Jeff, great post!  I was unaware that some DAP's are shutting down!  I definitely have to look more into this because these are some great programs and really help out; although I do understand why people are against it!  Again, thanks for the info!

Jeff,

Title Underwriters also caution against the use of seller derived down payments. Apparently HUD is putting pressure on everyone to try to curtail mortgage fraud! Thanks,   Fran

Andrew.....  well, this has been a rumor for 4 to 5 months. Even though Meg Burns wrote about this in July, this was not finalized as of yet. And still isn't finalized, as you can see. Nehemiah has turned around to take HUD to court. Hopefully this will be resolved before March of 2008 and we continue these types of programs.

But... if you read what Meg wrote about, it does make sense why so many are against these programs. If HUD ever does get the 100% program passed, then this won't matter as much. 

Fran.....  yes, HUD is putting pressure on everyone. Thanks for stopping by.

Jeff - Too bad that all the bad guys have caused another good thing to dry up for the good guys!

Jeff- Nice to see you back.. you were missed..

I can see the logic behind this decision, but this will be hard on the buyers that could benefit from the programs, especially since FHA loans are looking so good right now. Thanks for keeping us updated on the latest mortgage news - it's great to see you around here!

Marlene.....  as many of us know, this is all too often the case. But we must chug along, new ways, be creative, and educate others. 

Kaye..... thanks....  I am back, but not 100%,,, I think I truly got burnt out.... with a few other things. But I did miss AR....  thanks again.

Chrissy.....  yes, it does make total sense. But yes, it will hurt or could hurt so many first time buyers. But you know what, this goes back to the old school of saving money then. Gee, think about it, FHA says you need 3% of your own money. It's not like 30 years ago when you needed 20% down.  Lastly.... thanks for the compliment.

Hi Jeff...just wanted to stopby and sy good to see you!

Nice to see you back - How is the new job going?  I really have missed you - 

Jeff, I was wondering what happened to you.  Welcome back.  We've been following this story and it's impact on FHA.  My feeling is that this change along with the new FICO scoring requirements make FHA less attractive and that the private sector can do a more efficient job of meeting the First Time Homebuyer's needs?

 Your thoughts?

It is always the little guy who gets the short stick. 

Very informational...........Thanks.

Duane Hosek in the Black Hills of South Dakota

I wanted to thank the moderator who featured this.... much appreciated. 

Just as a reminder if some people read other publications or blogs, Nehemiah will still be able to operate for the next 6 months. I am reading some stuff that makes it sound as if when 30 days is up, it's dead....done....notta...    This is not true and has been verified by several sources.

Joan..... thanks and it's good to see you. I'll try to be around a little more. I love sharing and I love learning.... but some things just really brought down.

Thesa....  it's going extremely well, thank you. Delivering papers is so easy.  lol  <teasing>  they have a great set up which enables me to produce more.  Missed your to Mrs. Oregon.  ;o)

Kate....  what FHA credit score requirements?  Did I miss something?  I'll try to get a hold of you later, but I haven't heard of any changes. Unless it's your lender or the lenders that you use. Please keep me posted. thanks for stopping by.

Gary..... usually, but not always. We just need to plug away, be creative, and educate.

Duane....   my pleasure and you're welcome.

Jeff-Thank you for the post. I am currently working with a transaction in which the buyer is using an FHA loan and has asked my seller to contribute 3% for DPA through a non-profit organization (Neighborhood Gold), so I guess I am going to get a first hand expariance on this rules pretty soon.  

Jeff, I was hoping we would have the "straight" news from you.   I had been hearing conflicting news and reports, and was going to call you today for the real truth.  Thanks for this post, and hope to see more of the FHA mortgage guru!

Jeff I am a Nehemiah certified agent for my area so I guesss that program will be around a little while yet as lond as they don't knock down the loan for DPA.

Thanks for your post Jeff.. I'm new to all this Information, but I'm glad that I stopped by... Your post was very informative and I will look into it to better serve my clients......

I do not see buyer assistance programs causing higher sell prices.  The price is what the market will bare.  If it is slow the sellers will participate in any program that will help sell the home.

Nice post Jeff. Thanks for the great info. I think Sellers are receptive to this now.

These are excellent programs to assist the buyer with financing. More buyers need to be educated regarding them. Good post.

Jeff, missed you and all your wealth of information. I am glad this program didn't go away. Like Kris I have heard conflicting reports in Michigan.

