When you are promised a "rate lock" from your lender, it means that you are guaranteed to get a certain interest rate over a certain number of days while you work on your application process. This prevents you from working through your whole application process and learning at the end that the interest rate has risen higher.
While there might be a choice of rate lock periods (from 15 to 60 days), the extended ones are typically more expensive. You can get a longer period for your lock, but in doing so, will likely have a higher rate than you would have with a shorter rate lock span of time
In addition to opting for a shorter rate lock period, there are more ways you may be able to score the best rate. The larger down payment you can pay, the lower your interest rate will be, because you will be starting with more equity. You could choose to pay points to improve your interest rate over the life of the loan, meaning you pay more up front. One strategy that makes financial sense for some is to pay points to improve the interest rate over the life of the loan. You pay more up front, but you'll save money, especially if you don't refinance early.
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