The FHA Short Refinance Program has always existed in an unofficial form but became a formal program on December 16, 2009 with Mortgagee Letter 09-52. It was “refined” on August 6th of 2010 with Mortgagee Letter 2010-23. It was designed to provide more mortgage options to those that owe more than their house is worth. [...]
The role of closing costs in a purchase agreement can be confusing both for buyers and sellers. In the present market, it is customary for there to be sales concessions. A real estate sales concession can be many things including but not limited to price, repairs and yes, . . closing costs. Asking the seller [...]
While lenders will admit that it’s technically possible to provide mortgages to homebuyers who recently had a short sale without a waiting period, most lenders are not offering this product. Because of the complexities of the process involved with closing these loans that creates perceived risk, most lenders elect not to do them and fail [...]
Reblogged with Permission Via: http://www.mtgprofessor.com/A%20-%20Credit%20Issues/do_inquiries_hurt_your_credit.htm Posted September 18, 2000, Revised January 29, 2004, Revised November 18, 2004, November 16, 2006, March 26, 2011, August 1, 2011 Borrowers in distress often contact many lenders hoping to find one who will approve them. For this reason, multiple inquiries can have a negative impact on a consumer’s credit [...]
Mortgage fees can be difficult to understand. Often times fees exist for things that don’t match what they are named, sometimes they are omitted or expectations can be mismanaged. A lack of clarity, omissions and mismanaged expectations will always lead to a poor experience and worse yet, a loan that is inferior to what you [...]
Consumers are becoming more and more educated these days. Some clients even quote me guidelines. I blame myself. After all I’m the one posting these online. Believe it or not, I love educated clients. It makes my job easier. It also means their reading my posts! But for those of you savvy borrowers out there, [...]
Breaking Down Fannie Mae’s Appraisal Rules Have you heard of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC)? If you are a lender or Realtor, of course you have. What I wanted to do with this post is breakdown Fannie Mae’s policy now that HVCC has expired. Basically the Code lives on and has been slightly [...]
Should I Stay or Should I Go Now? The million dollar question, should I stay, and continue renting, or should I go, and become a homeowner? Sometimes, I think first time homebuyers are looking at this question as a million dollar question, and really, it is not. Are we at the bottom of the declining [...]
Doesn’t the Seller Pay for All of Our Closing Costs? We all have to remind buyers that they are responsible to pay the required down payment percentage (3.5% for FHA or 3-10% etc for Conventional) AND their closing costs/pre-paids too. Even if you stipulate that the sellers contribute towards “closing costs and pre-paids” in the [...]
It’s not hard to search and find bland descriptions of the mortgage process that paints in broad strokes. For the more information hungry home buyer, I’ve tried to collect snippets of audio and video that go into greater depth on this topic covering everything from shopping for your home loan to closing on your new [...]
A home inspection is a limited, non-invasive examination of the condition of a home, often in connection with the sale of that home. An inspector will check the roof, basement, heating system, water heater, air-conditioning system, structure, plumbing, electrical, and many other aspects of buildings looking for improper building practices, those items that require [...]
It has been widely and wrongly asserted that someone who is getting divorced in Minnesota cannot purchase a home prior to finalizing a divorce decree and at the same time prevent their soon to be ex-spouse from being entitled to marital property rights in the newly purchased home. This used to be a serious problem [...]
Clearly, many if not most short sales involve a loan presently in default. As well, many times a short sale might involve a current borrower who can currently afford the payment. In several other situations, a seller may be “just hanging on” and the smallest thing could put them irreparably behind on their loan. Welcome [...]
If you’re a FHA buyer shopping for a condo, you’d better pre-qualify your lender first. If you’re listing a condo and a buyer gives you a FHA pre-approval letter, you’d better pre-approve that lender first. Because Spot Approvals are a thing of the past, it’s important to know which of the two remaining FHA condo [...]
In October of 2008, HUD rolled out their reverse mortgage product and in March of 2009, they perfected it. With rates expected to rise and the tax credit setto expire, many real estate professionals are looking for new and under-served markets to reach out to. Since HUD has perfected their reverse mortgage, the Home Equity Conversion [...]
Each person’s personal circumstances and long term objectives determine the type of mortgage they choose. For the past couple of years, the clear favorite has been the 30 year fixed rate mortgage because the yield curve between short term and long term bonds has been flat. When this happens, there is very little difference in [...]
When buying your next home, changes to your credit (additional accounts, closing accounts, fluctuating credit card balances) can result in the lowering of your credit score. If your credit score changes, that can affect your interest rate and even the loan approval itself. Therefore, it is imperative that there are no major changes to your [...]
Understanding the differences between these two forms of distressed sales is critical to writing winning offers and paving the road to a successful closing. Perhaps more importantly, understanding their differences will mean that you’ll get the best deal possible on your purchase. A bank-owned property (often referred to as a “foreclosure” or “REO”) is a [...]
Debt as percent of income: 17% Unemployment rate: 6.7% Home ownership: 72.6% Negative equity: 22.2% Average home price: $224,000 Loan as percent of home value: 65.6% Percent of U.S. Market: 1.01% The low rate of unemployment is what really stands out with Minnesota, Findlay said, at 6.7% compared to the U.S. rate of 8.8%. Negative [...]
Although we wouldn’t know it from watching the six o’clock news, mortgage underwriting guidelines and mortgage insurance underwriting guidelines have been in a pattern of loosening, not tightening. This trend started in late 2009 and continues today with such examples as lower minimum credit scores for mortgage underwriting guidelines and fewer declining markets for [...]
You may not be familiar with the term “buy and bail” but lenders are. And if you’re not familiar you may be very surprised when a lender denies your loan when you try to convert your primary, current residence into a second home or rental. That is, unless you stumbled upon this blog. First let’s [...]
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) implemented a 25 bps increase to its annual premium rates on April 18, resulting in a payment increase for FHA borrowers. With this change, RMIC (an iLoan preferred mortgage insurer) offers equal or lower monthly premium rates on all LTVs with no upfront premium. RMIC Monthy PMI vs. FHA MIP [...]
Many people trying to buy a home after a short sale find it difficult to navigate through loan programs that they may be eligible for and various waiting periods that may be applicable. If late payments occur, most people are told that the waiting period for buying a home after a short sale is 3 [...]
