When you are offered a "rate lock" from your lender, it means that you are guaranteed to get a particular interest rate over a certain number of days for your application process. This saves you from going through your entire application process and finding out at the end that the interest rate has gotten higher.
While there may be a choice of rate lock periods (from 15 to 60 days), the longer ones are typically more expensive. You can get a longer period for your lock, but in making this choice, will most likely have a higher interest rate than you would have with a shorter rate lock period
There are more ways to get a lower rate, in addition to agreeing to a shorter rate lock period. The bigger the down payment, the lower your interest rate will be, because you will have more equity from the beginning. You might opt to pay points to lower your rate over the term of the loan, meaning you pay more up front. One strategy that makes financial sense for some is to pay points to bring the rate down over the life of the loan. You'll pay more up front, but you will save money in the end.
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