Most people know that there are different types of mortgage loans, but did you know that there are different types of mortgage lenders? Understanding who can best fit your needs is a key step to getting the mortgage that is right for you.

Generally, there are several kinds of institutions that can offer mortgages to consumers. Nearly all of these are regulated by federal or state agencies and all are required to adhere to federal and state laws governing mortgage banking.

Here are some of the types of lenders that you may want to look into for your home mortgage loan.

Your bank is often a good choice for a mortgages. Not all local banks will offer home loans, but most do these days. Banks are federally chartered institutions and even small, local banks will often the assets to make home loans, either first or second. You may, however, wish to visit the larger national banks as they often have more cash on hand for home loans.

Another type of bank that offers home loans is mortgage banks.

Mortgage banks only deal in mortgage lending. These types of banks get their money from investors in what is called the secondary market. Two of the largest investors are Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are sponsored by the government. They buy home loans and bundle them together to sell to other investors, who expect a certain rate of profit from the overall repayment of interest and principal on those loans. The reason they sell loans is that by selling bundled homewner loans to investors helps to make sure that there is enough available money for people to buy houses and other types of real estate. It is important to keep in mind that most mortgage banks do not service the loans they originate.

Another issue to keep in mind is that while mortgage banks can be competitive and may have better rates and fees because they only work in real estate lending field they may not have access to federal money which is often needed for some home buyers. Mortgage banks are governed by state laws and those laws vary from one state to the next.

Mortgage brokers are yet another type of mortgage originator. They will often represent a large variety of lenders, including mortgage banks and traditional banks. They may also include specific types of investors. In general, a mortgage broker is a middleman. One of the benefits of using a mortgage broker is that they often have access to a greater variety of loan types. A word of caution, however, is that they are often less regulated in some states than the mortgage banks or traditional banks. You should always check with your state banking authority if you have questions or concerns about mortgage brokers.

Credit unions are a great way for some people to buy into the home owning process. Nearly all credit unions are owned by its members. Generally, a credit union is a type of cooperative financial institution where a board of directors picked from among the membership regulates interest rates and lending policies. Because of their flexibility credit unions often offer the lowest rates as compared to other commercial banks. Again, credit unions are usually restricted to members only.