideways, you can still avoid a Monday rate hike by contacting your lender Sunday evening and giving them the "GO" sign.
As for low rates through brokers... Brokers are middlemen between the Banks who make the loans. Mortgage Bankers are also middlemen between their funding Banks. Banks have their own layers of middle management, so in all 3 cases, the price being offered is not going be the "best" or "the lowest"... but impacted by just how much the middlemen/middle managers squeeze pricing. In the case of Banks, you're going directly to the funding source. You've heard "Our Bank, Our Rules" or "We fund our own deals"... which is true, but their credit lines for funding "our own deals" is usually a Chase or Wells Fargo warehouse line.
Some Brokers and Mortgage Bankers will highlight how they have 1,000 different lenders, but these funding provide niche products, not variable price products. It's like saying I have 1,000 Facebook Friends. In reality, you usually keep in contact with around 50-75 of the people on line. The same is true with brokers with 1,000 lender options. About 990 of these sources eventually fund their loans through Chase, Wells Fargo, or Flagstar - the big 3 in that world. Brokers provide niche loans that Banks cannot - a real plus if your debt to income ratios are tight. Mortgage Bankers often service their own loans just as Banks do, giving them an opportunity to take some risk on a loan if the situation warrants while still offering a competitive rate.
There are places for each type of lender in this market. To say one kind of lender has a price advantage over the other..... get a Broker or Mortgage Banker's "best jumbo rate" that is able to be locked for 45 days in writing for your purchase, then PM me to see if this really is a low rate you've been sold on. If it is... great. If it's not - as I suspect - then let's get you the real deal instead.
My .02c
SGIP
