By Peter Wright, on October 3rd, 2012 
If you are considering buying your first home you may very well be asking yourself if now is the time, have prices bottomed out and trying to weigh the risks of buying a home versus the rewards. Well, if this is the case, allow me to give you some things to put on the “rewards” side of the equation….
For starters, with mortgage rates at historic lows, your monthly mortgage payment in most cases should be much lower than what you are currently paying in rent! Remember this…”Your Landlord says Hi…& Thanks You for Paying His Mortgage.” Also, we have seen flexibility from sellers on negotiations and most are helping in paying for the buyers closings costs…so that just leaves the down-payment, and that may not be as much as you think…… Continue reading “Government funds of up to $25,000 available to assist first-time home buyers“
By News Desk, on September 27th, 2012 Yesterday, Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster filed three separate lawsuits against individuals and their companies for misleading Missouri consumers in connection with mortgage-modification services. The lawsuits were filed against Colleen Kelly, a Missouri resident operating Heartland Loss Mitigation, LLC,; Eric Mader, a Florida attorney operating Mader Law Group, LLC, a Florida company; and Jim Caplan, a Florida attorney operating CAPLAW, P.A., a Florida company. Continue reading “Missouri Attorney General Files Lawsuits Against Three Mortgage-Modification Companies For Misleading Consumers“
By Robert Fishel, on September 26th, 2012 
I continue to hear in the news about incredible low interest rates, but the catch is getting approved for a mortgage loan, either for a purchase or refinance. The process is getting harder and harder. In this tighter credit environment, FHA remains to be a great alternative for buyers with limited resources for a down payment and closing costs or past credit problems. Underwriting guidelines are more lenient than conventional guidelines.
Highlights of FHA financing: Continue reading “Low Interest Rates and Tougher Underwriting Standards; St. Louis Mortgage Interest Rate Update“
By Robert Fishel, on September 21st, 2012
Make Sure You Get Your “Real” Scores!
Most banks and lenders use scores calculated by FICO (also known as Fair Isaac) and derived from your reports with the major national credit bureaus Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Be careful, the credit scores sold at popular credit report monitoring websites are NOT the same scores that lenders use!
By Dennis Norman, on September 17th, 2012 
Maybe you are a seller that has found yourself faced with the reality that you can’t sell your house or condo for a price today that will yield enough to pay off your loan, and you are not a candidate for, or don’t want to do, a short-sale? Or, maybe you are a seller with a house or condo that, for one reason or another, there is very limited demand for and, in fact, it seems that perhaps no one wants to buy what you have to sell? If so, you may want to consider using a lease option or a lease purchase to sell your home? After-all, there is a large demand for lease-options and lease-purchases by buyers but, there are risks you should be aware of and a lease option or lease purchase is not a sure thing.
Before considering selling your home using a lease option or selling your home on a lease purchase you should consult your attorney for advice (remember, I’m not an attorney and this article is not legal advice) as well as your CPA or tax professional (nope, I’m not a CPA either) however, from a 30+ year active broker, and an investor that has done many lease-options, below is a basic explanation of a lease option and a lease purchase as well as some pros and cons of selling your home utilizing a lease option or lease purchase as I see it: Continue reading “Should I use a lease option to sell my home?“
By Dennis Norman, on September 14th, 2012 Should I rent or buy a home in St Louis? This is a question that I’ve been asked dozens of times over the past couple of years and one that given the fact that home affordability is at an all time high and mortgage interest rates at an all time low, is generally easy to answer with “buy if you can”. I guess I many not have realized just HOW much sense that made financially, until a report came out a few days ago that looked to answer this very question and found that home ownership was 45 percent cheaper (on average) than renting in all 100 largest metro areas in the U.S. In St. Louis, with an average monthly cost of home ownership of $593 and rental cost of $1,251, according to Trulia1, there is 53 percent less cost owning a home versus renting a home.
1Trulia looks at homes for sale and for rent and calculates the average rent and sale price across all listed properties in a metro area. Then, Trulia factors in the total costs of homeownership (e.g., closing costs, maintenance, insurance, taxes, etc) and total cost of renting (e.g., renter’s insurance and security deposit). The starting assumptions are that a prospective homebuyer can get a low mortgage rate of 3.5 percent, itemizes their federal tax deductions, is in the 25 percent tax bracket, and will stay in their home for seven years. People in the 35% federal income tax bracket are also assumed to pay 5% state income tax. To account for the opportunity costs, Trulia calculates the net present value of the payment streams for renting and owning.