JB,

Welcome back.... Hope all is well for you and yours....

Jeff - good timely post and thanks for the link to take action. I just started an ameridream yesterday.

Good morning Jeff,
Thank you for all the information and link.  We've been hearing all kinds of things here.  Welcome back.

AmeriDream filed suit yesterday in federal court against HUD as did Nehemiah. AmeriDream claims that it will continue business as usual. Great post Jeff.

I'm glad that you clarified this, because I'm working on a DPA for a first time home buyer. I have used Nehemiah in the past.

Jeff--Glad to see you're back! Will Genesis be gone too? I have new potential buyers that will be in that program as it is said to be less expensive than Nehemiah.

Jeff, Great Post. Really passed on some great info for everyone.

great blog, I think FHA  loans are going to be popular in the next few years

Jeff I was wondering where you were. Good post nice to see you in the rain. Would seller paying closing costs fall under the same thing?

Jeff,

Hey man, glad to see you again, I though I was going to have to go back to school :0) I didn't know they had 30 days to close, I learned something new.

Thanks Jeff, Great to see you back,

Tom Weiss

Jeff,

Thanks for this post,

I have been working with Ameridream for years and they have NOT shut down as well.  DPA, I feel are necessary for some people, and these loans have proved to be a lot less risky then the majority of subprime garbage out there. 

I have so much more to say in TOTAL SUPPORT OF DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE but I need to point out once fact on the point of OVER INFLATED SALE PRICES. Down payment assistance companies DO NOT APPRAISE THE PROPERTIES! That is as simple as it gets!

It is absurd for the blame to be put on DPA's for this problem that HUD claims. For those of you who do not know this, HUD has their own APPROVED APPRAISERS and they have their OWN certain standards to which THEIR OWN appraisers are to appraise these properties. 

Realtors write the contracts, the appraisers then appraise the properties and the lender approves the loans. The down payment assistance companies simply give the gift AFTER all of these processes have taken place.  I have 20 years experience in the mortgage industry and it is an outrage for these programs to be taken away! IT WILL EFFECT OUR ECONOMY AS A WHOLE!! THE PUBLIC SHOULD BE OUTRAGED AS WELL BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT HAS ELIMINATED THESE PRIVATE PROGRAM SO THEY CAN COME OUT WITH THEIR OWN PROGRAM!

THIS IS ONCE AGAIN OUR WONDERFUL GOVERNMENT DOING SOMETHING UNJUSTIFIABLE JUST BECAUSE THEY CAN!!!

Jaime - Neighborhood Gold has been out of business since July 2007! FYI! Try www.americanhomebuyersinc.com they are a great company!

Another powerful post chock full of very important information my friend!

Thanks for the link to voice our opinions: http://www.takeaction.ahaanow.org/ahaa/home

Jaime.....  from my understanding, the only company standing after 30 days for these DPA's will be Nehemiah. I would be very careful on who you use. This is just from some of my research. I am sure some of these companies will say that the word on the street is not true. But why take that risk and not just use Nehemiah. I am not trying to sell Nehemiah. GL.

Kris.... this is one reason why I stopped what I was doing yesterday. I don't know everything, but I did research before I wrote this post. I saw a few posts that talked about DPA's being dead after 30 days. As you can see, that is not the case and I was able to dissect this and to show that Nehemiah will be around for the next 6 months. This is an agreement with HUD and because Nehemiah is now taking HUD to court over certain issues. 

James.....  it's very easy for anyone to become a certified realtor of Nehemiah. You just go onto their web site and fill out a form. It can take any lender or title company minutes to become certified. There really is no big deal for this and I see some people market themselves as certified agents. Just another way to market to people in my opinion. But it takes no special qualifications. Some people are missing the point here in regards to the fact that the DPA laons can be bad. It's not about the actual borrower that they have a problem with, but the house value. If you understand the whole process, bumping the value to incorporate the costs is worse than doing 100% financing.

Donna.....  thank you very much for the compliment and for stopping by. Glad that I could help.

Randy.... I understand your question and I agree to a certain point. But what you don't see are those prices that aren't really there and the lender gets the appraiser to bring it up some and the underwriter doesn't cut the value. This doesn't happen all of the time, but it does happen. I have one deal right now that I am doing a Nehemiah on. The house was being sold for $249,000 with $10,000 in seller help. We raised the sales price to $254,000 to get the extra money for the buyer. But before I did this, I asked everyone involved what they thought the true value was. They said in the 260's. My appraiser that I use doesn't inflate values even if I needed it. Okay, maybe $1,000 or so if it can be justified. But not $10,000 or so... well, this house appraised for $266,000. So this is a great deal for everyone involved. 

