fha: HUD's proposed changes to FHA lending programs...and what this means for Sacramento home buyers and sellers...
- 01/20/10 12:26 PM
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is planning to make some changes to its FHA loan program. Hmm...the announced changes include: Mortgage insurance premium (MIP) will be increased to build up capital reserves and bring back private lending. Per HUD's press release, "the first step will be to raise the up-front MIP by 50 bps to 2.25% and request legislative authority to increase the maximum annual MIP that the FHA can charge." This change will supposedly take place this coming Spring 2010. Eventually, they plan to shift this from an up-front fee increase to … (0 comments)
fha: HUD Suspends its "Anti-Flipping" Rule! What this means for Sacramento FHA Home Buyers...
- 01/15/10 01:12 PM
If you follow me on Twitter, you will already know that I "re-tweeted" an earlier post from the California Association of Realtors regarding a temporary suspension of a HUD lending rule that has prevented many buyers from purchasing "flipped" homes.What is a "flipped" home? As you can probably guess, this is when an investor purchases a home with the intent to resell it for a profit.The rule has been that a buyer using an FHA loan can not purchase a flipped home until the title to the home has been held by the current seller for 90 days or more. A … (2 comments)
fha: Thinking about buying a Sacramento Condo? See if the community you love is FHA or VA lending approved...
- 01/11/10 03:49 PM
I have received several inquiries over the last few months from buyers seeking to purchase condos in Sacramento. Those buyers are enticed by the idea of home ownership for an affordable price, low maintenance living, community amenities (clubhouse, swiming pools, tennis courts, fitness centers), and more. There are many benefits to living condos...heck, the first home I bought at age 19 was a condo.Many of the buyers who have been contacting me are seeking to use FHA or VA loan programs in order to make their purchase. UGH. Nothing frustrates me more than having to tell excited would-be condo buyers that … (1 comments)
fha: FHA Energy Efficient Mortgage Program - make your new home GREEN!
- 10/09/09 06:14 PM
I am frequently asked about the FHA Energy Efficient Mortgage Program by buyers seeking to purchase homes in need of energy efficient upgrades. This programs allows buyers to finance the cost of energy efficient improvements through the mortgage loan. The buyer's loan can be increased according to EEM guidelines to cover energy improvement costs. Monthly mortgage payments increase slightly, but the buyer generally will save money on a monthly basis over the term of ownership of the home because energy bills (power / gas) are decreased...A buyer can borrow up to 5% of the value of the property (not to exceed … (2 comments)
fha: FHA Streamline Refinance
- 05/11/09 01:26 PM
I attended a presentation given by a representative of Fannie Mae last week at the Sacramento Association of Realtors "Real Estate Finance Forum" and learned some great information about an FHA program that many folks are unaware even exists!The FHA Streamline Refinanace is pretty slick...if you have an existing FHA loan on your home and you have made on-time payments for the last 12 months, you may qualify for a refinance of your existing loan if you are not taking cash out, and if the overall goal is to lower your principle and interest payments. According to their guidelines, your credit score itself is … (3 comments)
fha: FHA Tightens Underwriting Guidelines for Folks Converting Existing Homes to Rentals
- 10/07/08 04:35 PM
I blogged about changes to the Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac underwriting guidelines concerning keeping a home as a rental property and purchasing a new property a couple months ago. These changes have now hit FHA lending guidelines as well. Last week HUD released new temporary underwriting guidelines surrounding this practice.Unfortunately, there are folks out there who have been producing phony rental agreements for the home they are vacating, closing escrow on their new replacement home, and then allowing their "rental" home fall into foreclosure. This is known as "Buy and Bail."Directly from the language in HUD's Mortgagee Letter 2008-25:"Recently, FHA … (1 comments)
fha: Ask Erin: The Comeback of FHA Loans
- 04/15/08 07:38 AM
If you talk to most loan officers who have been in the business for a while, they will tell you that aggressive conventional loan programs have been far more popular over the last decade than FHA loans.Given what is going on in the real estate market, and the death of the majority of the aggressive loan programs - FHA is making a comeback. Not only is it making a comeback, but the program has evolved over the last several years...For those of you not familiar with FHA's requirements...allow me to dispell a few myths. Basically anyone can qualify for an FHA … (1 comments)
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is planning to make some changes to its FHA loan program. Hmm...the announced changes include:
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