September 2010

Underwater on your current NON FHA loan

What can you do if you are underwater on your current NON FHA loan, but are current on the loan (I DIDN”T say anything about having been late-just current), and would like to refinance.    There IS a new program–The FHA short refinance.  Before you get too excited, let me cover a couple of the “details’.  First, you must have a non FHA loan to start with.  Then, you can refinance into an FHA loan-up to 97.75% LTV (same as before) and up t0 115% CLTV.  The borrower is subject to maximum DTI-debt to income requirements (generally 31%)- as well as there must be a property valuation issue and current income impairment.

The key is that the first mortgage investor must write off at LEAST 10% of the existing mortgage debt and accept the payment as settlement in full.  The second investor must discount their position as well.  Is this likely???  If the borrower is “current” on the payments, why reduce the loan??  If the loan is insured with mortgage insurance, why take the loss?  If the second lien holder can sell their position to someone else or decides to look at pursuing a deficiency judgement, why would they want to do this.

Here is the HUD letter link

http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/letters/mortgagee/files/10-23ml.pdf

So, while I think the intentions are good, I think the actual application will be small.  What I’ve been seeing in the Twin Cities marketplace is that most lenders are refusing principal reductions and instead opting for foreclosure.

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FHA Mortgage Insurance Change-October 4th

For 30 year mortgages, the upfront is moving down from 2.25% to 1% and the monthly is moving from .55% to .9% for those putting less than 5% down and .85% for those putting more than 5% down payment.  Here is a link to an article discussing the changes:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/05/AR2010080506663.html

The question you might be asking is “is this a consumer benefit?” Here is one interpretation:

http://www.thinkbigworksmall.com/mypage/archive/1/52542/

On a separate note, doing a short refi with an FHA loan MAY be possible if the servicer agrees.  Here is the FHA rule:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/letters/mortgagee/files/10-23ml.pdf

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FHA Mortgage Insurance Change-October 4th

For 30 year mortgages, the upfront is moving down from 2.25% to 1% and the monthly is moving from .55% to .9% for those putting less than 5% down and .85% for those putting more than 5% down payment.  Here is a link to an article discussing the changes:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/05/AR2010080506663.html

The question you might be asking is “is this a consumer benefit?” Here is one interpretation:

http://www.thinkbigworksmall.com/mypage/archive/1/52542/

On a separate note, doing a short refi with an FHA loan MAY be possible if the servicer agrees.  Here is the FHA rule:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/letters/mortgagee/files/10-23ml.pdf

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Data.gov – A Cool Site With Lots Of Great Info

http://www.Data.gov I just found this site and wanted to share it.  It has a ton of info and reports.  If you have a project or just an “inquiring mind”, this is sure to be a hit.  Check it out and get the data you need.

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Homepath.com is Fannie’s Foreclosure Portal

Fannie Mae posts their foreclosured properties with a Realtor of their choice and also on http://www.HomePath.com.  What is cool about a Homepath property is that many times they will qualify for Homepath loans (requiring only 3% down) and no appraisal.  They also have a homepath Renovation loan.  There is a program called FirstLook, which allows certain selected developers and non profits to purchase these homes for rehabilitation first, so you might loose a home that is really a good deal. Still, don’t let this deter you.  I recently sold a home in Brooklyn Center that was a HomePath property.  It was pretty nice, just a little dirty. Because it was in very good shape, we were able to use FHA financing.  I’ve found that FHA financing is cheaper than Homepath with a minimum down payment.  We’ll have to see if that changes in the future.

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Short Sale Tips for Buyers

By Robin Husney

If you are in the market to purchase a home, you may want to consider buying a short sale. If you are not under any pressure to sell your current home, don’t have a time frame to move into another home and have good credit, you are the perfect homebuyer for short sales.

When a homeowner owes more money than their home is worth and needs to sell their home before succumbing to a foreclosure or because of a job change, the home can be sold through a short sale. This benefits the lender because they won’t have to go through the time, effort and money to put the home through the foreclosure process and it helps the homebuyer out because they are then able to put their home up for sale. This can only be done when the lender agrees to allow the home to be sold for less than is owed on the mortgage.