My whole point is that these DPA's can be great if used correctly, but lenders and builders can and have abused this problem, no matter if the market was stable or not. You should know the stories of lenders having their own title companies and appraisers do what they want to make a deal work. That is what's happened here. Hope this helps some. 

Phylena.....  thanks for the compliment and I am glad that this helped some. Just a FYI, I can lend in Georgia also. Or if you just have any questions, I would be glad to answer them for you.  thanks

Joe....    thanks Joe. I would agree that sellers are more receptive to this now. But think about HUD's argument. We are in a down market for sellers and this fits them even better, especially if you have an appraiser that can get the value higher, when it might not be there. Or just for the fact that some values are still declining.

The other part that people are not thinking about and where HUD is stepping in is the fact that the general seller gets about 94% to 96% of the asking price. Now, I said generally....  and when you got to 100% or go to full value and then some, especially in today's market, this is where people can become upside very quickly. One positive note though is that you still have to put 2.25% down on the property, no matter where you get the money from. This is the part that I don't understand from HUD's side, when they are trying to get 100% financing approved. So I see arguments for both sides. I also think it's just something else for people to complain about.

The only correct thing that everyone can use as a barometer is that there is a higher default rate amongst those that use the DPA programs. The only logic that I can come up with is because the buyers are using none of their own money into the transaction. It's easier for them to walk away from it. I would love to hear more theories.  thanks 

Derrick.... I agree, more buyers need to be educated about them. Even sellers and realtors. But the problem here is that some lenders and loan officers have no idea what they are explaining. So, what truth are you getting? The real truth or the sales pitch? 

Missy.....  thanks Missy, it's semi good to be back.  ;o)  I just realized how much time I spent. Not wasted, but I killed myself in a certain way. But as I mentioned before, that was one reason why I dropped what I was doing to write this post. I even read a few things that had holes and or missing information ... or even slightly misleading. I did my research from all angles before I wrote this. Just as a journalist would do, or should do.  ;o)

Scott....  thanks, I truly appreciate those kind words. Thanks for taking the time to express this.

Mary..... my pleasure. As someone mentioned, they said AmeriDream will be around also, because they are filing a suit also. I know other companies will be saying the same, but I would be very leery on who you use, no matter what they say. Companies, just like loan officers, will sometimes say anything just to get you in the door. As of yesterday, Nehemiah was the only one that will be granted a 6 month extension. Now, I am not saying that this could not change. But my advice would be to contact HUD themselves. I am keeping an eye on this and will post once they put out their mortgagee letter. This is the true law of what HUD will allow, not AmeriDream. Just be careful.  Stay away from anyone else no matter what. Just my advice.

Cynthia.....   just like everyone else, rumors will always fly around. It irks me at times and it will continue with this. I would not believe anyone or any e-mail, unless it comes from HUD directly. I can't stress this enough.

The program that I mentioned www.americanhomebuyersinc.com offers default management and foreclosure prevention AT NO EXTRA COST TO THE BORROWER! All DPA's will remain in business until at least October 31st, that is clear in the ruling! Nehemiah's fees are so much more than anyone's!

To everyone else, I will reply back to each comment. But I have to approach a certain one as of now.

Phunt is it?  It's obvious that you want to stay unknown. But I have a question for you. Why are you putting Nehemiah down?  Do you know what Nehemiah's fees are and what the other fees are? Do you understand, that after October 31st, at least for now, that Nehemiah will be the only one allowed to operate.

Again, I am not trying to sound rude, but one thing that I don't care for is when someone says something, but doesn't present the facts. I sometimes don't say things in the politically correct manor. That's because I am direct and to the point. Politician's aren't, because they they want to be everyone's friend and have no enemies.

If you can clarify your position and why, I would appreciate that. And to give us examples of these costs per nonprofit companies.  thanks 

Thanks for the info and link.

