I had an opportunity in a paid forum to put the question directly to Ivy jackson of HUD and she concurred that the loan originator escapes the tolerance on third party providers as long as they do not give the borrower any names of companies.  So, the loan originator could NOT share their preference with the borrower if they wished to escape tolerance.  The consumer would shop for the services entirely on their own, though they could receive names from a real estate agent.  Referrals by a real estate agent do not come into play on the GFE at all.

You'd have to be careful and clearly document the extra work, such as that there was a second chain, to qualify for the unforseen category, but you'd be okay.