Free Mortgage
A Below-Market Rate with No Closing Costs
Most big real estate companies have their own mortgage company these days.
Why? To make more money from you. We're different. Sawbuck has partnered with a top
national lender to save you money. We subsidize every loan so you get a below-market
rate—up to half a percent better—and pay no closing costs. We call it the Free Mortgage.
How It Works
Rather than trying to make money on mortgages, Sawbuck uses a combination of negotiation and
subsidy to offer our buyers the best possible rate, with no closing costs.
Negotiation
Sawbuck partnered with a top national lender who starts out with great rates on a daily basis.
They agreed to offer Sawbuck buyers rates well below those offered to the general population—with
no points, no fees, no marked-up rate. Why would they do this? Good question...
Subsidy
Rather than making its money from our buyers, the lender makes money from us. Sawbuck pays the
lender to give our buyers a great deal.
So, not only do our buyers get the lowest possible rate with no closing costs, they avoid the
usual painful negotiation. And everyone involved is on the same team with the same incentives.
For a more detailed look, see our co-founder's blog post, Inside the Free Mortgage.
Incentives Aligned
With any other mortgage company, there is an inherent conflict of
interest—the more you save (in rate, points or fees), the less they make.
The loan officer's job, like a car salesman's, is to make as much as possible
on every deal, both for himself and the company. So no matter how nice
they seem or how highly recommended they came, their financial incentive
is always the opposite of yours.
With Sawbuck, no one makes extra money by pushing one loan program over another,
or a higher rate over a lower one.
Our only incentive is to make you happy—recommend the perfect mortgage
solution, save you as much money as possible, and get your deal done in a
timely, professional manner. If we can do that, we know you'll tell your
friends, families and co-workers about us.
Do Buyers Have to Use Sawbuck for their Mortgage?
No. Buyers can use any lender they want. But it should be virtually impossible to
get a better deal. Some lenders offer "no closing cost" mortgages, but they have
higher rates; others might have a low rate, but only if you pay points. The reason
is the same—they all have to make money on your mortgage somehow. With Sawbuck,
the lender makes their money from us—not on your mortgage.
So How Does Sawbuck Make Money?
As a licensed real estate broker, Sawbuck Realty receives referral fees from
other brokers—essentially, we get a portion of the buyer's agent commission
paid by the seller. This is our only source of revenue. Our customers pay nothing
for our services, including access
to our search tools, the Free Mortgage
and Free Settlement.
Once our customers have identified the area and homes they are interested
in, we use our Xpert Agent process to identify the best local agent for that
community, no matter which company they represent. This
experienced agent shows the homes and uses her local knowledge to help pick
the perfect home, make the right offer and seal the deal.
In turn, the agent agrees to pay Sawbuck a referral fee—a percentage
of the commission they receive upon closing. Most agents are happy to do
this because Sawbuck does a large chunk of their usual work for them.
We believe that in today's real estate market commissions have gotten
large enough to support a variety of additional services for the benefit of
buyers. The money is there to get you great search tools, a Free Mortgage,
a Free Settlement, and access to the best local agent. Our job is to make
it all happen.
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