“They’ll hide the fact that the discount point is tied to the rates, but they do this because their customer knows to look at the rate less and to look at the [overall] cost,” Amir Nurani (pictured top), broker-owner at Left Coast Leaders in California, told Mortgage Professional America.
“For example, if a rate with no points was 7% but a rate with points was 6.3%, they’ll advertise 6.3% and be very evasive in terms of being transparent about the cost. This works: the customer sees the rate, they get very excited about it, and they don’t really think to question the cost.”
While that’s been a common strategy across the retail space for years, Nurani – who spent a decade in the retail sector before moving to wholesale – said it’s especially important for brokers to clearly spell out what a borrower’s arrangement will actually be if they take up the lender on their offer.
“As the mortgage broker, you come in and say, ‘Look, if we did that same thing, this is what your costs would be,’” he said. “‘Alright, let’s look at what this is actually costing you.’ When you start pointing out to people that they’re paying $7,000, $8,000, $12,000, $15,000 to obtain that rate and the fact that they could get that same rate with you without that cost, it becomes very attractive. It almost sells itself.”
Mortgage broker David Kakish emphasizes transparency as essential, not optional, in the financial services industry. He notes that rising rates exposed how lenders sometimes obscure or manipulate pricing and fees.https://t.co/pfh6ikZAyG
— Mortgage Professional America Magazine (@MPAMagazineUS) June 17, 2025
How brokers are winning the social media battle
Brokers and retail lenders are also locked in a battle to capture the eyes and ears of borrowers, a tussle that’s increasingly taking place over social media.