By Robert Fishel, on September 12th, 2012 On my way into the office this morning, I received a frantic phone call from a real estate agent I have known for years…it turns out, her client’s lender is unable to close on time because they still have to send out the loan to their “investor” to review and underwrite the loan.
It is important to understand the difference between a Mortgage Banker and a Mortgage Broker. The mortgage company I am with a mortgage banker with over 41 years of serving our community. What does that mean? Picture your community bank and take away everything but the mortgage department. We use our own money to close the loan and select a servicer to handle your monthly mortgage payments. In essence, a mortgage banker controls the loan process from application to closing. Continue reading “Mortgage Banker versus Mortgage Broker; St Louis Mortgage Interest Rate Update“
By Robert Fishel, on September 5th, 2012
During periods of economic growth, when home values are typically going up, most homeowners do not question appraisals much. In times of turmoil when property values are declining, home owners/sellers and even listing agents quite often question appraisals.
An appraiser is looking at several things when determining the value of a property: improvements, size and square footage of the living area, neighborhood amenities, location and the market trends around the area. It all boils down to comparable sales to the subject property.
Since the appraised value of home is a key element when considering a purchase or refinance, the following are the top four most common questions about appraisals asked by sellers: Continue reading “The Top Four Appraisal Questions Sellers Ask; St Louis Mortgage Interest Rate Update“
By Dennis Norman, on August 24th, 2012 I have good news for homeowners that are underwater on the mortgage and need to do a short sale, or for buyers looking to buy a short sale. The Federal Housing Financing Agency just issued new guidelines to lenders that service Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans that are intended to “offer a streamlined short sale approach” which will be music to the ears of anyone that has been through the process. I don’t always agree with the actions of the FHFA but I think this is a good move and will help the market. The new guidelines (see below for highlights) go into effect November 1, 2012 Continue reading “Short sales just got better“
By Robert Fishel, on August 22nd, 2012
What are sellers’ concessions?
A seller concession can be any negotiation where the seller, builder, developer, salesperson or any interested party gives a credit to the borrower at closing. The seller concession can help lower or eliminate the amount of money a borrower is required to bring to the closing table. Continue reading “A quick guide for using seller concessions when buying a home; St. Louis Mortgage Interest Rate Update“
By Robert Fishel, on August 16th, 2012
FHA remains to be a great alternative for buyers with limited resources for a down payment and closing costs or past credit problems. Underwriting guidelines are more lenient than conventional guidelines. Continue reading “FHA Financing is Great Alternative; St. Louis Mortgage Interest Rate Update“
By Robert Fishel, on August 8th, 2012 ARE YOU PRE-QUALIFIED? Have you given much thought to how much of a mortgage payment would be for your dream home?
Should you talk to you mortgage professional before house hunting?
Absolutely! Even if you haven’t so much as selected a Realtor®, it’s important to talk with your mortgage professional first. Why? Continue reading “Successful homeownership is the result of a well informed buyer; St Louis Mortgage rate update“
By Robert Fishel, on August 1st, 2012
Recently I was contacted by a prospect that was referred to me from a past client. This prospect was interested in a VA loan and had some general questions about the loan process and VA loans. He had mentioned he was currently working with the VA on some credit issues, but the process was taking a long time. It turned out, the prospect was “working” with a mortgage company that had “VA” in their name and there was no affiliation with the VA. I’ve seen this happen numerous times with both VA and FHA where a prospective homebuyer contacts or is contacted by a lender that implies they are who they are not. Know who you are dealing with. Continue reading “What borrowers need to know about mortgage bankers; St Louis mortgage rate update“
By Dennis Norman, on July 27th, 2012 
Over one in four homeowners in the U.S. with a mortgage are “underwater” meaning they owe more on their homes than they are currently worth and, according to data just released from a survey by Zillow, 75 percent of them are underwater by 40 percent or more meaning it will most likely be many years until they even have the hope of seeing equity in their home again. Nonetheless, this has not deterred the majority of these underwater homeowners from “staying the course” as 59 percent said would not consider a strategic default in order to get out from under their home. Continue reading “Should you consider a strategic default if you are underwater on your mortgage?“
By Robert Fishel, on July 25th, 2012 Every borrower’s situation is different. My goal is to provide various options/loan programs that are available to meet the borrower’s needs. When considering a refinance, the following are typical situations borrowers face:
