first time home buyers: Reasons to buy a Home NOW - As seen in The Wall Street Journal - 09/14/10 07:35 PM
In this Wall Street Journal Video Brett Arends discusses the top 4 reasons to buy a Home now: Mortgages are cheap You can get a good deal on the home It's a protection against inflation, and There are many homes to choose from Watch the video and let me know your thoughts. If you would like to get pre-approved, complete this short request form on our company's website. … (1 comments)

first time home buyers: Will California extend the $10,000 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit? - 03/20/10 04:36 AM
As reported in my blog posted on Jan 14th the California governor is considering to extend the $10,000 First-Time Home buyer Tax Credit that expired last year. Here is the link to that blog post that gives you all the details - CA Proposes extension of $10,000 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit. Here is the video of a recent Press Conference by the Governor on this topic: … (2 comments)

first time home buyers: California Mortgage Rates for 5 year ARM sink below 4% - 02/05/10 04:39 AM

The Mortgage Rates for a 5 Year adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) sank to 4% (and lower in some cases)* yesterday for California homes. Freddie Mac average rates released on yesterday reported 5 Year ARM at 4.27% at 0.6 points. But the rate improvements later in the day has opened up great opportunities for California home owners and First Time Home Buyers. This could be great news if:
You already own a home but plan to move out by 2016. You are a First-Time Home buyer and would like to move up in next 5-6 years. You plan to pay off or substantially … (0 comments)

first time home buyers: New $10,000 California First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Proposed - 01/14/10 12:59 PM

In the final state of the state address of his gubernatorial career, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed a second round of $10,000 first time home buyer tax credit. The previous tax credit depleted eight months before the deadline after benefiting almost 10,700 California home buyers. The Franchise Tax Board stopped taking new applications at the start of July, 2009.
What this means is if this proposal is indeed passed California First Time Home Buyers can potentially get $18,000 in Tax credits. There is a Federal Tax Credit of $8000 + the new proposed $10000 California First Time Home Buyer tax … (4 comments)

first time home buyers: FHA delays implementation of HVCC for Sunnyvale Mortgages - 12/26/09 06:02 AM
 
FHA delays implementation of HVCC for Sunnyvale Home Loans until February 15, 2010. FHA announced today that the enactment of Appraiser Independence has been delayed. This was originally planned for a January 1, 2010 implementation.
On the lines of HVCC, the FHA policy prohibits mortgage brokers and commission-based lender staff from the ordering the appraisal or communicating directly with the appraiser at any stage during the transaction. Since implementation of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) for conventional loans in May 2009, many challenges and difficulties with appraisals have been reported, such as low appraisals, inexperienced appraisers, out-of-area appraisers unfamiliar with a local neighborhood, and problems with Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs).
Sunnyvale first … (2 comments)

first time home buyers: Affordability index dropping in Silicon Valley - Why is that a bad news for First-Time Buyers - 11/29/09 03:33 AM

California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) measures First-time Buyer Housing Affordability Index (FTB-HAI) on a quarterly basis. This measures the percentage of households that can afford to purchase an entry-level home in California. The higher the index, more affordable it is for a first time buyer to buy a home. Before getting into the numbers, lets first quickly understand how it is calculated. The measurement is based on three main factors:
Median Price of existing Single-Family homes (based on C.A.R.'s monthly existing home sales survey) Effective Interest Rate (based on the one-year, adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) from Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey) … (1 comments)

first time home buyers: First Look by Fannie Mae - Great News for San Jose First Time Home Buyers - 11/25/09 04:24 AM
 
