Getting an FHA loan used to be a person’s last choice when sales of homes were thriving. Prospective homebuyers did not want to go through all the documentation and sellers didn’t like the requirement by FHA for any needed repairs to be completed before closing.Now that home prices have been declining, asking for a FHA loan has become routine.Mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration are enjoying a crowd pleasing comeback due to lenders making it difficult to be approved for conventional loans. People who have refinanced or bought a home this year using an FHA loan has increased over last year by well over 150 percent and refinances [...] Continue Reading…

In today’s real estate market things have changed a lot when borrowers are pursuing a home loan qualification or approval.It was only 12 months to 24 months back, that all you needed to qualify for a loan was a credit score and a job. The creativity to get you approved was endless. Terms could be made for almost anyone.Want to pay interest-only and get qualified using the interest only payment? It’s a done deal. Can’t afford the even the interest only payment, pay less than interest only? OK, you’re approved. Were you self-employed for less than two years? Not a problem. No income documentation or asset evidence? That is [...] Continue Reading…

A down payment is very important when you are buying a home because it can lower your monthly mortgage payment and also build your credibility with the bank. In this economy the banks are looking for a 15-20% down payment because the real estate market has been going down. As the market goes down the bank has less of a chance to get their money back if you don’t pay the loan.Your down payment will also increase the amount you can buy because it will be less of a monthly payment. The amount you can borrow from the bank is based on your monthly income so if your mortgage [...] Continue Reading…

In the mortgage industry, there are mortgage loans approved without requiring proof of the borrower’s income or assets. These are termed as “liar loans”or Alternative-A loans (ALT-A loans for short). Some of the worst types of these in involve proving no income, no job and no assets. This is known as the “ninja loan”. The industry calls them bad but in fact if utilized the correct way by requiring a down payment and not offering them to investors. These loan types would still be in favor. It just so happened that wall street money offered them to people with ridiculously low credit scores and sometimes zero down payment. It’s [...] Continue Reading…

With the lenders in a mortgage crisis the mortgage companies are getting more and more creative with the types of loans they have and how to put the 20% down without having to pay the PMI. A lot of institutions are using a combo mortgage loan with a equity or personal loan so that you can have the necessary down payment needed to get the loan. The question is to decide whether this is the best option for you, what are the pros and cons of getting this type of loan?First you need to be educated about PMI and what it does for you. Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) allows [...] Continue Reading…

One of the most important things a home buyer can do t save money is to shop for the right mortgage lender.For example, let’s say you are getting a loan for a home in Texas, but the lender is in New York and you may receive a good faith estimate based on New York Loans. What will happen is you will be very surprised once you are at the closing table.It is also significant to consider the lender’s experience, reputation, knowledge, and loan program selection. If you are like many who simply call companies and ask “What is your rate for X loan amount?” it is not the best [...] Continue Reading…

It is sometimes disheartening to see most of us get weighed down by our problem on down payment preventing us to transition from a renter to a homeowner. With the way things are going in the real estate market, it seems we are getting even farther away from our dream home.Your available equity that is used as down payment will have bearing on the types of loans which you can attain. In general, a traditional or generic mortgage loan, one that is guaranteed by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae, would require a minimum equity of 5% from the home buyer as a cash down payment. This increase in the [...] Continue Reading…

What exactly is considered a jumbo refinance?Welcome to the big leaves of home mortgage refinancing. This kind of refinance is when a mortgage exceeds the conforming limit set by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. These federally chartered institutions provide funding to retail mortgage lenders. The limit is adjusted annually based on average home prices.For 2007 the limit for of these refinances was $420,000 for one single family home in the CONUS. If the increase has caused your loan to now qualify as conforming then you may have a possibility of benefit from refinancing.This is mostly due to mortgages over the conforming limit will carry a slightly higher rate than [...] Continue Reading…

Jumbo mortgage loans are making a comeback. The considerable disparity in mortgage rates between jumbo and conforming mortgages is rapidly diminishing as mortgage lenders are freeing up more capital by making more conforming mortgage loans salable to both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In addition, because investors are being particularly cautious with their money these days as a result of the existing credit crunch, banks are finding more and more resources in their coffers, resulting in more money to lend in the non-conforming mortgage arena.Historically, jumbo mortgage rates have always been higher than conforming mortgage rates. Because of the recent housing crisis, the gap in rates widened significantly. Now, [...] Continue Reading…

You may have encountered the word jumbo mortgage loan. Have you ever wondered what it really means?To make this term easier for you to understand, a loan is considered a jumbo mortgage loan once it has exceeded the certain amount allotted for a mortgage loan. As of 2006, a loan more than $417,000 is already considered a jumbo mortgage loan. On 2005, it was only $357,650.The approval process for a jumbo mortgage loan is similar to the approval process for all standard loans for all lenders. However, a jumbo mortgage loan’s interest rate is typically 25% higher than a standard loan. The good thing is that its interest rate [...] Continue Reading…