Are you refinancing primarily to lower your rate and monthly payments? Your best option might be a low fixed-rate loan. Maybe you have a fixed-rate mortgage now with a higher rate, or maybe you have an ARM — adjustable rate mortgage — where the interest rate varies. Even if it’s low now, unlike your ARM, when you qualify for a fixed-rate mortgage you lock that low rate in for the life of your loan. This is especially a good idea if you don’t think you’ll be moving within the next five years or so. On the other hand, if you do see yourself moving within the next few years, an ARM with a low initial rate might be the best way to lower your monthly payment. Continue reading “St. Louis Mortgage Rates Drop Even Further; Which refinancing option is best for you?“
By Dennis Norman, on July 20th, 2012  Yesterday’s existing home sales report from the National Association of REALTORS® shows existing home sales in June were at at a seasonally adjusted-annual rate of 4.37 million units which is a decrease of 5.4 percent from the month before, and a 4.5 percent increase from the year before and is at the lowest level since October 2011. Continue reading “Home sales lose steam in June“
By Robert Fishel, on July 19th, 2012
Recently, I heard a radio commercial about “special” financing for certain veterans implying this “special” loan is available for a “limited time only.” The good news is that the Veterans Administration (VA) offers an ongoing mortgage loan program to benefit members of the armed forces who have generally served for two years in peace time, or 90 days during conflict. Members of the National Guard or Reserves who have served for six years are eligible along with widows of veterans if the veteran died in a service-related incident. The VA offers loans to: Purchase a New or Existing Home, Rate Reduction Refinance, and Cash-Out Refinance. Borrowers are evaluated by their credit worthiness and their ability to show stable and sufficient income to cover the costs of owning a home, cover other obligations and expenses and have enough left for family support. Traditional credit scoring is not used by the VA in underwriting. Non-married co-borrowers are not permitted. VA loans must be the borrowers’ primary residence. Continue reading “The truth about VA loans; St. Louis Mortgage rate update“
By Dennis Norman, on July 17th, 2012 More good news on the real estate market arrived this morning in the S&P/Experian report on credit defaults which revealed that mortgage default rates on first mortgages fell to 1.41 percent in June bringing it to it’s lowest level since May 2007. This is significant as this is the “leading indicator” for foreclosures which have hammered home prices for the past 5 years plus this represents a significant decline from when the mortgage default rate peaked at 5.67 percent in May 2009. Continue reading “Mortgage default rates fall back to May 2007 level“
By Dennis Norman, on July 10th, 2012 According to a report just released by Lender Processing Services, the foreclosure inventory in the U.S. remains near all-time highs, with 4.12 percent of all active mortgages in the foreclosure pipeline in addition to the 3.2 percent that are 90 days or more delinquent but have not yet begun the foreclosure process. Foreclosures put an immense amount of downward pressure on home prices and until the foreclosure rate recedes back toward normal levels it is going to be hard for home prices to have a sustainable recovery. On a good note, the high foreclosure levels are, for the most part in states that require a judicial foreclosure (a lengthier process) where 6.5 percent of all loans are in some state of foreclosure as opposed to states with non-judicial foreclosures where only 2.5 percent of loans in in the foreclosure process. Both percentages are considerably higher than the pre-real estate meltdown average of 0.5 percent. Continue reading “Foreclosure inventory remains near all-time high“
By Peter Wright, on July 5th, 2012
Interest rates have been strong all year, last week however, we saw mortgage backed securities rally each day and with the release of unemployment figures on Friday we are now officially sitting at historic lows! If you have not taken advantage of these rates…what are you waiting for? Maybe you have been told that you don’t have enough equity in your home due to the housing market trending down over the past few years?
Well there is something here for you too! The Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) is a program developed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that helps folks with little or no equity in their homes take advantage of today’s fantastic mortgage rates. Continue reading “Historic low mortgage interest rates, Refinancing Options & New HUD program“
By Dennis Norman, on June 29th, 2012  According to a report released today by CoreLogic, there were 63,000 completed foreclosures in the U.S. in May 2012, down from 62,000 the month before and down almost 20 percent (18.18) from May 2011. Since the real estate market meltdown began in September 2008 there have been about 3.6 million homes that had forecloses completed upon. Continue reading “Foreclosures in May down almost 20 percent from year ago“
By Robert Fishel, on June 28th, 2012 The sale price for a house is $200,000, but the appraisal comes back at $190,000. Should the borrower still try to purchase this property or just leave it be? This is not unusual circumstance common in today’s real estate market; appraisals are coming in conservatively.
