Excellent credit gets you into the best pricing tier. It doesn't turn a rate sheet into a haggling session. Most retail lenders, including the big banks, work off a fixed rate sheet with little real flexibility. The loan officer can't discount below what corporate hands them, so there's little to negotiate; you're taking the number on the sheet for your profile. A true mortgage broker works differently: brokers set their own compensation and shop among many lenders. A good broker leads with their best-priced option from the start, so the value comes from the shopping, not from arm-wrestling. Where hard price-shopping makes the most sense is a straightforward refinance. The stakes are low and the file is simple, so gathering several quotes and pushing for the lowest number carries little risk. If a lender falls through, you refinance later. A purchase deserves more care. Optimizing purely for the lowest quoted rate can backfire if it costs you service, communication, and reliability, because a problem discovered near your closing date can cost you the deal, your deposit, or your leverage with the seller. On a purchase, a rate that's a hair higher with a lender who actually performs is often the better deal. So negotiate hardest where the risk is lowest, and weigh reliability heavily where the risk is real. Shop for the best, not just the cheapest.