Would You Get Your Columbia SC Mortgage at Wal-Mart?

One in three consumers would consider a Columbia SC mortgage from retailer Wal-Mart and almost half would consider one from online payment provider PayPal, according to a financial services study released recently.

The results should be especially disconcerting for banks because the two companies don’t even offer mortgages.

Would You Get A Columbia SC Mortgage at Wal-Mart?

The study shows consumers are willing to try alternative lenders as borrowers focus on price, customer service and trust in their provider when selecting a mortgage, said Doug Hautop, lending practice lead at the Carlisle & Gallagher Consulting Group, which conducted the survey.

A Wal-Mart spokeswoman declined to comment on the survey. The retailer provides small business loans at its Sam’s Club stores, but doesn’t offer mortgages (Yet).

While the Carlisle & Gallagher survey found that 80 percent of consumers would consider a Columbia SC mortgage from a non-bank, there was a bright spot for traditional banks. Seventy percent of respondents said they would prefer to have their mortgage with one of their main banks, although only 39 percent currently do so.

Two-thirds of respondents said the high cost of getting a loan was the most painful aspect of the mortgage application process, followed by slow execution (56 percent) and poor communication with the lender (32 percent).

In the past year banks have benefited from surging consumer demand to refinance their mortgages at low interest rates. But in the coming year, refinancings are forecast to decline, so banks will need to focus more on serving customers taking out loans to purchase homes.

We’d love to know YOUR opinion. Would you consider getting your Columbia SC mortgage from a non-bank like Wal-Mart or Pay Pal? Tell us what you think by using our comment form.