A rate "lock" or "commitment" is a promise from the lender to lock in a particular interest rate and a certain number of points for you for a certain period during your application process. This ensures that your interest rate will not grow as you are going through the application process.
Although there might be a choice of rate lock periods (from 15 to 60 days), the longer ones are usually more expensive. A lender can agree to freeze an interest rate and points for a longer span of time, such as 60 days, but in exchange, the rate (and sometimes points) will be higher than with a rate lock of a shorter period.
There are other ways to get a lower rate, besides choosing a shorter rate lock period. A bigger down payment will give you a lower interest rate, since you will be starting out with more equity. You may opt to pay points to lower your rate over the life of the loan, meaning you pay more initially. To many people, this is a good option..
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