A horrible, anxiety ridden and stress filled experience. We were told we were pre approved for an FHA loan, when it turns out due to FHA rules, we should NOT have been. This is due to the fact my fiancé had a FHA loan less than three years earlier...they should have been able to tell this immediately, as they had all our paperwork for MONTHS. This came 6 days prior to our closing, when half our home was packed up, we had sold our dining room table (too large for our new home) and given notice to our landlord. Underwriting kept requesting copies of the same paperwork, so we wondered if they were losing things. They are completely inept and don't seem to have a clue as to what they are doing. There was no indication whatsoever that the loan would not go through, per our broker, Craig Anderson in Bloomington, MN. We were told, finally, that they had everything they needed and were relieved and excited. Then this was sprang on us...because someone does not know how to do their job. We should not have even been pre approved for a FHA loan, let alone 6 days from closing on a home! You trust these people to help you, to guide you, and know their stuff. You give them tons of ridiculous personal information, letters up the wazoo regarding this and that situation and then after you pay $475 for a FHA appraisal fee and $75 for a required FHA homeowners class, DENIED! Wintrust screwed us. Beware! UPDATE 3/5/14 So, to update the above, a VP at Wintrust called my fiancé. He did mention seeing my previous review. He did issue us a refund for $500 for the $475 appraisal and $75 FHA required class, stating that $500 is the most he can refund. All I can say to that is these people must think we are idiots if we believe that. It did take about 3-4 weeks for them to get our money back, he stated that a denial would have to be processed first before a refund could be issued. More of the same crap. We were able to extend our lease with our landlord, since we were told 6 days prior to closing that we would not qualify on info Wintrust had for months. Our house has been unpacked again, and when we are able to get an FHA after the waiting period required, we will be going to a mortgage company that has a clue to what it is doing. I would tell the person you hate the most to go here for financing. Come to think of it, there isn't anyone I despise that much. UPDATE 3/15/14 The same VP from above called my fiancé, asking him to please have me "remove the above review" saying that it was "pretty harsh". It was a lame-a sort of "Try and control your woman" type of attitude. The VP offered to personally handle our financing if we used them when we were ready. Nice, but neither of us are interested in returning after the torture we went through. read more

As a Realtor and Broker, WinTrust has been a fantastic lender to partner with. While my preferred lender is Vanessa Frisch out of the Egan office (never had an experience with the Bloomington branch) for the past three years ALL of my clients have great experiences with Wintrust! Plus, the agents on the other end always say "Wintrust is good," which is HUGE in this competitive Seller's market! If you want a reputable lender who can be creative (like avoiding PMI payments) and work long and hard realtor hours (evenings/weekends), plus always close and close on time, then Wintrust is a great bet. Good luck in your home purchases people and use a trusted lender! read more

Waste of time, money, and emotions for a first time home buyer. Was preapproved then loan officer switched companies from Stearns lending to Wintrust Mortgage in middle of loan process. He advise me I can have Wintrust complete loan application and I just have to signed a letter stating that I wanted Wintrust to complete the loan process which I did. A couple of days later I was told it's better to keep it with current lender (Sterns Lending) because it'll be too much of hassle to switch over. Then the appraisal fee was $500 and could not be released till it was paid and was told I'll get it back after closing. I wasn't aware I had to pay and they released it without charging. It's lies after lies to $uck as much out of you as they can to keep their cost down or have little to no risk in the transaction imo. Realtor was also pushy to get me to sign documents with little to no time to get it back to them. During this whole process I felt uneasy. I just wanted to tell them your lack of preparation does not constitute an emergency on my end many many times. Day before closing I was told I don't qualify for any home loan without a cosigner. They knew this but wanted to wait. They received every information and signature needed for the loan. I could write a whole essay but I'll leave it at that. First time home buyer beware! Don't think they even deserve one star. read more