10% Down Jumbo Mortgage with No PMI With the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee poised in June of 2018 to increase in the rates that impact home equity lines of credit ("HELOCs"), home buyers who have traditionally used "piggyback" or "80-10-10" solutions to purchase a home with less than a 20...

05/29/2018

Lock Watch for the Week of 5/28/2018

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Lock Watch for the Week of 5/28/2018 Volatility-O-Meter:Last week saw some reprieve from the persistent selling and this week's GDP and jobs numbers could either counter or build the trend. Today, however, a special thank you to all those who have served our country. Economicalendar (all times a...

05/28/2018

How Deep Is Your Credit History?

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How Deep Is Your Credit History? "My credit is excellent! I have, like, a 950 score!"With such hyperbole (FICO scores range between 300 and 850) you'd almost expect this to be a quote from the president. But in reality, we hear such statements frequently in the mortgage business. And it makes p...

05/24/2018

Lock Watch for the Week of 5/21/2018

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Lock Watch for the Week of 5/21/2018 Volatility-O-Meter:"The beatings will continue until morale improves." Economicalendar (all times are Pacific):Mon, 5/21: Quiet. Tues, 5/22: Richmond Fed Mfg Index (7am). 2-Yr Note Auction (10am). Weds, 5/23: PMI Composite Flash (6:45am) and N...

05/21/2018

Should You DIY Your DTI?

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Should You DIY Your DTI? Just like the Julian and Gregorian calendars separate time between B.C. and A.D., the passage of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Financial Reform Act separates the way mortgages have been qualified. Loosely, before Christ (and in my opinion, Barney and Chris did hold themselv...

05/17/2018

Lock Watch for the Week of 5/14/2018

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Lock Watch for the Week of 5/14/2018 Volatility-O-Meter:Relatively quiet week aside from a lot of Fed member speeches, but I am going to put oil prices on the radar too. Heightened Middle East tension could spill over, through oil, into stock and bond markets. Economicalendar (all times are Paci...

05/14/2018

Lions and Tigers and PMI, Oh My!

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Lions and Tigers and PMI, Oh My! There are a number of things you should legitimately be afraid of in this life --- great white sharks, cigarette smoke, Scott Pruitt's EPA --- but private mortgage insurance (also known as "PMI") is not one of them. We're going to cover the basics here and I'm go...

05/10/2018

Lock Watch for the Week of 5/07/2018

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Lock Watch for the Week of 5/07/2018 Volatility-O-Meter:Inflation readings on Weds/Thurs plus auctions should keep the bond market active. Economicalendar (all times are Pacific):Mon, 5/7: Quiet. Tues, 5/8: JOLTS (7am) and 3-Yr Note Auction (10am).Weds, 5/9: PPI (5:30am) and 10-Yr...

05/07/2018

What's a Qualifying Payment on a Mortgage?

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What's a Qualifying Payment on a Mortgage? Qualifying. It's always harder than it looks, right? I've talked before about my erstwhile career as an Ironman triathlete and for those familiar with that sport, they'll confirm that qualifying for the race in Kona is way harder than they make it look...

05/04/2018