What makes a loan a Jumbo?Jumbo loans are classified as a mortgage that is above $417,000 in most areas of Texas. Before the shakeup in the mortgage industry that was the limit for all of the US. So if you lived in many parts of the East or West coast, a high percentage of the mortgages were in the Jumbo category. In 2008 Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac put increased the limit in “high cost” areas. Currently in many parts of California you can get a conventional loan for over $700,000. This is all based on the median house price in a given area.A quick history of Jumbo MortgagesAny loan that [...] Continue Reading…

Qualifying for an FHA program refinance may not be as easy as they would have you believe. The guidelines seem to contradict each other at times, and others are just downright confusing. Trying to figure out the positive and negative aspects of this government backed program may help in finding out if you can qualify for this type of refinance. FHA refinances generally allow you to finance up to 95 percent of the value of your home, depending on certain factors. They also claim to offer the best available rates regardless of your credit score. However, judging by the guidelines that are put in place for qualifying for an [...] Continue Reading…

With the housing and mortgage markets in peril, the jumbo loan is on the brink of extinction. Many lenders who offered jumbo loans have ceased doing business and many lenders that once offered jumbo loan programs have pulled them off the table. Purchasing a home using a jumbo loan is hard enough today, getting approved on cash out or debt consolidation jumbo mortgage loan refinances is even tougher. Fewer lenders today offer jumbo loans than ever before leaving many buyers with few choices when it comes to jumbo loans. One bit of relief came from the economic stimulus act of 2008 but it is only temporary and provided [...] Continue Reading…

Mortgage rates are near record lows right now and many people are trying to refinance a mortgage to take advantage. However, I think that throughout 2010 mortgage rates will gradually rise. This does not make refinancing a bad idea but it will make it cost more and a few homeowners will no longer be able to benefit if rates rise. Here are my mortgage interest rate predictions for 2010 and how I made them. Homeowners looking to refinance right now can benefit from interest rates that are around 5% for a typical fixed rate mortgage. A general rule of thumb is that if a homeowner can save 2% [...] Continue Reading…

Private mortgage insurance is an additional fee that a lender may require if you do not put down the minimum down payment towards a house, usually around 20%. Does this mean that you can not get the house? No! A lender may option for you to get PMI (private mortgage insurance) which in the case of a defaulted loan, the insurer will pay the lender anywhere from 20-30% of the mortgage balance.The lender will option for you to get a PMI if they want extra insurance that they will get at least most, if not all the money back that they borrowed. Even if they do lose out on [...] Continue Reading…

The current mortgage market is a difficult one for buyers, with rising interest rates causing considerable consternation among homeowners. But for those on fixed rate mortgages, the next few months could prove particularly painful, as deals come to an abrupt end and mortgage payments shoot up. In some cases, monthly mortgage bills are expected to leap as much as 40%.In the summer of 2005, tens of thousands of people took out a two-year fixed rate mortgage, making the most of interest rates as low as 4.25%. Since then, however, the Bank of England has raised interest rates four times to an uncomfortable 5.5%; and some economists are predicting a [...] Continue Reading…

It’s no surprise that so many Americans are looking for ways to buy a home with a low down payment.After all, with so many other costs associated with a home purchase — like closing costs, furniture, moving expenses, etc. — coming up with a large down payment isn’t always an option. So the idea of buying a home with a low down payment can be very appealing to many buyers, especially first time home buyers.Many people mistakenly believe that a down payment of at least 20 percent is required in all mortgage scenarios. This is the way things were for a long time. But these days, there are more [...] Continue Reading…

Millions of homeowners are eligible to get a mortgage refinancing through use of President Obamas stimulus plan. This plan enables millions of people to get interest rates lowered to as low as 2%, and other huge mortgage refinancing benefits, in an effort to lower payments and save homes from being lost. Here is how President Obamas stimulus plan helps homeowners who are refinancing a mortgage. This plan from Obama is backed by over $75 billion in Government funds. The stimulus targets over 8 million people who are having a hard time paying their home loan every month, and need to save money, avoid losing their home, or both. [...] Continue Reading…

What is a Jumbo Loan or a Jumbo Mortgage?Quite simply it is a loan that does not conform to the guidelines established by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac or exceeds the conventional loan limit is called a Jumbo mortgage loan. In most states, home loans that exceed $417,00 to $1,000,000 are considered Jumbo Mortgages. Jumbo Mortgages carry slightly higher interest rates than conventional home loans. This is because when any loan is sold to an investor it is packaged in bundles of several million dollars. For example an investor might purchase a loan bundle that is valued at 3 million dollars. In that bundle, lets say that there are [...] Continue Reading…

Mortgage refinancing is a great way to save your home from being lost to foreclosure, save money every month, or both. Many people are taking advantage of super low interest rates and new mortgage refinancing options available from President Obamas “Making Home Affordable” housing stimulus plan. Here are some reasons that refinancing a mortgage right now with Obamas stimulus plan can benefit you. Many homeowners are aware that President Obama has announced a stimulus program to help them, but are unaware of what it can do for them. This stimulus plan is designed to help prevent homeowners from losing their home and get into a better and affordable [...] Continue Reading…