Hello Jeff,

I am not putting down Nehemiah, it is because of Nehemiah that these programs exist so for that I am grateful! Yes, they will be the only ones around to provide down payment assistance after October 31st. This is due to a lawsuit from back in 1998 stating that HUD would give them 6 months if the event this exact ruling ever came to pass. Their fees differ depending on different factors, i.e. new construction, resale, sales prices, etc. but they can be up to $100.00 more than other companies. Just merely a point! 

I, too, am direct and to the point and don't always say things politcally correct. My position is clearly in support of DPA's! HUD refuses any suggestions to put restrictions on the DPA companies and these programs to address the performance issues in lieu of shutting them down.  They also have disregarded the House 's position on this matter (see below).

I don't think that the general public realizes that HUD does not have a true and justifiable position on this matter, in my opinion! It should always be a concern to the general public that governmental agencies are allowed to do whatever they choose,(as Nehemiah's lawsuit points out -see below) without regard!

Nehemiah Corporation of America Responds To HUD'S Rule Banning Private Downpayment Assistance Programs

- Files Lawsuit against HUD in Sacramento Federal Court Seeking an Injunction Blocking Implementation of the Rule -

- Nehemiah Granted Six-Month Exemption -

Sacramento, CA - October 1, 2007

The following statement was issued today by Scott Syphax, President and CEO of Nehemiah Corporation of America in response to HUD's unilateral decision, despite widespread Congressional and popular support, to promulgate its rule to ban privately-funded downpayment assistance programs effective November 1, 2007. Nehemiah is the oldest and largest privately-funded down payment assistance provider, and to date has provided gifts to almost one-quarter of a million families, enabling each of them to become a homeowner.

"HUD's action to move forward with banning privately-funded downpayment assistance programs is outrageous and we have responded by filing a lawsuit in Federal Court yesterday to challenge the merits of HUD's damaging rule and to seek an injunction blocking implementation of this rule. It is inconceivable that HUD has taken this action in complete disregard for the House's passage of legislation that would block it, driven by strong bipartisan support from House Financial Services Sub-Committee on Housing Opportunity Chair Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-California) and fellow committee member Congressman Gary Miller (R-California). To date, privately-funded downpayment assistance programs have helped over 600,000 families become homeowners, and have been credited not only for helping people buy homes, but also stabilizing neighborhoods and cities and creating stronger families. As evidenced by the over 15,000 letters sent in opposition to HUD by families across the country, programs like The Nehemiah Program continue to be a lifeline for families working to reach the dream of homeownership. Further, broad opposition to this proposal by groups including the National Association of Home Builders, the Mortgage Bankers Association, the US Council of Mayors, and National Association of Counties speak to the validity and importance of seller-funded downpayment assistance programs. We remain hopeful that the legislative process reaches a successful conclusion."

Pursuant to an April 1998 settlement agreement resolving litigation between Nehemiah and HUD, the rule will go into effect six months after the date of its publication for the Nehemiah downpayment assistance program. During the six-month exemption period, Nehemiah will continue to provide families in need with important downpayment assistance and lead the fight against HUD's rule.

For additional information, please contact: Shelley Mitchell, smitchell@nehemiahcorp.org, 916-231-1999

This is one of the reasons Active Rain is so worthy of our attention.

Hooray for this post. I adore this place to put my feelings out there and to read what experts in our industry have to say I want so many people I know to have this information.

Nehemiah is going to help a lot of people. will it be one of your clients family or friends?

Thank you for posting this very valuable information. It seems that the Fed is encouraging a recession every time a decision like this one is made. I hope that alternatives to these programs are introduced so that home ownership remains in the reach of first time home buyers.

Jeff,

 Great post.  I have been using Ameridream for a few years and nehemiah before that.  Ive done hundreds of these and to my knowledge only have 1 that went to foreclosure.  These are great programs that help people.

Please keep us posted with further updates.

Jeff, yes I have buyers and sellers who do not want to pay for the assistance and i do see these programs going away in the oh so near future. I heard around April 2008?

Keith & Robin......  thanks for the information. Rey Gallegos sent me something on this. It's okay that they themselves say this, but I will wait until it is mentioned in HUD's mortgagee letter.  I won't believe too much until it's written in stone. thanks for the compliment and for the info.