What action should the borrower take when there is a mismatch between the seller’s asking price and the home’s appraised value? Remember, the maximum loan amount is based upon the lower of the sale price or the appraised value, whichever is less. Continue reading “What to do about a low appraisal?; St. Louis Mortgage rate update“
By Dennis Norman, on June 25th, 2012 Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau released new home sales data for May 2012 showing an increase of 7.6 percent from the month before, and an increase of 19.8 percent from a year ago. The seasonally-adjusted new home sales rate for May was 369,000 homes, up from a revised rate of 343,000 homes the month before. The supply of new homes on the market decreased to a 4.7 month supply from a revised 5.0 months the month before. The median new home price decreased slightly to $234,500 from a revised median price of $236,000 the month before and increased 5.6 percent from a year ago when the median new home price was $222,000. Continue reading “New home sales increase again in May; Inventory continues to decline“
By Dennis Norman, on June 25th, 2012 Lately the $64 question for many people is whether to rent or buy a home. I think by now everyone knows that, as a result of the collapse in home prices and dirt-cheap interest rates, buying a home is now more affordable than ever, but for a lot of people there are still doubts or concerns that need to be addressed before making the decision whether or not to buy. Many of these issues stem around financing including; how much down payment will be necessary, what can I afford, etc. The American’s Banker Association (ABA)came out with five questions every potential buyer should ask when deciding to buy or rent a home that, along with the helpful online calculators they offer, I think may be very helpful: Continue reading “Should I Rent or Buy a Home?“
By Dennis Norman, on June 23rd, 2012 
The mortgage delinquency rate (the percentage of home loans 30 or more days past due) increased in May 1.1 percent from the month before according to the latest “First Watch Report” from Lenders Processing Services (LPS). While it’s a modest increase, this marks the second consecutive month we’ve seen an increase in mortgage delinquency rates reversing the downward trend for the 9 months prior which is not good. Since delinquent mortgages are the precursor to forelcosures and foreclosures have wreaked havoc on home prices, this is something we definitely want to keep an eye on. Continue reading “Mortgage delinquencies increase for second-consecutive month“
By Robert Fishel, on June 21st, 2012 When applying for a mortgage, a borrower’s “Occupancy Type” is a major factor in determining maximum loan-to-value (equity), loan program available and mortgage interest rate. An Owner Occupied property will have better terms (less down payment, better rates) than a Non-Owner Occupied property.
Three Types of Occupancy:
Owner Occupied / Primary Residence -According to HUD, a principal residence is a property that will be occupied by the borrower for the majority of the calendar year. At least one borrower must occupy the property and sign the security instrument and the mortgage note for the property to be considered owner-occupied. Continue reading “What’s The Difference Between A Single Family, Second Home and Investment Property?; St. Louis Mortgage rate update“
By Dennis Norman, on June 21st, 2012 According to a report just released by S&P Experian, the first mortgage default rate fell by more than a quarter of a percent (26 basis points) in May compared to April and is the lowest rate since May 2007. The second mortgage rate also fell during the month, by 5 basis points, and is at a seven year low.
Mortgage defaults and delinquencies are the pre-cursor to foreclosures and foreclosures are the enemy of home prices so this is good news and a trend that, if it continues, should point the way to a housing recovery.
By Robert Fishel, on June 13th, 2012
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Department of the Treasury released their May Housing Scorecard, which collects key market data and tracks the administration’s recovery efforts. According to the May scorecard, recent market data contains a number of promising indicators and increasing signs of stability. In April, sales of existing homes increased in every region of the country and the number of new homes rose for the first time since 2007. Continue reading “St. Louis Mortgage Rate Update; Housing Scorecard Finds Promise in Recent Market Data“
By Robert Fishel, on June 6th, 2012 A common complaint that consumers have regarding today’s mortgage loan origination process has to do with all of the hoops they have to jump through in order to get a loan.
Personally, as a loan officer, I try to be as thorough as possible going into the application to avoid “the last minute chase” for additional documentation. I will be the first to admit, I am not perfect. Best intentions. After each deal is closed, I review the loan and how the process went; did I prepare and ask my clients for all that the documentation needed. Did I take a good loan application? Continue reading “St. Louis Mortgage Rate Update; Jumping through hoops to get a mortgage“
By Robert Fishel, on May 30th, 2012 According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates fell to yet another new survey low last week. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances fell to 3.91 percent from 3.93 percent the week before. Despite the drop, mortgage loan demand was relatively flat. The Refinance Index dropped 1.5 percent from the previous week and the Purchase Index slipped 0.6 percent. The Market Composite Index, which measures total mortgage loan application volume, fell 1.3 percent from the week before. The refinance share of all mortgage activity was unchanged at 76.6 percent. Continue reading “St. Louis Mortgage Rate Update; Rates hit new record low“
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