Comments on: 5 Reasons Why New Jersey FHA Streamline is the Best Darn Mortgage Refinance Program

By: CAROL

CAROL — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 19:33:27 +0000

@dcates – Hmmm, sounds like you were doing business with a lender who was brokering their FHA loans OR, had too many loans and got backlogged, OR the rate was never locked. We would have had your loan closed in November at the latest. FHA 30 yr rates are not as high as 5.25%. Still under 5.00% in fact – as of today. Your original quote of 4.375% is no longer available w/o significant fees. If it’s still worth it to you, try to find a lender who will underwrite and do everything in house to close your loan. If you chose one of the big banks (i.e. Wells, Bank of America), you might want to keep in mind that nothing that big moves fast. Good luck.

By: Darrell

Darrell — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 15:15:14 +0000

Same situation with me. Started process in Oct10 and just cancelled the process yesterday. Had a lock at 4.3785%n but expired and they pushed a 5.25% on me yesterday. I’m at 6% now. Hard to talk to anybody, multiple faxes of info, went through 3 people. Excuses they didn’t expect rates to go up, damand was high, etc. They are always “at a meeting” with voicemail hell. Streamline loan its not. Should have dumped them in November. Big time missed opportunity. You are not alone.

By: Carol

Carol — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 16:12:23 +0000

Sorry to hear your frustrations Charlotte. “Promise” is an uncommon term to use when referring to rates. Do you recall if the rate was ever “locked?” This is the terminology we use to refer to interest rates being guaranteed for a certain period of time. It sounds like you have something else going on with trying to refinance (that you might not know about) since you say you have been dealing with several companies. The FHA Streamline is a very simple loan to do. Borrowers are either qualified or not and we know that almost immediately once we have your information. Your lender has nothing to gain by holding onto your file hoping that rates go up. I doubt this happened.

The mortgage business is state-regulated. Complaints are made to your State Banking Department. Seems your biggest complaint is a lack of lender communication.

If you want to phone me, I will look at what you’re trying to do and let you know your options. It is tough to handle all the details in online discussions. As I stated, I get the feeling something else is going on. FHA Streamline loans should close quickly. Shoot me an email from my Contact page or call me.

Good luck Charlotte.

By: Carol

Carol — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:57:35 +0000

Marcel, 2 things come into play for that one-year requirement: (1) how much equity you have in the property, (2) whether you are trying to refinance to get cash out.

If you merely want to refinance to lower your rate (without paying off other debt or getting cash back), there is no 1 year requirement. You can refinance using the FHA Streamline program. No employment verification, no income verification, no appraisal. It’s a very easy way to refinance.

Let me know about the first 2 things above and I can give you more info.

By: charlotte giarratano

charlotte giarratano — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 05:11:16 +0000

I have been trying to streamline since January when I became eligible. I have dealt with several companies. They have all been prolonging the process, not communicating with me, ignoring me. Now they are saying the 5% and 5.25 percent they promised me was never promised. I think they intentionally sat on my paperwork, waiting for the rates to go up. I am trying to find a bank that is honest and will not rip me off. And, what can I do now that the rates went up. I am furious and very upset. Please advise me if I can complain to anyone who regulates the streamline process. I do not want to lose the rate that was promised to me. I have been through so much the last 6 months. This was supposed to be easy, just a phone call, as long as I qualify and I do. And, the only thing that was supposed to chang was my percentage for the life of the loan. This is how it was explained to me when I refinanced into the hud loan. Begging for someone to help me with this. Please?!

By: marcel

marcel — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:52:12 +0000

i have owned my house for only 7 months. i have a FHA loan and i was told i can not refinance until i have owned it for 1 year. is this true?

By: Carol

Carol — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 22:24:21 +0000

I presume you are referring to how much you can borrow as it relates to your home value.

It’s entirely possible you saw outdated information online. FHA has made a lot of program changes over the past 18 months. Effective as of April 2009, the maximum new loan amount for a refinance (where some cash is used to pay debts, etc.) is 85% of the appraised value of your home. It had been 95% for a very long time. The change was no doubt due to the continuing drop in home values. FHA does not want to have mortgages on the books that quickly exceed property value.

Could it revert back at some point? Perhaps. But, we’re probably stuck with 85% for a while. Let’s hope it doesn’t go lower. If you need to refinance, I encourage you NOT to procrastinate. Changes occur constantly – rarely to the benefit of the borrower. What you can do today might be gone tomorrow.

By: clipperjack

clipperjack — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 01:12:39 +0000

I’m confused by info I have read online. If I refinance with the fha and want to pay off some bills, how much more than I owe can I borrow?

By: Carol

Carol — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:16:52 +0000

No, FHA does not offer interest only mortgages.

By: Carol

Carol — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:15:54 +0000

You can refinance with just yourself on the new mortgage if you can qualify on your own – your income, your credit, etc.

This can also be accomplished as part of the FHA Streamline refi process w/o having to worry about requalifying. In order to do a streamline refinance, you must refinance to a lower FHA rate. If your current FHA rate is already low, this option might not work.

As a suggestion for right now, be certain your mortgage payment is paid with a check from your account, not your mother’s. You will have to eventually prove that you have made the payments for the prior 6 months. Leann, give me call to discuss in detail. I’ll let you know if it can work for you.

By: Leann

Leann — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:31:03 +0000

Also meant to ask if fha has loans for interest only.

By: Leann

Leann — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:30:24 +0000

Right now I do have a fha loan. But my mother is on the loan because she helped me when I was buying my home. Can I refinance with this kind of program but not have her on the loan with me?