Al......  my overall opinion... use Nehemiah. As you can see, phunt mentioned that Nehemiah is more expensive. Okay, buy only $100?  Again, I preach service. I sometimes might be more than my competitor, but you will get better service, inferior knowledge, and  I will give you options also. Just my opinion.  thanks

Teri....  thanks. Never heard of Genesis....  and more expensive?  We need to evaluate this. Nehemiah has this stuff together... I get e-mails, updates, quick responses... you get what you pay for. In all honesty, $499 is not that much. How could you expect great follow up for anything cheaper. Besides, from what it looks like, nobody else, except possibly AmeriDream, will be able to operate after the 31st of October. Question, how much cheaper is Genesis?  Gee, have the lender pick up the extra $100 then.... 

I am not bashing any DPA program, but again, when you say cheaper, what are we talking about then, pennies?

Matthew.....  thank you very much... good to see you and thanks for the compliment.

Brett.....  they should have always been popular. The reason why they weren't was 2 reasosn....

1. It costs money to be FHA approved. You know how many lenders are trying now?  A lot... I hear this from reps. that accommodate brokers.
   
2. it was easier to put the client into a subprime loan. The sad thing is that you can make just as much or sometimes more on a FHA than a subprime loan and still give a better rate. People hate to learn and sometimes take the easy road.

Yes, FHA has gained ground and this won't slow them down... even if they take DPA's away....  why not?  There aren't too many other options, especially when it comes to credit scores. Again, just my opinion, some would argue this.

Mitchell..... thanks and thanks for the compliment. In regards to the seller paid closing costs.... no, sellers can still pay up to 6% of the sales price. The only problem is that it can't be used for down payment. And the buyer needs to use 3% of their own money, so sometimes that 6% won't cover everything. And the best part is that you can use the seller help and a DPA program in conjunction and get a great rate also.  Thanks for the question.

Thomas W. ...... thanks Tom... in regards to having 30 days to close, all of them but Nehemiah. And maybe AmeriDream, which I guess we'll know in a week or so.

Gary.....  you make a good point, but HUD is not in the business to have anything go into foreclosure or in default. The numbers don't lie, the DPA programs have a higher ratio of foreclosures than doing a regular FHA loan. Trust me, I like to have all possible weapons on my side to help more clients. I am just looking at this from both sides. It's easy to judge when it's not your own money.

phunt....    here is a comment that you made...  "Down payment assistance companies DO NOT APPRAISE THE PROPERTIES! That is as simple as it gets!"   Sure, this is a fact. One fact that is missing is that the lenders that use these programs can abuse these programs very easily. It's called fraud. You can get some appraisers to over appraise a home. You can get certain underwriters to accept these. Or...  an appraiser can use false comps to fool and underwriter so they can jack up value. It's been done before. These are facts, not opinions.

Then you go on to say that HUD has their own approved appraisers. Okay.... but who uses them?  My appraisers have to be FHA approved and that's it. Now, VA appraisers are a different story. I can't pick my own appraiser when it comes to VA loans. But HUD?  I can use who ever I want as long as they are FHA approved. So, not sure what you are trying to say here.

Than you talk about the fact that this is a great program. Understand this, all programs are subject to fraud. This one fits the bill and it can be easy for all to do. Sure, the DPA companies aren't at fault for this. It comes down to appraisers, lenders, title companies....   and as I have stated before, the DPA programs have a higher default rate and foreclosure rate. Sorry, I like an help that I can get, but this is reality.

In regards to the other company that you gave to Jaime, American Home Buyers, Inc....  why?  After 30 days from now, you won't be able to do a DPA with them. Just curious, why even mention them then? 

Mike M. ..... thank you very much for the polite compliment... and good to see you.

phunt..... again, why even bring this company up and say that they have until October 31st?  That's less than 30 days. Which means the client has to be approved FHA and the money delivered in time for closing from the DPA company. Why take that risk?  If you miss the date for whatever reason, now you have to start ALL over with Nehemiah.

And I already asked you about the difference in cost. You still never answered that question though. Are we talking about a mere $100?  As I told you before, I am never going to be the cheapest, but you will get more value and bang for your buck with me in most cases. The same with Nehemiah. Do you always go for the cheapest in everything?    Buy the cheapest made tv and you will be buying a few more in the same time frame if you would have paid just a few more dollars. Another fact of life...

Sally..... my pleasure and thanks for stopping by.

Pam - I don't want to get into the lively conversation you and Jeff are having but I will make a few points. 

1. Anonymous comments are ok sometimes - but most boggers won't take you seriously on anything you have to say unless they know who they are talking to.
2. It's not proper etiquette to leave a link to a particular website in someones comments unless invited to do so.
3. It's also not very proper to not mention that the site you linked is also your site and not an impartial arms length reference.  (see: "Try www.americanhomebuyersinc.com they are a great company!")