- Don’t let the name fool you. Short sales are typically anything but “short”. They can take several months to finalize. Because of that, you may want to continue looking at other homes while the short sale process is underway.

- While the buyer and seller determine the sale price, the bank makes the final decision on whether the price is acceptable or not. So, even if you and the seller agree on a price, the bank can come back and say “no”.

- Submit a realistic offer. Unlike traditional sales, submitting a low offer is not recommended. You can pretty much expect that a bank will reject a low offer right away. In fact, even a reasonable offer may not be accepted right away. By submitting an offer for what you legitimately want to pay for a home is the best thing to do on a short sale.

- Check out the neighborhood comps. Your REALTOR® can help you with this. You will be able to submit an appropriate offer if you know what other homes in the area are selling for.

- Homes are sold “as is”. While banks need to repair and clean up homes they are selling in foreclosure, a short sale isn’t held to those same rules.

- Banks make the rules. It’s up to the bank as to what they will accept as a downpayment, whether an offer is good enough for them, etc. There are no “rules” set in place for short sales. It really is up to the bank’s discretion.

It’s always a good idea to hire a specialist to help you with your short sale needs. They will work on your behalf to make sure that things run as smoothly as possible.

Robin Husney
Allen Tate Realtors
Charlotte, NC
704-517-6370 * http://www.robinhusney.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Robin_Husney
http://EzineArticles.com/?Short-Sale-Tips-for-Buyers&id=4926498

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Selling Your Home Quickly in Today’s Real Estate Climate

By Adrian Hargray

Selling a home quickly in today’s economy has proven to be a tough thing to do. Nowadays you find homes on the real estate market for longer than 30 days and it can literally take months for it to sell. If this is the scenario for you and your home, then you will learn some home selling tips in this article that will prove to be beneficial to you.

To sell your home fast, you should never over complicate the process of doing so. You will want to renovate and repair your home accordingly so that it can show in the best favor to your guests. Make it a point to highlight the best features of your home so that potential buyers can understand it instantly.

Before putting it up for sale, make sure that necessary repairs have been made and that it is designed to sell. The interior of your home is important, but it’s also important that you fix up the exterior of your home also. When potential buyers arrive at your home, you want them to view your home in the most favorable light, therefore you should do your best to liven up the curb appeal of your home.

When fixing up and preparing your home for sale, you have 2 choices. You can either do it yourself or you can hire professionals to do it for you. If you do the work yourself, then you will be saving alot of money as opposed to if you hired professionals. But one thing that you should take note of is that if you’re not specialized to repair your house, the work that you do may be compromised by quality.

If you hire professionals, at least you know that the quality of the home won’t be an issue. The only thing that will be an issue is the money that you spend on the professionals. 8 times out of 10, the cost of hiring professionals is well worth it – so you should keep this in mind.

If you do hire professionals, one thing that you will want to do is hire a team to work on the interior of your home. Nothing can make you profitable faster than a team of professional designers. They will help to stage your home properly for the sale and will de-clutter your home so that it is as appealing as possible.

While your design team is fixing up the interior of your home, you should probably hire an organizer to organize your home. Your organizer should go through all areas of your home and make sure that loose baggage has been removed. If you don’t have the money to hire an organizer, then you should consider doing it yourself. Buyers like to see more space, so the more space you have the better.

After professionals have renovated your home and you have organized it, it’s time to sell. You should take high-quality photos of your home or hire a photographer to do it for you. You want to take pictures of your kitchen, bathroom, dining area, and the exterior of your home for potential buyers to see. If you do it yourself, you may want to invest in a crisp, high definition camera that can take excellent photos of your home.

When it comes to real estate and selling your home, all of these tips and ideas are pivotal. Be sure to use them in your real estate business so that you can start selling homes right away.

FOR MORE INFO: Learn real estate selling tips you can use to earn money in real estate. To learn more, visit the following website for more details: http://www.instant-downloadz.com/insiderrealestate.html

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Adrian_Hargray
http://EzineArticles.com/?Selling-Your-Home-Quickly-in-Todays-Real-Estate-Climate&id=4944389

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