Craig LaBruno - Guaranteed Rate Inc - NMLS 242811

Craig LaBruno - Guaranteed Rate Inc - NMLS 242811 Helping families build wealth & stability through homeownership. 24+ years guiding buyers with clarity, care, and simplicity. It’s Called the T.R.U.E.
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We don’t sell loans—we build homeowners. 🏡 🏡 Helping First-Time Buyers Build Legacy Through Homeownership

Hey, I’m Craig LaBruno — Producing Branch Manager @ Guaranteed Rate and Founder of The Impact Lending Team. With 23+ years of mortgage experience, I’m not just here to get you a loan. I’m here to be your Homebuyer Advisor — the trusted guide who walks with you step-by-step through one of the

biggest moves of your life. Whether you’re:

A busy mom renting for years, dreaming of a backyard for your kids 🛝

A hard-working tradesman ready to create your family’s forever home 🧰

Or someone who thought you “weren’t ready yet” because of your credit or savings...

We built this team for you.

💡 Our Approach? Buyer Formula:

TALK — It starts with a simple, no-pressure conversation. REVIEW — We go deep on your credit, income & goals. UNLOCK — You’ll get a customized, jargon-free roadmap. EXECUTE — We stay by your side, connect you with trusted pros, and close with confidence.

✅ You don’t need to “have it all together.” ✅ You don’t need to do it alone. ✅ You just need a team who truly has your back. We’ve helped hundreds of families stop renting and start building wealth. We specialize in: ✔️ First-Time Buyer Programs (including Down Payment Assisance) ✔️ FHA, VA, and Conventional Loans ✔️ Credit-Boost Coaching via Pivot 2 Purchase ✔️ One-Stop Shopping (agents, insurance, attorneys)

This isn’t about chasing the lowest rate. This is about building your legacy — with clarity, confidence, and care.

📲 Let’s Talk. I’ll meet you wherever you are today, and help you get to where you want to be. Your next chapter starts here.

06/04/2026

Sellers are pricing homes lower BEFORE they list. The market just changed.

24 years in mortgages — what's happening right now hasn't happened since 2012.

Here's what the data shows:
— Avg. seller price cut to close: $25,000
— National median list price: $425K, down 1.4%
— Austin TX: down 24% from 2022 peak

No crash. But buyers are finally getting leverage back.

Drop "HOME" in the comments and I'll send you a free breakdown for your market.

06/02/2026

You're closer to buying a home than you think. 🏠

If you've been sitting on the sidelines waiting to feel "ready" — this is for you.
Most people who aren't ready to buy do nothing.

The ones who end up buying do these 4 things:

📊 Step 1 — Know your real number
Talk to a lender. Find out exactly where you stand across income, credit, debt, assets, and employment. You can't fix what you don't measure.

📈 Step 2 — Build your credit intentionally
A low score isn't a dead end. It's a project. Most buyers can move their score significantly in 90–180 days with the right strategy.

🎯 Step 3 — Save with a real target
Stop saving randomly. Know your actual down payment number. Know your closing cost estimate. Save toward a finish line — not a feeling.

📞 Step 4 — Stay connected to a lender
Not Zillow. Not a calculator. A real lender who tells you exactly how many months away you are — and recalibrates as you improve.

Here's what I want you to hear:
Not being ready right now is not the same as not being able to buy. It just means you haven't started yet.

The buyers closing on homes 6 months from now? Most of them were exactly where you are today. They just didn't stay there.

💬 Drop READY in the comments and I'll personally build you a real roadmap based on where you are right now. No pressure. No pitch. Just a clear path forward.

📲 Save this — and send it to someone who's been waiting for the right time.

06/01/2026

Good news. Bad news. And one number that should make every renter stop scrolling. 👇

Rates dropped to a 2-week low this week — then the weekend happened.

Iran walked away from negotiations. Oil jumped 5% overnight. The 10-year Treasury pushed back above 4.50%. And Jerome Powell used his first major post-Fed speech to warn that the Federal Reserve is under the biggest political pressure it's ever faced.

Meanwhile — Fannie Mae's top economists just forecasted **14% home price growth over the next 5 years.**

On a $600,000 home? That's **$84,000 in equity.** Just from owning.

Every month you wait, someone else is cashing that check. 🏠

💬 Drop **MARKET** in the comments and I'll reach out personally — no pitch, just the real numbers for your situation.

📌 Save this for your next house-hunting convo.

05/29/2026

Your pre-approval letter might be worthless. 🚨

Not all pre-approvals are built the same — and the easiest one you got could be a ticking time bomb waiting to go off seven days before closing.

Here's the difference nobody talks about:
❌ Easy Eddie — takes your application, verbally confirms a few things, asks for zero documents, hands you a letter in 20 minutes. Feels great. Until closing week.

