Mortgage and Finance - St Louis Real Estate News

FBI Arrests Two People in Foreclosure Scheme

By Dennis Norman, on August 8th, 2009

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

Previously I did an article on avoiding foreclosure rescue scams which have unfortunately become rather common in recent months.

This week the FBI arrested two people that the FBI alleges has done just that. I wanted to share the press release from the FBI to heighten people’s awareness of scams such as this and hopefully help prevent more victims of such scams. The press release describes in detail how they allege this scam was carried out. To read the FBI press release click here, or just read below as I have published it Continue Reading →

Mortgage rates decline this week on better than expected economic news

By Dennis Norman, on August 6th, 2009

Dennis Norman

According to Freddie Macs weekly mortgage market survey mortgage rates decreased slightly for the week ending August 6, 2009 from the prior week. The survey shows 30 year fixed rate mortgages averaging 5.22% with 0.6% in fees and points, down from 5.25% the week before. Last year at this time, the 30 year rate averaged 6.52%.

Rates on 15 year fixed-rate mortgages decreased slightly as well, down to 4.63% from 4.69% the week before, 5/1 ARM’s held about the same at 4.73% and 1 year ARM’s as well as 4.78%. This time last year these arms Continue Reading →

June pending home sales increase
Midwest up 11.6% from a year ago

By Dennis Norman, on August 4th, 2009

Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist, NAR

By: Dennis Norman

Today the National Association of REALTORS(R) issued their Pending Home Sales Index Report for June showing pending sales in the U.S. were up for the fifth consecutive month, the first time in six-years for such a streak.

Here in the Midwest pending home sales were only up 0.8% from May, but were up a whopping 11.6% from this time a year ago, the largest year over year increase of the four regions in the U.S.

The pending home sales index for the Midwest rose 0.8% to 89.9 from a level Continue Reading →

Fed Reserve proposes significant changes to provide more disclosure and protection to borrowers on mortgages

By Dennis Norman, on August 3rd, 2009

Dennis Norman

Late last week the Federal Reserve Board proposed significant changes to Regulation Z (Truth in Lending) intended to improve the disclosures consumers receive in connection with home mortgages and home equity lines of credit.

These changes are just proposed at this point and are being offered for public comment for 120 days at which time the Fed Reserve will review comments and decide whether or not to put the changes into effect.

Ben S. Bernanke

“Consumers need the proper tools to determine whether a particular mortgage loan is appropriate for their circumstances,” said Federal Continue Reading →

Fed Reserves publishes “5 Tips for Shopping for a Mortgage”

By Dennis Norman, on August 1st, 2009

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

Buying a home should be a dream come true not a nightmare of worry and stress. A new Federal Reserve Board publication, “5 Tips for Shopping for a Mortgage,” will help consumers avoid potential pitfalls and make well-informed decisions when choosing a home loan. Financing the purchase of a home is one of the most complex financial decisions that consumers make. The Federal Reserve’s latest “5 tips” guide is designed to help home buyers find the mortgage that is best for them. The complete guide is available here however a summary of Continue Reading →

Mortgage information and advice from a St. Louis Mortgage Banker – Final post of the series

By Dennis Norman, on July 31st, 2009

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

Today we pick up where we left off yesterday with my E-View TM with respected mortgage banker, H. John Frank, President of Paramount Mortgage Co. here in St. Louis.

If you missed part one, two, or three, there are links to both at the end of this post. And now, the final part of the E-View TM:

Q-This is a good time probably to address the Internet. There appear to be hundreds of lenders on the Internet for the consumer to choose from in addition to their local lenders. Do you think there Continue Reading →

Mortgage information and advice from a St. Louis Mortgage Banker – Part 3 of a series

By Dennis Norman, on July 30th, 2009

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

Today we pick up where we left off yesterday with my E-View TM with respected mortgage banker, H. John Frank, President of Paramount Mortgage Co. here in St. Louis.

If you missed part one or two, there are links to both at the end of this post. And now, part three of the E-View TM:

Q-I have seen a lot of reports about “jumbo” loans and rates being artificially high on those loans. What is a “jumbo” loan and have the rates been affected in a negative way as a result of the Continue Reading →

Mortgage information and advice from a St. Louis Mortgage Banker – Part 2 of a series

By Dennis Norman, on July 29th, 2009

H. John Frank, Jr., President, Paramount Mortgage Co.

By: Dennis Norman

Yesterday I did the first post of my E-View TM with respected mortgage banker, H. John Frank, President of Paramount Mortgage Co. located here in St. Louis.

Today we continue with part two of the E-View TM:

Q-How many states require mortgage brokers/bankers to be licensed? Does licensing protect the consumer in your opinion? If so, how? If not, why not?

A-I don’t know how many states require licenses, but later this year (I believe around the 1st of August) most, if not all, states Continue Reading →

Mortgage information and advice from a St. Louis Mortgage Banker – Part 1 of a series

By Dennis Norman, on July 28th, 2009

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

It seems home mortgages are in the news daily lately: record-low interest rates, record-high foreclosure rates, the sub-prime mortgage mess, lack of jumbo loans and so on. It’s confusing at best and causing much concern for many people wishing to buy a home or refinance their existing home mortgage.

H. John Frank, Jr., President Paramount Mortgage Co.

To find out just what is going on in the home mortgage world today I turned to someone I have known for over 20 years that is a highly respected St. Louis mortgage banker, Continue Reading →

Interest rates increase slightly this week

By Dennis Norman, on July 24th, 2009

Dennis Norman

According to Freddie Macs weekly mortgage market survey mortgage rates increased slightly this week from the prior week. The survey shows 30 year fixed rate mortgages averaging 5.20% with 0.7% in fees and points, up from 5.14% the week before. Last year at this time, the 30 year rate averaged 6.63%.

Rates on 15 year fixed-rate mortgages increased slightly as well, up to 4.68% from 4.63% the week before, 5/1 ARM’s held about the same at 4.74% and 1 year ARM’s as well as 4.76%. This time last year these arms were 6.18% and 5.49% respectively.

Continue Reading →

30 year mortgage rates this week at 5.14%; lowest since May

By Dennis Norman, on July 18th, 2009

Dennis Norman

By: Dennis Norman

Freddie Macs weekly mortgage market survey mortgage rates dropped this past week, making it the third week in a row rates came down.

The survey shows 30 year fixed rate mortgages averaging 5.14% with 0.7% in fees and points, down from 5.20% the week before. This is the lowest rate reported in Freddie Mac’s survey for a 30 year fixed rate loan since May. Rates on 15 year fixed-rate mortgages dropped very slightly as well, down to 4.63% from 4.69% the week before, 5/1 ARM’s held about the same at 4.83% and Continue Reading →

Avoid mortgage modification and foreclosure rescue scams

By Dennis Norman, on July 16th, 2009

By: Dennis Norman

Recently the The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a Consumer Advisory. The Advisory contains consumer tips for avoiding mortgage modification scams and foreclosure rescue scams.

The advisory states; “Scams that promise to “rescue” you from foreclosure are popping up at an alarming rate nationwide, and you need to protect yourself and your home. If you’re falling behind on your mortgage, others may know it too – including con artists and scam artists. They know that people in this situations are vulnerable and often desperate.”

The OCC suggests that before you do business with someone Continue Reading →