Articles Published in: March 2018

March 5, 2018

FHA Home Loan Resources You Should Know

FHA home loan resources you should know include online mortgage calculators, pre-qualification for a home loan, and the availability of free credit reports to help you in the research and planning stages of your new home loan or refinance loan. Get Your Free Credit Reports A Year In Advance Of Your Home Loan The government consumer watchdog agency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), reminds home loan applicants that they are entitled to “a free credit report every 12 months from each of the three major consumer reporting companies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion)” according to the CFPB official site. Pulling your credit reports a year in advance is an excellent idea as it will give you plenty of time to deal with potentially outdated or inaccurate information, contest identity theft | more...

March 5, 2018

FHA Streamline Refinance Loan Rules: Credit, Occupancy

By Joe Wallace

FHA Streamline refinance loan rules for credit, occupancy, and more are found in HUD 4000.1, the FHA loan handbook. FHA Streamline refinancing is for borrowers who have existing FHA mortgages and want to apply to refinance into a lower mortgage rate, a lower monthly payment, or into a fixed rate FHA mortgage out of an adjustable rate FHA loan. FHA Streamline Refinance loans have no FHA-required credit check or appraisal. Your participating lender may require one anyway, but you’ll need to discuss those issues with a loan officer. The rules in HUD 4000.1 begin by stating what kinds of property can be refinanced with an FHA Streamline loan. “Streamline Refinances may be used for Principal Residences, HUD-approved Secondary Residences, or non-owner occupied Properties.” The lender is required to verify occupancy | more...

March 2, 2018

FHA Foreclosure Relief For 2017 Disaster Victims

By Bruce Reichstein

In late February 2018, the FHA announced additional foreclosure relief measures for victims in federally declared disaster areas in 2017. According to the FHA official site, the new measures are intended to be an expanded version of “mortgage relief to FHA-insured homeowners who live or work in areas impacted by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria as well as California wildfires and subsequent flooding and mudslides.” The FHA has ordered participating FHA lenders to offer “additional options to eligible disaster victims in Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, California, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, allowing them to remain in their homes while reducing losses that would otherwise negatively impact FHA’s Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund” according to the press release. At the heart of these new measures is something called | more...

March 1, 2018

FHA Home Loan Fact And Fiction

By Joe Wallace

FHA home loan fact and fiction; do you know what’s true and what’s not about your FHA home loan options? There are plenty of misconceptions about getting an FHA home loan including the all-time number one-the idea that FHA loans are ONLY for first-time home buyers. That is definitely NOT true. FHA loans are for any financially qualified borrower regardless of their previous home ownership status. FHA home loan fictions also include the idea that you can only purchase a typical suburban home with an FHA mortgage; this is also not true as FHA loans can be approved for mobile homes, condo units, mixed-use property that is primarily residential, town homes, and multi-unit homes. The truth about FHA home loans is that borrowers are allowed to buy “real property” with | more...

March 1, 2018

FHA Appraisal Rules And Model Building Codes

By Bruce Reichstein

When it comes to FHA appraisal rules, it’s easy to forget that the appraisal requirements and minimum property standards set by the FHA are not the only regulations which must be followed. State law, and local building codes also apply. The FHA/HUD official site includes instructions to participating lenders and appraisers about model building codes and how FHA mortgage appraisal rules work together in the FHA loan transaction process. According to FHA.gov, “The Minimum Property Standards (MPS) establish certain minimum standards for buildings constructed under HUD housing programs. This includes new single family homes, multi-family housing and health care type facilities”. At one time there were a variety of minimum property standards for different types of properties. But since the era of the 1980s, the Department of Housing and Urban | more...