Just my two cents.  Carry on...

Ah my dear Jeff you are a wealth of information...in all the hullabalou about the DPA programs disappearing I missed that the 6% seller credit was still available --

thanks and thanks for the compliment. In regards to the seller paid closing costs.... no, sellers can still pay up to 6% of the sales price. The only problem is that it can't be used for down payment. And the buyer needs to use 3% of their own money, so sometimes that 6% won't cover everything. And the best part is that you can use the seller help and a DPA program in conjunction and get a great rate also.  Thanks for the question.

Thanks! As usual good valuable information that can be used to build our business!

He'ssssssssss backkkkkkkkkkkkk and with a "star" too boot!!!  Welcome back.. glad to here your busy and settling into the new company.   

Okay and now....... I'll go back and read your post.....  

Phunt....  yes, Nehemiah did start all of this. And if you do some studies, there have been many of these so-called DPA companies claiming to be nonprofit companies, but really weren't. This is one reason why the IRS has gotten involved also.

Overall, I don't think that you are looking at this from both sides. If this was your money and you knew the percentages in regards to foreclosures, you might be hesitant in lending the money. We are human and it's easy to be on the other side. One reason why I have been very successful in what I do as a loan officer.

When I review a deal, I try to view it just as an underwriter. So many people stick crap up against the wall and then it slides off. I have an excellent closing ratio because of this. Not trying to toot my own horn, but you need to look at this from all different view points. Just my opinion.

Lynne.... yes, this is one excellent reason in regards to posts like this, is because of Active Rain. I have learned so many different aspects of my business and industry because of AR. And thanks for your enthusiastic compliments and comments.

Kotambu.....  my pleasure. But my viewpoint on the economy and a recession....  we have been in a slight recession for the last 5 years. So many numbers have been played with and not looked at correctly. Look at items that are bought on credit, but with no interest and no payments for 18 months or so. The actual money did not funnel into the economy. There is so much more to this. Just don't look at this as putting people out of houses. Remember, all you need is 3% of your own money to get into a house. On a $300,000 house, that is $9,000.  How I grew up, if I really wanted something, I saved for it. So many people want it now. You could save $9,000 in a 1 1/2 years if you really wanted it. I am not trying to be harsh, just practical. Just think about it. Just so easy to think that we are taking the American Dream away from people. But they will go out and buy that $30,000 or $40,000 car. Again, there is so much that I could add to this. Just think about it.

David.... thanks for the comments. And I can understand that you have had only one go into foreclosure. But if the foreclosure rate is higher on the DPA's than a normal FHA, then someone is getting people houses that possibly can't afford them, but they push the envelope. There are so many pros and cons on this. And trust me, I am all about doing loans and using things to my advantage. But we need to look at everything from all different angles. thanks again for your compliment and for stopping by.

Susan....  I am confused, nobody wants to pay for this type of program?  Does the seller not want to sell their home? Are you telling me that the buyer wants to get into the house with nothing, not $1? Does the loan officer not want to do the deal?  We are talking about $499 to do the program. SAD.  ....   The biggest person that I would blame then would be the buyer. And these are usually the houses that go into foreclosure, the person that does not put a cent out of pocket. Why?  Because they have nothing vested into their new home. 

In regards to when Nehemiah could possibly be gone?  I wrote up top in this post, March 31, 2008. Thanks for stopping by. 

Mike.... I don't get into it anymore.... some people just don't know. I could delete the link, but it's about a program and not from an actual competitor of mine. But what is sad is this person is actually part of this company. It is easy to find these things out, right?  It's called the internet age. Just a few clicks and bingo. Thanks for jumping in here....

Kate....  ;o)  Don't make me blush. Seriously, just trying to point out things that people sometimes forget and or overlook. In your case, someone that is learning all of this, who is a sponge of information, and loves to learn.  Thanks for the compliments.

Desiree....   how did you do that?  I am so illiterate when it comes to certain functions of the internet, the computer, and gadgets. But thanks for the warm welcome and the compliment, it brought a smile to my face. Hope you didn't get lost while reading this.  ;o)

My graphic...  gumi   ;o)   

I'm not even gonna touch this one.  Jeff, I'm convinced that you and I can go to a tennis match and a hockey game will break out.

