Conventional loans in Fort Lauderdale — the essentials, executed impeccably.

What a broker adds to a commodity product

• Price discovery — the same conventional loan is priced differently by every wholesale lender, every day. Shopping it is the job.
• Structure — points vs. credits, insurance options, seller concessions: small levers worth thousands, pulled correctly the first time.
• Underwriting foresight — Fannie and Freddie guidelines worked since 2002 means the condition list is anticipated, not discovered.
• Condo fluency — in South Florida, conventional condo files live or die on building warrantability. James checks first.

Buying your first home? Start at the first-time buyer page — conventional 3%-down programs compete directly with FHA there, and the winner depends on your credit profile, not folklore.

Down payment tiers and the truth about PMI

Conventional lending prices in steps, and knowing where the steps are is worth real money. 3–5% down gets you in the door (first-time programs at 3%). 10–15% improves pricing and shrinks mortgage insurance. 20% eliminates PMI entirely. But PMI itself deserves rehabilitation: on strong credit it's often cheap, it can be structured as monthly, single-premium paid at closing, or lender-paid folded into the rate — and unlike FHA's insurance, it dies: removable at 20% equity, automatic at 22%. In an appreciating market, buyers who waited three years to avoid a modest PMI payment routinely paid more in price growth than PMI would ever have cost. James runs that comparison with real numbers instead of a rule of thumb.

Why the same borrower gets different quotes

Conventional pricing isn't one rate — it's a base price adjusted by a grid of factors the industry calls loan-level price adjustments: credit score bands, down payment, occupancy, property type (that condo costs a little more), cash-out versus purchase. Two lenders apply the same grid to different base pricing every morning, which is why the identical file quotes differently across the market — and why James shops it across wholesale lenders instead of reading one bank's sheet. It's also why a 645 score quoted today and a 680 quoted in sixty days can be materially different loans: sometimes the best rate move available is a short, targeted credit plan before locking anything.

Structure: the levers most borrowers never hear about

• Points vs. credits. Pay points for a lower rate, or take a slightly higher rate that pays your closing costs. The right answer depends on how long you'll hold the loan — it's breakeven math, not preference.
• Seller concessions. Conventional allows 3–9% of price in seller-paid costs depending on down payment — negotiating power your agent should be using deliberately.
• Temporary buydowns. A 2-1 buydown funded by the seller lowers years one and two — useful in the right negotiation, oversold in the wrong one. James will tell you which yours is.
• Term selection. A 30-year with voluntary extra payments keeps flexibility a 15-year doesn't — the calculator shows what discipline is worth without the contractual handcuffs.