A lot of chatter about the First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit
Let's start with the basics about the First Time Homebuyer's Tax Credit.... Yes, it has helped some that might not have bought. It has given people money after buying to help fix up their homes, pay off debt, or save for emergencies. And ___________. ... wait, I really can't think of anything else. Has the Tax Credit been a mechanism that has artificially stimulated the economy? Some will say yes and some will say no. I will be one of those … (19 comments)
The number one myth - FHA loans are more expensive than conventional loans!! - FALSE -
Protection of your family & home purchase will always be with a loan officer with knowledge & integrity… not telling you what you want to hear to make a sale!!
PS… this might be a tad long & boring, but worth it if you are buying/refinancing a home.
I received this e-mail from a borrower yesterday buying in WA. Here are some parts of his e-mail. … (20 comments)
Give it to me all..... the more that you have down, the more things will work out, that you won't leave your home. And as an investor, I will feel much better. Give it to me, every dime. Here is my point. There have been a few articles written in the last week or so and several of the comments are screaming for more skin in the game. These comments aren't just coming from realtors and loan officers, thinking that this will help correct the foreclosure market and the housing market, but this is also coming from the government. … (91 comments)
FHA streamline loans are very beneficial in many ways. A few things to keep in mind. FHA streamlines don't take that long, up to 10 days, and the FHA streamline rates are the same as regular FHA loans. When comparing FHA streamlines to conventional refinances, depending on your credit score, the FHA rate in many cases will be much better. Keeping this in mind, use a loan officer that is very familiar on how these types of refinances work. Just because it's easy to the naked eye, one still needs knowledge of how to make this work for … (13 comments)
FHA loans to 5% down? A 5% down payment for FHA loans?
I totally understand the issues at hand, that many agencies are now having more loans foreclose, that more loans are being lost on the books, and that lawmakers are re-looking at FHA's 3.5% downpayment to possibly raise it to 5%. Here is the article in question written by Rich Edson of Fox Business. Proposal would boost FHA Down-Payment Requirement. I have a few concerns, not only what some politician wants to do, but the reasoning behind it. If you read the article, Here … (53 comments)
I have been in the mortgage business for 17 + years. I have seen so much advertising when it came to mortgage companies and how many of the ads were misleading or just flat out lies. Those companies advertising low rates that didn't happen. This easily went on from 1992 to 2002. I always wondered why this wasn't regulated as strongly as it should have been. I found out that some of these companies had 100's of complaints, yet they still operated for those 10 years. … (47 comments)
HUD released a new mortgagee letter on September 18th, 2009, mortgagee letter 2009-28, that is titled Appraiser Independence. HUD wanted to clarify a few things in regards to FHA loans and adopt some of the guidelines from the HVCC guidelines for conventional loans. HVCC - Home Valuation Code of Conduct
FYI – I read a blog from Friday that was title, FHA is adopting HVCC as of January 1st.
This is misleading and I wanted to clarify this. HUD is adopting some of the rules & guidelines set within the HVCC. In the new FHA mortgagee letter, … (17 comments)
FHA loans seem to be one of the main choice of mortgages in the last 12 months or so. There are many reasons for this. And FHA loans will definitely be the main choice for anyone buying a condo now. More on that later.. What I hate hearing is that FHA mortgages have taken the spot of the subprime loans. This is not true by any part of the imagination. This statement is from those that are inexperienced in both the mortgage and the real estate industries. The realization has been that 30% of the subprime mortgages from … (9 comments)
Yes, credit guidelines have gotten tougher, but NO, you don’t need a 700 credit score.
Here we go again, with realtors making things sound semi easy. There was a question on Trulia last week, and the buyer said that they heard that you needed credit scores of 700. And what do you do if you have scores from 614 to 620.
