Articles Published in: July 2018

July 19, 2018

What Is A Mortgage?

What is a mortgage? To some that may sound like a totally obvious question, but for some first-time home buyers, the more information you get up front about the process of finding, buying, and owning a home the better. And that includes the most basic details of the process. FHA mortgages are an option for the serious home buyer who wants a lower down payment than many conventional mortgages and would like to enjoy the benefits of a government-backed mortgage. Why Do I Need A Mortgage? This is one of the most basic questions about the home buying process. Most people will apply for a mortgage to buy a home whether that’s an FHA new purchase mortgage, A VA home loan for qualifying military members, a USDA mortgage for those | more...

July 18, 2018

Things To Ask About Buying Condos And Other Homes

By Joe Wallace

If you are in the market for a condo that you want to buy with an FHA home loan, there are some important questions to ask before you commit. Some of these questions apply to any property type, but some more specifically apply for condo loans or FHA home loans for properties that come with a requirement to join a Homeowners Association (HOA) or agree to its’ rules. What should an FHA borrower ask a seller about a condo unit or a home governed by a condo association agreement or homeowner association agreement? First, ask if any applicable agreements include a Right of First Refusal, which requires the borrower to submit any sale or transfer of the home to the association for approval. FHA loans cannot be approved for properties | more...

July 17, 2018

FHA Home Loans And Your Credit Report: Know Your Rights

By Bruce Reichstein

When you look for advice about getting approved for an FHA home loan, you will find that many encourage potential borrowers for FHA new purchase home loans and FHA cash out refinancing are urged to request a free annual credit report. Free credit reports are your legal right and you are entitled to one free credit report per year from each of the three major credit reporting agencies. Those agencies are TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. But in addition to the right to a free annual credit report, did you know you have other rights under federal law that apply to your credit reports? All consumers in the United States have the legal right under federal law to contest inaccurate or incomplete information in your credit reports. This right is discussed | more...

July 16, 2018

Are Free Credit Reports Trustworthy?

By Joe Wallace

Long before you fill out FHA home loan application forms, you should be requesting copies of your credit reports and reviewing the information your lender will see when you are ready to get your new home loan. There are many websites and third-party companies that offer free credit reports to help loan applicants, but not all of them are interested just helping consumers. Can you trust the companies that offer free credit reports and credit score information? While it’s not possible to recommend a specific organization (with one exception), it is good for consumers to remember that many companies offer free services in exchange for your personal data that can be used to market goods and services to you via your cell phone number, email address, and other information. The | more...

July 13, 2018

Should You Sell Your Home? The FHA Cash-Out Refinance Option

By Joe Wallace

There are a lot of websites urging home owners to consider selling your home, especially for those who own homes on the West Coast. Home owners on the West Coast and other increasingly profitable housing markets have the potential (at the time of this writing) to earn more than ever by selling a house. But borrowers looking to get cash from their homes in a housing market where property values are going up have another option to consider. It doesn’t matter if your home is in San Jose, San Francisco, Seattle, or Nashville, if your home could appraise for more money today due to the influence of a hot housing market? It could be worth an amount worth considering in the form of an FHA cash-out refinance. If you are | more...

July 12, 2018

FHA Mortgage Loan Closing Day Tips

By Bruce Reichstein

Need some tips to help you navigate your closing date for your FHA home loan? There are some important things to do and things NOT to do on closing day. When your sale is final the seller or the real estate agent will give you the keys to your new home, but before you can get your hands on those keys, some important things must happen. Read All Home Loan Closing Documents Carefully FHA mortgage loans, like all other home loans, feature initial estimates of expenses and payments; the final numbers should be represented accurately at closing time and should not be estimates. If the numbers you were expecting don’t line up with what is in the closing documents, don’t let it go-ask for clarification. Don’t sign incomplete mortgage closing | more...

July 11, 2018

What You Need To Know About FHA Loan Applications And Loan Approval

By Joe Wallace

What should you know about FHA home loan applications and FHA loan approval? Before your home loan gets final approval from the underwriter, it will go through a series of processes including the credit check, appraisal, employment verification, and much more. But FHA home loan approval depends on more than one set of standards, which makes these check and approval processes more complex. To approve your loan, the lender must answer a variety of questions about the borrower’s ability to afford the loan. FHA Loan Approval Questions Your Lender Must Answer There are several areas the lender must have answers in to give you final loan approval: What is the borrower’s current or expected income? What kind of assets does the FHA loan applicant have? What is the FHA borrower’s | more...

July 10, 2018

Before Your FHA Home Loan Closing Date: What You Should Know

By Bruce Reichstein

Before your FHA home loan closes and you sign on the dotted line, there are some things you should know. Home closing paperwork spells out the agreements you have made on the mortgage and these documents are legally binding. It’s a very good idea to be familiar with them and know their contents before you sign. What kind of paperwork will you get with a new purchase mortgage loan at or before your closing date? One very important document is known as the Closing Disclosure and it should be compared to another document you received earlier in the FHA loan process known as the Loan Estimate. The estimate is not an indication that your FHA loan has been turned down or approved, it is simply a way to add up | more...

July 9, 2018

Can I Get An FHA Loan With A Debt Collection In My Credit History?

By Joe Wallace

Can I get an FHA home loan approved even if I have a debt collection in my credit history? That is an important question on the minds of some FHA loan applicants going into the home loan process. This type of credit issue is commonly referred to as having a collection account, which HUD 4000.1 (the FHA Loan Handbook) defines as follows: “A Collection Account refers to a Borrower’s loan or debt that has been submitted to a collection agency by a creditor.” Collection accounts can be an issue for an FHA loan applicant; generally it is strongly recommended to come to the application process with 12 months of on-time payments for all financial obligations. Depending on circumstances (such as when the lender is required to manually underwrite the loan), | more...

July 6, 2018

Home Buying Tips For The First Time FHA Borrower

By Bruce Reichstein

Do you need house buying tips as a first time home buyer? If you are ready to stop using rental units and are interested in becoming a home owner, there are some very important steps to take before you apply for an FHA home loan. Consider Home Prices In Your Area: How Good Or Bad Is Your Real Estate Market? Are prices in your area reasonable? Within your budget? It’s a very good idea to become literate in the average prices for a home in your area so that you can tell if a seller is asking a reasonable price for the property you want to buy. It is just as important to know how much home you can afford. A two-bedroom property may be within your financial reach, but | more...