Homebuyers spend more time shopping for a computer than a mortgage: report

Despite the recent mortgage crisis, homebuyers are now spending even less time shopping for a home loan than they did two years ago, according to a report from Zillow.com. Borrowers also solicit fewer quotes today than they did in 2008, obtaining an average of four quotes on a home loan, compared to five quotes two years ago. One third of the respondents to Zillow.com’s survey said they spent less than two hours shopping for a mortgage, less than the four hours the average buyer spends researching a computer purchase. Stan Humphries, Zillow’s chief economist, said that this is a disturbing trend. “The last few years should have driven home the lesson that understanding one’s home loan is critically important,” Humphries said. “I’ve been surprised that people spend more time shopping for cars and televisions than they do researching mortgages.” TRD