It can be easy to tend to focus on those services required by the lender when completing the Loan Estimate. It’s not uncommon, however, for you to also become aware of other fees that will be paid by the applicant as part of the transaction. Often times, these are included within the purchase agreement and so it’s important to document when you received the purchase agreement relative to when you provided the Loan Estimate. Remember, the Loan Estimate must be based on the best information available at the time it is issued. These voluntary/optional fees, such as owner’s title insurance, need to be on the Loan Estimate if you know or should know about it. The Commentary to §1026.19(e)(3)(iii) #3 states:
…if the consumer informs the creditor that the consumer will obtain a type of inspection not required by the creditor, the creditor must include the charge for that item in the disclosures provided… but the actual amount of the inspection fee need not be compared to the original estimate for the inspection fee to perform the good faith analysis…The original estimated charge...complies...if it is made based on the best information reasonably available to the creditor at the time that the estimate was provided. But,…if the subject property is located in a jurisdiction where consumers are customarily represented at closing by their own attorney, even though it is not a requirement, and the creditor fails to include a fee for the consumer’s attorney, or includes an unreasonably low estimate for such fee, on the original estimates provided… then the creditor’s failure to disclose, or unreasonably low estimation, does not comply…
Jerod explains more in the video.