Fannie Mae announced a program called "First Look" which will help First Time Home Buyers compete with investors for foreclosed homes in San Jose and rest of the Bay Area.
Under the program, dubbed First Look, Fannie plans to consider offers only from potential owner-occupants and certain public-housing entities during the first 15 days in which a foreclosed home is on the market.
Many investors can move faster on home purchases because they are able to pay cash and don't have to wait to qualify for a loan and get an appraisal. If you are a San Jose First Time Home … (1 comments)

first time home buyers: San Jose New Home Buyer Tax Credit - Explained in a video format - 11/12/09 04:37 AM
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first time home buyers: San Jose Home Buyer Tax Credit - Who, When & How of it! - 11/07/09 04:43 AM

it's official. President Obama has signed a bill that extends the tax credit for first-time homebuyers (FTHBs) into the first half of 2010. This program had been scheduled to expire on November 30, 2009.
In addition to extending the tax credit of up to $8,000 through June 30, 2010, the extension measure also opens up opportunities for others who are not buying a home for the first time.
So Who Gets What?
The program that has existed for FTHBs remains intact with the one exception that more people are now eligible based on an increase in the amount of income … (0 comments)

first time home buyers: Government's Role in Housing - How Far will it Go? - 11/02/09 05:17 AM

This year Government has announced a ton of programs to prop up the Housing Market. Some of the major programs have been geared towards Foreclosure Prevention by launching 125% refinance program and incentivising Loan Servicers for modifying loans for struggling home owners. The Higher Conforming Loan Limits up to $729,750 would also be extended through 2010. Of course, all this has come with increased regulation. My focus on this blog is to talk about 3 actions that has had the most impact:
Action #1 – Buying Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS)
The Government earlier this year decided to buy $1.25 trillion … (2 comments)

first time home buyers: 95% LTV now available in San Jose on Conventional Loans - 11/01/09 01:44 PM

Borrowers in San Jose and rest of California may now get 95% Loan on Conventional Mortgages.  The increased Loan to Value Ratio (LTV) is available on following programs:
Freddie's Home Possible (Fixed Rate only) FNMA MyCommunity  (Fixed Rate, 5 yr ARM and 7 yr ARM) The Loan must meet the following criteria:
Must be a First Time Home Buyer Purchase Transaction only 680 Minimum Score Requirement 1 unit property only (SFR and PUDs.  Condos maxed at 90% LTV) 2 months PITI reserves required after loan closing Full appraisal required 3% Seller Concessions maximum allowed; Downpayment can come from gift Must complete … (0 comments)

first time home buyers: Fannie Mae Homepath financing for San Jose REO Homes : No Appraisal or MI required - 10/30/09 02:35 AM

Homepath was created to facilitate the purchase of the bulk of REO properties in San Jose and rest of the bay area currently  serviced/guaranteed by FNMA (Fannie Mae).
Highlights:
As little as 3% down allowed for owner occupied! As little as 10% down for non owner occupied and 2nd Homes! No Mortgage Insurance! No Appraisal Needed - Value determined by Sales Price You may qualify even if your credit is less than perfect Loan Amounts up to $801,950  allowed Loan Term Available : 30 Year Fixed Transaction Purpose : Purchase Only Borrower Eligibility
First Time Homebuyers allowed Non-Perm Resident Aliens not … (3 comments)

first time home buyers: Get ready for 90 day escrow on a San Jose condo with FHA Financing - 10/12/09 12:54 PM

If you are planning to buy a Condo in San Jose or other parts of the state and planning to get an FHA loan keep reading. FHA has made some major changes to their condo guidelines and they go into effect of Nov 2nd, 2009. Some of the highlights:
Currently lots of condominium projects in the bay area is approved by FHA. However, any project approved prior to October 1, 2008 loses it's pre-approval and must re-apply. To find a list of approved projects, visit the HUD link https://entp.hud.gov/idapp/html/condlook.cfm. Make sure under approval method pick the option - "HRAP/DELRAP". Thats the new … (0 comments)

first time home buyers: First HVCC, then MDIA and now DRASTIC changes to FHA - 09/20/09 05:41 PM