Here was part of the answer from a realtor answering the question. "You can actually purchase a home with a credit score in the 500'sdepending on job history, etc. I have … (53 comments)
FHA loans have many features that still aren't talked about as much as one would think, because they are still fairly new to more than have of the loan originators out there. Now, some might argue half is very extreme, even though this is my opinion, I will still stick to this statement for many reasons. As a loan officer with more than 17 years of mortgage experience, the non-occupant co-borrower program is very simple to understand. FHA will allow a … (14 comments)
How many of you are sports fans? Or just that you understand how it works sometimes. And that's when you rave about your team or a specific player. Yet something happens or that person goes into a slump. Now you drop them like a sack of potatoes. Well, in the real estate world of things, this seems to happen more than we would like at times. People can tend to be creatures of habit. When the tough get going, they go.... but wait, is it really even that bad? … (12 comments)
How many times have we heard that time is money??? One thing that I keep hearing is how long it takes to close FHA loans. Just the other day, Michelle Gibson wrote : FHA loans approved & closed in 15 days? - I have been doing mortgages since 1992 and my first FHA loan was in 1993. On average, up until this past year, they could easily be done in 30 days or less. The typical time was 3 weeks. There are too many bad rumors that surround how FHA mortgages work and … (15 comments)
Do you think you are helping the situation, but actually hurting the situation by answering a question?? I am sure many of us want to help answer a question, giving our honest opinion and such. Hoping that it could give some good insight to helping that person with their question. But how many times could this actually turn against the person seeking help, answers, and some guidance? I bring this up, because I signed up for Trulia questions a few months ago, and I see so many realtors answering questions that should be handled by a professional loan officer. … (74 comments)
As many of us know in the real estate market, FHA loans are being used more than ever before. With the disappearance of the subprime market of 2 years ago and in several cases, that conventional loans can be more expensive, more FHA loans are being utilized. I just wanted to point out some basics, because I am still hearing some misleading information that makes me cringe from time to time.
FHA loans are more expensive than conventional loans. - FALSE This one is always a favorite of mine. Right now, forget about the pricing hits on the … (10 comments)
DISCLAIMER : This topic might tick off some of those that do play both roles, who are a loan officer and a realtor. Sorry, but I have a problem with this. Just hard core mortgage related facts.
So, how many hats do you wear? Sure, I wear many hats as a loan officer, but in my opinion, it's all part of my job. What about those that are actually a loan officer and a realtor though? How many more hats do they need to wear? Sure, if you are one of those that do both, I am sure … (31 comments)
Dual Agency can sound like a harmless word, right? We are suppose to trust anyone in the real estate and mortgage industries, right? Sounds simple enough when the person representing you says that they have your best interests at hand. But wait, let's dig a little deeper, because not every realtor will explain it correctly to you, hoping that you truly don't understand both sides of the equation.
Let's define Dual Agency. - Is when a real estate agent is representing both the seller and the buyer at the same time in the same transaction. Since we are … (100 comments)
BEWARE – A very boring topic below, but important to understand. (please read the whole thing before you assume what I meant by the title of my blog, about FHA loans.)
What first comes to mind when you hear the word junk? -- Crap? -- Old? -- Trash? What about the term, junk fees? Closing cost junk fees? Answer dot com gives you a definition of this and an example. - Junk Fees - Many people, even realtors and loan officers, assume that fees other than points charged by the lender are junk … (27 comments)
The day before settling on your new home, your lender tells you that you have been denied for x,y,z of a reason. You ask how this can be because your lender has had your mortgage application for over 30 days. You are furious.... Well folks, this has been a very touchy topic of lately, those loan officers that issue pre-qualification letters or pre-approval letters. There was a comment on my previous blog, Pre-Qualification letter vs Pre-Approval vs Commitment letters - Knowing the differences. The comment was written by a loan officer with 7 + years of experience. Just a FYI... I am … (20 comments)
Mortgage Interest Rates - When people shop for mortgages, one of the first things they want is to know the interest rate. Not only that, they want the best and lowest rate. When your average loan officer hears this, they usually don't want to lose you as a client, so they might low ball the rate a little. It doesn't matter if they put this quote on the good faith estimate. It's just an estimate on a piece of paper that until you have a property and have locked into this rate, some loan officers won't honor this … (14 comments)
Does this sound easy to answer? Which came first, the chicken or the egg? How about this question.... Do you know the difference between a pre-qual letter and a pre-approval letter? Both answers could differ greatly, depending on who you speak to and who is a professional on the subject matter and who isn't. I just wanted to dig a little deeper into this. There seems to be a major misunderstanding in my opinion. You first need to read this post by Steve Kappre & the comments: Pre-Approvals that pack a … (40 comments)
I just want to educate people about mortgages and the process.
In regards to lending, I am very creative, intuitive, honest, and one who communicates information, may it be good or bad. I am a loan officer that looks out for your best interest.
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