All kidding aside, the conversation, while lively, is very informative.

Brian....  pretty funny.   Thanks for stopping by and go Phillies....

Hi Jeff,

You are back and with a vengeance, I might add!  This is great info for us to know.  You always amaze us at how knowledgeable you are about what you do!  Thanks for sharing this with us.

Hi Jeff,

As always great information and so very nice to see you back! :)

Jeff--Just had a lender switch a client out of Nehemiah for Genesis. Both are FHA zero down programs...don't know the details but it was significantly cheaper for the buyer all the way around with payment and out of pocket costs. This client referred a friend to the same LO and program last week...Hope it will be around when they are qualified and get to me!  :)

Lisa....  thanks for the compliments and yes, it's good to be back. Thanks for stopping by.

Suzanne.... thanks and thanks....  ;o)

Teri....   I am some what concerned by your comment. I'll explain why. Loan officers will sometimes make it look like they are doing clients a favor by saying that they are saving them here, there, and here. In regards to DPA programs, it's very simple when it comes to the ins and outs of what it costs. When you say significantly cheaper, I can't see how. Nehemiah charges one fee, $499. That's it.....  no other fees and it does not affect the payment.

So, my question to you or to the loan officer, how does it make the payment cheaper?  In my honest opinion, the loan officer is talking circles around someone. FHA sets the rates per se, nobody else. Well, Wall Street does. The DPA's have nothing to do with the rates. So, that leaves the costs. How much cheaper can a DPA be?  Maybe a $100?  You really can't charge anything less. They have administration to pay for. Even though a nonprofit, they need something to keep them going.

Do this, have this lender break it down, and the difference between Nehemiah and Genesis. Have them break down the costs and the payment. This could be an education for everyone.  Thanks and keep me posted. 

Jeff - just checking back in and read your wise advice. Thank you! I think I will follow it and have my processor check into Nehemiah. $100 is much better than egg on face at the closing table! Thanks for the quality post!

Great post. I just heard of this and I hope that these programs are not cut because they are very beneficial to buyers with little or no down payment. One of the reasons is because borrowers who recieve this assistance are more likely to fall behind on payments.

Jeff--In this particular case, the clients were supposedly qualified for Nehemiah under one loan officer who dropped the ball. The one who picked up the ball used Genesis instead. I saw the Good Faiths from the first program and the actual payment on the second as that is the program they ended up in. But the loan officers were different so fees charged could have been different as well.  The actual program's cost could be just $100 difference...I think it had less to do with significant cost difference than preference to a particular program as she didn't like the Nehemiah program...We were under time constraints as well...less than 10 calendar days to turn a loan around and close on time so maybe the lender she felt most confident with had the Genesis product. They actually sound like very similar programs.

I guess my original question was, are all of these programs gone after 10/31? That would be too bad.

Mary.....   my pleasure. I just don't know why people would push the unknown, when we know that Nehemiah is at least valid for the next 6 months. From what I know, everyone else is done by the end of this month.  Keep me posted.

Adrian..... thanks for the compliment. Well, not so much that they will fall behind, but because they have nothing invested. Think about it.... don't you usually have a little more pride in something that you had to put money into?  Usually.... now, I know this is a little different. It's a house that so many take more pride in. But numbers don't lie.

Teri.....   my opinion is that the first loan officer was charging more fees then. Maybe a higher rate. Again, the only fee for this program, at least in regards to Nehemiah, is $499. Nothing else is different and this is where education comes into play. Nothing against you, but realtors and or consumers would have heard this on the street and think Genesis is the way to go. It's misleading because you have two different lenders. 

This happens with the same respect when one lender might collect 6 months worth of taxes on their good faith estimate and the other lender would collect 4 months. 1 lender might collect 15 days in interest and the other lender might only collect 5 days. All of this adds up and if the borrower looks at the bottom number, it can be very misleading.  Hope this helps some.

My advice, compare each line item, not the bottom dollar. Compare all lender charges which are always line 800 items. Anything outside of this is a true estimate. 

Jeff--They actually sound like very similar programs and as long as the LO really knows the program, it shouldn't matter much...Thanks for your clarification...Now do you think that both of these programs will be gone after 10/31?

Teri.....   As it stands, unless AmeriDream gets the nod and an extension for 6 months also, all DPA programs except for Nehemiah will end at the end of the month.  

Thanks for your feedback.