Fannie and Freddie's Pricing Pushing Borrowers Into FHA; FHA Pushing Back
By: Freeman Liz
May 11, 2010
If you're buying or refinancing a home today, the decision of FHA versus conforming isn't as straightforward as it used to be. Choosing the high-LTV loan with the best mortgage rate a few years ago usually meant going with Fannie or Freddie. In the not-too-distant past, FHA mortgages came with a 1.75% upfront mortgage insurance premium, which could be financed, plus a .50% to .55% annual premium. You only had to put 3% down. On the other hand, Fannie and Freddie offered 97% financing too,
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More Than 80% Surveyed Say Today Is a Good Time to Buy a Home
By: Freeman Liz
April 22, 2010
More than 80% of 708 respondents to a survey by Realogy Corp said that today is a good time to buy a home, even though many of them are not eligible for the first time home buyer credit. And nearly 80% of them feel that current mortgage interest rates are either affordable or very affordable. So while the survey found that people were more worried about the economy than they were a year ago, they also understood that with home prices down 30% nationally from 2006, and mortgage interest rates still low (despite the Fed's pulling out of the mortgage-backed securities market at the end of March), owning a home in this country is more affordable than it has been in a long time.
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Are the Best Mortgage Rates Behind Us?
By: Freeman Liz
March 29, 2010
Weak demand for last week's offerings in treasury auctions sparked sharp increases in mortgage rates, with lenders repricing for worse several times on Wednesday and Thursday. This was a bit dismaying for many who had been fairly confident that the upcoming exit of the Fed from the mortgage-backed securities (MBS) market this month would have little effect on rates
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Don't Even Think About Paying Your Mortgage Early If.....
By: Freeman Liz
March 19, 2010
While you can find gazillions of articles extolling the wisdom of paying off your mortgage early, and suggesting several schemes for doing do, there are many, many reasons for keeping your money out of your mortgage. Here are several reasons for holding onto your money.
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New Mortgage: How Much Can Shopping Really Save You?
By: Freeman Liz
March 10, 2010
You don't know what the best mortgage rate available is unless you do some checking. What difference does it make? A lot. Paying 5.25%, means a difference of instead of 5% on a $300,00 mortgage means paying $47 more per month, and $17,123 more over the life of the loan -- probably worth a few hours of shopping when you get your next refinance.
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HARP Refinance Program Extended
By: Freeman Liz
March 02, 2010
The Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) has been extended for another year, hopefully to get more underwater borrowers into cheaper financing. The program, which allows borrowers with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgages to refinance up to 125% of the current value of their property, has so far helped only about 125,000 of the three to four million borrowers expected to benefit from it.
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The Future of Fannie and Freddie?
By: Freeman Liz
February 24, 2010
The National Association of Realtors has put together a proposal for converting Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into government-owned non-profit agencies, a move the industry trade group feels is essential to keeping the lowest mortgage rates available to most American home buyers.
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Lenders Better at Policing Mortgage Fraud -- Signs to Watch For
By: Freeman Liz
February 15, 2010
Mortgage fraud is any attempt to deceive a party in order to induce participation in a mortgage transaction. And while lender fraud has gotten the bulk of the media coverage, according to the FBI's Web site, the majority of mortgage fraud is perpetrated by borrowers against lenders. However, while government has professed to being very interested in protecting the consumer, it's pretty much leaving it up to the lending institutions to protect themselves. Here's what they look for:
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How Are Borrowers Expected to Buy and Finance Responsibly When Even the Mortgage Bankers Association Can't?
By: Freeman Liz
February 10, 2010
It's not surprising that hundreds of thousands of laypeople with little financial education got into financial trouble, buying property they couldn't afford and finding themselves unable to pay their mortgages. But when the experts at the Mortgage Bankers Association make the same mistake, that's newsworthy.
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January 19th Best Mortgage Interest Rates and Lock Recommendation
By: Freeman Liz
January 19, 2010
LOCK ALERT *** RATES HOLDING, LOCK BEFORE THURSDAY ***