✅ The thorough lender — asks for tax returns, pay stubs, W2s, bank statements. Feels like a hassle. Catches your overtime income issue in week one. Flags the cash deposit before underwriting sees it. Finds the landmine before you step on it.
I've been doing this for 24 years.
I would rather you be annoyed with me for two weeks than devastated for two years because your deal fell apart the week before closing.

The lender asking for everything? That's not making your life difficult. That's protecting your deal.

💬 Drop SOLID in the comments — I'll personally make sure your file is actually built to survive closing.

📲 Save this and send it to anyone who just got pre-approved somewhere and thinks they're done.

05/22/2026

Rates dropped today — but here's what nobody's telling you. 👇

New Fed Chair sworn in. Supreme Court just forced Treasury to flood the bond market. Iran peace deal rumors moving rates by the hour.

This week was a lot. I broke it all down in plain English.

Save this. Share it with someone who's trying to buy a home right now.

Follow for next week's update — it's going to be even bigger.

05/19/2026

Waiting for rates to drop is costing you more than you think. 📉

Most buyers believe waiting for a lower rate is the smart financial move. The math says otherwise — and I'm going to show you exactly why.

Here's the real calculation nobody runs for you:

🏠 $400,000 home today @ 6.25% = ~$2,463/mo
📉 Rates drop to 5.5% — but the house is now $420,000
🏠 $420,000 @ 5.5% = ~$2,385/mo

You saved $75 a month.

You paid $20,000 more for the house.

At $78 in monthly savings — it takes you 21 YEARS just to break even on that price increase.

Most people move or refinance before that.

Which means you never recover it. Ever.

You can always refinance. You can never un-miss the equity.

💬 Drop RATE in the comments and I'll personally run the real numbers for your situation. No pressure. Just the truth.

📲 Save this — send it to someone who's been waiting on the sidelines.

05/11/2026

She didn't just buy a house. She changed her family's story. 🏡

Oluwatoyin came to me as a first-time buyer — nervous, unsure, with a million questions. That's exactly who I built this team for.

We walked every step together. When it got tough, we didn't quit. When it got confusing, we broke it down. And when we finally got to the closing table?

Pure. Victory.

This is why I do what I do. Not for the transaction — for the transformation.

⬇️ If you're a first-time buyer in NJ and you don't know where to start — drop **HOME** in the comments or tap the link in bio. I'll personally make sure you're taken care of.

05/09/2026

3 years sober. They told me not to post this. 👇

People I respected said talking about recovery on a business page would destroy my credibility.

So I stayed quiet. For a while.

But here's what I've learned:

Recovery is not separate from who I am professionally. It *is* who I am.

It's why I show up. It's why I fight for my clients the way I do. It's why I actually mean it when I say I'll go to bat for you.

God. Family. Recovery. That's the whole foundation.

Today marks 3 years.

If you're struggling right now — at 2am, in your car, alone with your thoughts — I need you to know there is another way to live.

I'm living proof.

If this hit you, share it with someone who needs it. 🙏

05/08/2026

⚠️ She barely had enough money to close. Her agent knew that — and still charged her more.

Here's what happened 👇

My loan officer Marisol had a first-time buyer — limited savings, first home, North Jersey. The agent on the deal was already collecting 5% from the seller. Close to $20,000.

Still wasn't enough.

He tacked on an extra 1% buyer-side fee. On a first-time buyer who had to get a gift from her brother just to make it to closing.

The lesson? Who you work with MATTERS.

Read your contracts. Know what everyone is getting paid. And make sure the people around you are actually working for YOU.

Want someone in your corner from contract to close? Drop a 🏠 below or DM me and let's talk.

📍 NJ | NMLS 242811 | Guaranteed Rate Inc. | Equal Housing Lender

05/07/2026

Zillow's payment estimate is lying to you. 🚨

Every day buyers build their entire budget around a number that's missing 3 critical components — and nobody tells them until they're already under contract and the real number shows up on their Loan Estimate.

Here's what your real monthly payment actually includes:

🏦 Principal — pays down your loan balance

💰 Interest — what the bank charges to lend you the money

🏛️ Taxes — property taxes collected monthly in escrow

🛡️ Insurance — homeowner's insurance collected monthly

➕ PMI — if you're putting less than 20% down

Real example on a $400K home in NJ with 5% down:

Principal & Interest: ~$2,100
Property Taxes: ~$700
Homeowner's Insurance: ~$150
PMI: ~$150
──────────────────
Real Monthly Payment: ~$3,100 ✅

Not $2,100. Not what Zillow showed you. $3,100.

Before you fall in love with a house — know your PITI number. That's the one that hits your bank account every single month.

💬 Drop PAYMENT in the comments and I'll personally run your real number based on your price range, down payment, and location. No guessing. Just clarity.

📲 Save this — you'll want it when you start house hunting.

Address

350 Main Road Suite 203
Melville, NY
07045

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