Home sales rise

Take a look at this article about recent home sales.

We are in the right market for growth.

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/23/financial-dispatch-home-sales-skyrocket/

Financed Mortgage Insurance

There are still many options when it comes to mortgage insurance for a home. You might be familiar with the monthly option that is now tax deductible under certain circumstances. But there is also Split Monthly which is a portion upfront and then a smaller amount monthly, Lender Paid which is added to the interest rate or Financed which is added to the loan or paid in cash. The financed mortgage insurance is similar to FHA or VA because you can add it to the loan amount and like the VA there is then no monthly which makes your monthly payment less.

New Job No Problem

There is good news concerning Teachers, Physicians, and others hired using a contract. We have always been able use an employment contract as source of income. The good news is that we are able to close prior to starting the new job as long as the first pay is scheduled within 60 days of closing. This applies to irrevocable employment contracts that are typical with Teachers and Medical professionals.

Raleigh housing market ranks first - Business - NewsObserver.com

Raleigh housing market ranks first - Business - NewsObserver.com

New FHA rules coming

FHA has faced large losses due to economic conditions and people losing jobs. In order to help with some of the losses they are increasing the upfront mortgage insurance to 2.25% from the current 1.75%. This is not the first time FHA has increased the mortgage insurance. At one point in the 1990's the rate was 3.25%. This increase makes no difference in the amount of cash needed at closing and works out to be on average 4.00 more per month. FHA is a great way to buy a home if you have less than perfect credit scores, and have limited cash.

Tax Transcript

As banks continue to look at losses there are more layers of rules and documentation being required.

Most lenders now require that a tax transcript be pulled from the IRS. If you have a loss from a business that you or your spouse work at part time that will be now subtracted from your income.

How to improve your credit

I get calls everyday from potential buyers asking me to check their credit. What lenders are looking for in a credit profile has changed and the word is not really out. A lender is looking for at least 3 active credit tradelines that have been open for at least 12 months.

For a little while we heard close your credit cards you aren't using. Well now that is not the case. Even if you rarely use a store credit card it is probably better to just leave it open showing that you have good credit with that store. The other major change is never use more than 30% of the credit limit that you do have with a charge. That means if you have a 1000.00 credit limit don't charge more than 300.00 and then pay the balance in full every month.

This week recap

Well here we are two weeks into 2010. Interest rates are moderating under 5.00% for the A+ borrowers. Both Fannie and Freddie are working on changes to guidelines further tightening the lending restrictions. FHA is also expected to raise the downpayment requirements and most likely the mortgage insurance rates.

If you have a buyer who is thinking of buying before the 8,000 tax credit expires the end of April I would suggest buying soon. The downpayment might go up from 3.5% to 5%. That is significant for first time buyers.

Call or email me anytime and I will pre approve your buyer in a few minutes.

Enjoy the nice weather.

Happy New Year! Tomorrow the changes start.

Well 2009 has been an interesting year. I am always optimistic that rates will remain low, and lending rules will ease up a little from the knee jerk reaction of 2 years ago. It hasn't happened yet but I will continue to hope.

As of tomorrow the new Good Faith Estimate (GFE) will be mandatory. This was created to simplify the lending process and give consumers a way to shop for a mortgage. The old GFE was one page and the new one is 3 pages. To add to the confusion the new 3 page GFE doesn't even have the monthly payment on it. This is going to be a time of trial and error working out the kinks in the new forms.

All of this new paperwork is to prevent buyers from being tricked into a bad mortgage loan. Well the best way to make sure that doesn't happen is to use a lender who is knowledgeable, honest and local. I look forward to a great 2010 helping you and your clients. Thank you for a great 2009.

Bookmark and read daily

I am going to try to post all news on this blog site. So I am going to have a contest. The first 5 people who come into my office and tell me thephrase listed at the end of this post will recieve a prize.

Thank you for your attention.

"Together we will have a successful 2010"

2010 Great Year to come

The new year will be here this week. 2010 is expected to be better than we have seen in the last 5 years. Are you ready? I am ready to help your buyers get their finances in order so they can buy a home when the right one is available.

Happy Holidays

I will be working throughout the holiday so call or email me with any questions or pre approvals.
Thank you for your support and friendship in 2009, I feel like a member of the family here.
2010 is going to be a great year for all of us.

Merry Christmas

Janet Duffy

No Origination Fee

Did you know that you don't have to pay an origination fee? There is always an option to pay no origination fee and no discount points. This can be a great way to save some cash for other moving expenses or down payment. Rates are so good right now that it might be a good option.
The rates that are shown on this site are national average with no origination fee.

Attorney Please

As of January 1st when I do a good faith estimate I will have to fill in the exact attorney fees. This means that I will need to have the attorney and their fees much sooner than you have ever had to give it.
Fortunatley we have a 3 month learning curve before the fines and penalties kick in.
We are formulating a list of attorneys now and their fees so if you have a favorite please let me know soon.

Get Ready

The storm is coming.

This weekend will be a great time to get in touch with all those people that we are too busy to connect with. Maybe someone you talk to will be thinking about making a change in the new year.

I will be available all weekend and in the office weather permitting on Saturday.

Have a safe weekend and enjoy the time with your family and friends.

Advantages of a Mortgage Banker

Where can you apply for a mortgage on Monday and have an approval on Wednesday? FM Lending of course. Since we have in house underwriting we are able to fast track our files and get them closed in the minimum allowable time, which is now 7 days.

Your clients are important to us and we want you and your client to have a great experience. Since we rely on referrals for our business our reputation and service are the keys to our success.

New Respa rules you need to know about...

At this point I am sure you have heard about the new HUD1 that will take effect Jan 01,2010. There are other changes that started in August that you need to keep in mind when writing a contract. Now the earliest that you can close on a purchase transaction is 7 days from the signing of the mortgage application. If there are any changes in the seller assistance for repairs or negoications that effect the APR by more than one eighth of a percent then there is a 3 business day waiting period from the date of disclosure of the change.

Christmas 2009 Kildaire Office

A great time was had by all who attended this years Christmas Party at Prestonwood Country Club.