Federal Housing Administration (FHA), which insures lenders against losses on home mortgages, announced a series of changes that will have far-reaching impact on the housing market of San Jose, the entire San Francisco Bay Area and rest of the country.
Background -
The agency confirmed that, as of Sept. 30, it would fall short of a legal requirement that it maintain supplementary reserves of 2% of the loans it insures. Those reserves supplement a fund that provides for projected claims over the next 30 years. The extra capital cushion last year was about 3%, down from 6.4% in 2007. Falling … (1 comments)

first time home buyers: 95% CalHFA Loan+3% DownPayment Assistance+$8000 Tax Credit for Bay Area First Time HomeBuyers - 08/24/09 06:25 AM

I have blogged about CalHFA 5% downpayment program & $8000 First Time Home Buyer Credit in my earlier posts. This post will help you  find all the details on 3% down payment assistance program.
The California Homebuyer’s Downpayment Assistance Program (CHDAP) is a deferred payment, simple interest rate junior loan not to exceed 3% of the sales price or appraised value, whichever is less. The junior loan may be combined with a CalHFA first mortgage loan that is available for only 5% downpayment.
CHDAP may be used as additional down payment or to pay closing costs as allowed by CalHFA, the Lender and the mortgage … (0 comments)

first time home buyers: CalHFA 5% DownPayment Program for Bay Area First Time HomeBuyers - 08/24/09 02:48 AM

California Housing Finance Agency or CalHFA in short recently launched it's new program called Cal 30 - Conventional for First Time HomeBuyers in the San Francisco Bay Area and the rest of the state. This conventional first mortgage features a fixed interest rate, fully amortized loan over a 30-year term.  It has a maximum Loan-to-Value (LTV) of 95%. Below are some of the other highlights of the program:
Maximum Loan Amount - The loan amount is limited to the maximum Fannie Mae conforming loan limits. Currently, this is $417,000. Fannie Mae high balance loan limits are not available.
Property Eligibility - Sales price of the home … (1 comments)

first time home buyers: Buying a Condo in Bay Area - It won't be easy getting a mortgage! - 07/20/09 04:28 AM
A lot of surge in current Bay Area real estate market is being driven by First Time HomeBuyers. Some sources estimate that they now account for 50% of the market. A lot of First Time HomeBuyers end up buying condominiums since it fits into their budget. In this market of low property prices, you may be able to buy a condo for almost the same mortgage payment as the rent that you are paying. However, in last few months Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac have implemented lot of new guidelines for condos which will make getting a mortgage very tough. Lets … (0 comments)

first time home buyers: 6 Myths of FHA Lending - What's True What's Not! - 07/06/09 05:11 AM
Though FHA Lending now represents more than 30% of mortgages, there are still a lot of misconceptions that both real estate agents and the First Time Home Buyers have about this program. All the myths that I have listed below have been raised to me numerous times. I finally decided to post a blog on this so that I can clarify this to a much larger audience.
1. It takes longer to close an FHA Loan- Towards the 2nd half of last year when FHA loans started exploding, most of the lenders were caught off guard. They did not have enough trained … (5 comments)

first time home buyers: FHA vs Conventional Loans. Which one is better? - 07/01/09 03:44 AM
If you are asking the question - FHA vs Conventional Loans, which one is better? You are not alone. I was speaking at an FHA seminar for real estate agents in Fremont, CA recently. The topic was "How FHA loans are playing a big part in qualifying more First Time Home Buyers". At the end of the presentation, I was asked this question - "Are FHA loans really better than conventional". I had similar questions asked by Buyers and Real Estate agents in other forums too.
There is no black & white answer to it - because it all depends on … (3 comments)

first time home buyers: CA $10,000 Tax Credit is Almost Over for Silicon Valley First Time Buyers - 06/28/09 06:10 PM
This is not a good news for first time home buyers in Silicon Valley and rest of the state. CA state tax credit of $10,000 for First Time Home Buyers has reached the $100 million limit.
Background - In April this year California government made the $10,000 tax credit (or 5% of the purchase price whichever is less) available to qualified buyers who purchased a qualified Principal Residence that has never been occupied,  after March 1, 2009 and before March 1, 2010. The buyer must reside in the new home for a minimum of 2 years immediately following the purchase date. The government … (1 comments)