fannie: Jumbo Mortgages in 2010 - Will the secondary market keep forcing ARMs on owners? - 01/13/10 08:52 AM
Jumbo Mortgages in 2010 - Will the secondary market keep forcing ARMs on owners?
Flash back a couple of years, and you'll remember the Federal Government initiating a program to allow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase loans greater than $417,000 on a temporary basis. Fannie and Freddie had been limited as part of their charters to a set amount which started at $93,750 in 1980, and which has since been adjusted based on year-over-year housing price changes.
The economic stimulus package of 2008 gave provisions for the limit to be temporarily increased in "High-cost areas" to an amount … (0 comments)

fannie: 2010 Conventional Loan Limits for Rhode Island - 01/12/10 02:52 AM
2010 Conventional Loan Limits for Rhode Island
For 2010, conventional loan limits for Rhode Island have remained at the same level where they stood in 2009, according the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the group that oversees mortgage investment giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These limits define the maximum loan amount for loans that may be sold to the agencies, which is an important distinction, as the secondary market for loans meeting these requirements is much more active than the secondary market for larger loans, meaning that loans that conform to these size requirements carry much lower interest rates.
For … (0 comments)

fannie: Conforming Loan Limits for Massachusetts for 2010 - 01/11/10 08:30 AM
Conforming Loan Limits for Massachusetts for 2010
For 2010, the Federal Housing Finance Agency has set revised conforming loan limit at $417,000, the same limit it has offered for several years now. Certain counties designated as high-cost areas have received higher limits in conjunction with the economic stimulus package of 2008, extended in late 2009. These extended limits are available through December 31st, 2010.
For Massachusetts, the following counties received higher limits than the national $417,000 cap:
Barnstable County: $462,500
Bristol County: $475,000
Dukes County: $729,750
Essex County: $523,750
Middlesex County: $523,750
Nantucket: $729,750
Norflok County: $523,750
Plymouth County: $523,750
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fannie: What's new in the mortgage market? Keeping up on recent changes - 03/30/09 04:26 AM
Good morning!
It’s been a little while since I had the opportunity to write, and I wanted to pass along a bit of information about what is going on in the financing market. There have been some changes recently that need to be considered, so I’d like to take a few minutes to run through them. If you have questions about any of these in particular, please don’t hesitate to call me.
FICO Updates
Over the past two months, many individual lenders have set credit score requirements that differ significantly from traditionally accepted criteria. At present, a 620 credit score is … (1 comments)

fannie: Rates drop sharply on $600 Billion Fed Purchase - expect to see 5.5% 0 points in some cases - 11/25/08 01:12 AM
I only have a minute to post right now, but I wanted to make sure you're aware that there has been a dramatic shift in mortgage pricing this morning. 
This morning the Fed announced it was going to buy $600 Billion in mortgage assets. This has had a huge impact on rates, with most mortgage rates at least .375% better on RATE than they were yesterday. If you’ve been waiting for the right time to lock a floating loan, or you’ve been waiting on refinancing for a better rate, it’s here. Today is the day to make that move, but don’t … (0 comments)

fannie: Updates to Jumbo mortgage limits for 2009 - 11/24/08 08:33 AM
Earlier this year, we learned that the Jumbo mortgage was going to be a bit bigger for a time. For a year, the limit for mortgages purchasable by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac was temporarily increased from $417,000 to as high as $729,750 through the beginning of 2009 as a component of the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008. That date is now fast approaching.
The original purpose of this temporary change was to address a mortgage market problem that arose in late 2007 and early 2008, specifically that demand for securities backed by Jumbo mortgages had decreased precipitously. By opening those … (0 comments)

fannie: Financing Condominiums – What you need to know Part II: How Condos are Approved for Financing - 11/03/08 05:04 AM
Last week, we looked at some of the most significant factors that are considered in condominium approval. Let’s examine the 5 methods allowed for approval of a specific condo.
Fannie Mae / FHA Approval
Fannie Mae and the Federal Housing Administration used to approve condominiums following an exhaustive process that involved extensive questionnaires, appraisals, review of hundreds of pages of condo documents, and, as often as not, site visits. As the housing market has worsened, the expense of performing these reviews was no longer justified. Despite their termination of this process, both FNMA and FHA maintain an extensive list of approved … (0 comments)

fannie: After brief respite, Mortgage – Treasury Spread reaches new peak - 08/25/08 02:09 PM
The 2nd quarter of 2008 began on a positive note for mortgage borrowers, as a relative lack of news caused the Mortgage - Treasury spread to narrow from its March 13th peak at 2.60% to a low of 2.03% May 30th.  The Mortgage Treasury spread is an indicator of relative risk between commonly quoted long-term securities, 30-year fixed-rate mortgages as quoted by Freddie Mac, and 10-year treasury notes.  (30-year treasury bonds are not used because 30-year bonds have not been continuously available in recent years).  Recent news has been less favorable to the spread, however, as the failure of IndyMac Bank, … (4 comments)

fannie: Worries at Fannie, Freddie, push Mortgage - Treasury rate spread close to 52-week high - 07/11/08 02:06 AM
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been struggling with the fallout of the mortgage and foreclosure crisis for some time now.  This week alone, there have been several front-page articles in the Wall Street Journal.  In pre-market trading this morning, stocks of the two companies are in free-fall, suggesting possible losses as high as 50% today. 
Recent troubles haven't helped the mortgage bonds of these companies either, which have lost significant value.  Remember that bond prices, or value, move inversely to yield, or interest rate, and you will see that in a vacuum, mortgage rates should be rising.
Look at recent … (4 comments)

fannie: Understanding Construction and Rehab Mortgage Options - 06/11/08 02:23 AM
Great opportunities exist in the real estate market right now.  Many homes are selling for far lower prices than they brought at their last purchase.  3-  and 4-unit properties are often available for a song due to extreme reductions in viable financing options.  But what about getting a home that is right for you?  The problem with real estate on the market right now, is that none of it is customized to your tastes.
Enter Construction and Rehab Mortgages.  These mortgage programs allow for things that regular loans do not, specifically the financing of funds to build a new home, or … (2 comments)

fannie: $729,750: The New Jumbo (for now) - 02/11/08 04:27 AM
That's right, the economic stimulus package will be in effect shortly, and with it will come the ability for Government Sponsored Entities Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), to increase their loan purchase limits significantly in higher cost areas.  Sure, more of us are thinking about the $600 or $1200 check we're getting back as part of this (flat-panel TV anyone?), but for those who own higher value homes, this potentially means two more important things:
Easier to refinance to a better loanMore buyers can get better financing to buyFor homeowners and homebuyers considering pricier … (2 comments)

fannie: What's the best weekend to get your more marginal clients signed into purchase agreements? - 11/30/07 06:50 AM
This weekend is, if a massive pricing adjustment I just received from one of our lenders spreads across the whole market.
I just received an email indicating that borrowers with credit scores below 680, along with borrowers with debt-to-income ratios higher than 50%, will be charged as much as an additional 1% add-on to their interest rate, or as much as 4 points upfront, for conventional loans on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guidelines.  For a buyer putting 5% down on a $200,000 home, that translates into $127 per month, or as much as $7600 upfront! 
How many of your buyers can … (2 comments)

 

Dan Hartman

Providence, RI

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Province Mortgage Associates - NMLS #2861

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Dan Hartman's Blog about mortgages, real estate, and the economy in New England, and the United States, especially Rhode Island Rates, Connecticut Mortgages, Massachusetts Rate Locks, and New Hampshire Home Sales. Let Dan leverage his MBA in Finance and experience as a college professor for you!


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