Locking down a construction loan By Holden Lewis If one set of consumers feels especially anxious nowadays, it consists of people whose houses are under construction, but who can't yet lock a mortgage rate. They itch to get into their houses, fret over delays and worry that rates will rise before they can lock. "It's something we think about all the time, talk about all the time," says Betsy Rice Miller. She and her husband Anthony are having a house built outside Phoenix. The three-bedroom stucco ranch will be the first house they own. They can lock a mortgage rate up to 90 days before loan after bankruptcy loan after bankruptcy the house's scheduled completion. That lock-in period begins in about two weeks, and they are obsessed with rates and what causes them to go up and down. "A lot of it has been surrounding the war -- which way it will go," Miller says. Rates have risen since the war in Iraq began, but she wonders if they will drop after the war ends and investors focus on the unpromising economic landscape. "It's frustrating because if we could lock now, we would," she says. "The rates are pretty much where we wanted it -- about 6 percent." A home construction boom has put a lot of title loans loan after bankruptcy people in a similar situation. Many of these borrowers have contracts with lenders that don't allow them to lock a rate until 90 or 60 days before the scheduled completion date. They watched helplessly as mortgage rates bottomed out last month, and they're crossing their fingers in hopes that rates won't rise before they can grab a guaranteed rate. Continued below When shopping for a loan for a house that hasn't been built, it pays to know all your options. Some loans are more flexible than others. The Millers are getting a rather inflexible loan. They can't lock more than 90 days before the scheduled completion date. mortgages calculator loan after bankruptcy They won't have to pay anything to lock within 60 days of completion; it will cost one- eighth of a point (less than $200) to lock from 61 to 90 days before the scheduled completion. After they lock, they are committed to that rate -- the lender won't allow them to "float down" if rates drop further. They get some benefits, too. They are getting an FHA-insured loan from Home American, a lender that is affiliated with their home's builder. As an incentive for borrowing from the affiliated lender, the builder will give the Millers $5,000 to spend on a combination of closing costs car loans loan after bankruptcy and upgrades. They