Why Do Lenders Waste Borrowers’ Time If The Loan Can’t Be Done?

If you’re looking to apply for a mortgage loan, read this article from the Philadelphia Inquirer before you pick a lender.  Columnist, Al Heavens tells it just the way it is.  And it’s a story that’s all too common. The borrower wants to refinance and makes a call to a lender.  Let’s face it.  Without a [...]

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Another Big FHA Change That Will Make You Pay More – Effective October 4, 2010

Have you been sitting on the sidelines waiting to refinance your FHA loan?  After reading this, you might want to put some pep in your step, or else you will pay much, much more And here’s why. Effective October 4, 2010, when you apply for an FHA mortgage, the cost of your monthly mortgage insurance will [...]

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Is the 30-Year Mortgage a Con?

No, the 30-year mortgage is not a con – not exactly.  But it sure is a good deal for the fat-wallet Wall Street banks.  If I could get large groups of people to pay me interest for 30 years, it would make my day. The large majority of borrowers have 30 year mortgages because that’s what [...]

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Another New Lender Change – Beware of Credit Inquiries Between Application and Closing

Effective immediately, before your loan closes, your credit report will be pulled again.  Not to check your score necessarily, but to see if you applied for and obtained credit elsewhere while your loan was in the application and underwriting process.  It could be for a credit card, an auto loan, insurance . . . anything.  [...]

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Were You Mortgage Scammed By “Esteemed Lending Services”?

According to the Federal Trade Commission, there has been a rapid increase in the number of scam mortgage sites.  For a long time, the biggest scam sites running were for loan modification services.   You’ve seen them everywhere.  People set up fraudulent sites claiming they can get your mortgage modified to a ridiculously low payment and they [...]

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FHA Mortgage Insurance Premiums Changing Once Again Effective September 7, 2010 – Your Payment Will Increase

Will they ever get it right? David Stevens, Federal Housing Commissioner, has issued a “Special Edition” press release confirming that both upfront and monthly required FHA mortgage insurance will be modified on all FHA case numbers issued on or after September 7, 2010.  The changes will have a huge impact on any FHA borrower who needs to [...]

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Are Homeowners Really Getting Loan Modifications Approved?

Short answer:   Not many.  On Monday, June 21, 2010, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a monthly report that revealed more loan modifications are canceled than approved.  This comes as no surprise to anyone who’s staying on top of the HAMP program.  And falls far short of the expectations of Obama and the Treasury [...]

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Tell Me Simply, Why Are Mortgage Rates So Low Right Now?

Avoiding a course in Economics, let me share one of the primary causes of mortgage rate fluctuations – in a very simple manner. When people, companies, etc., want to invest their money, they make decisions about how much risk they want to take.  With our economy and the overseas economy being rather up and down [...]

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New York Attorney General Warns Loan Modification Companies To Cease Illegal Activity

Who’s that dude in the mask? He’s the guy you paid $2500.00 to modify your loan. Seem strange? Maybe. But that’s what thousands of borrowers have done and will continue to do out of desperation. Anthony Cuomo, New York Attorney General, is doing what he can to put a stop to bad loan modification companies [...]

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But Won’t It Benefit Me If I Refinance With My “Current” Lender Since They Know My History?

It is quite common to hear borrowers say they will refinance or want to refinance with their current mortgage lender because they have good credit and have paid their mortgage on time.  The thought behind this is that the current lender will give them something great because of their good history.  This is a fallacy. [...]

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Can I Get the Home Buyers Tax Credit? You Can If You’re in Prison !!

Who says serving a life sentence doesn’t come with perks?  Despite being in prison, nearly 1,300 inmates wrongly received more than $9 million in new homebuyer tax credits.  After all, isn’t it possible to buy a home while you are in the slammer?  Is this a qualification exclusion that the guidelines neglected to mention? Not only did 1,300 [...]

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As a Borrower, How Do I Shop For a Mortgage Loan If I Can’t Get a Good Faith Estimate From My Lender?

When HUD made the much-talked about changes to the Good Faith Estimate (GFE) effective January 1,2010, it rolled out with several major flaws.  The most noticeable and problematic being that lenders will not prepare a GFE for a new home buyer until the buyer has a property address for the home they want to buy.  That means [...]

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