Articles Tagged With: FHA 203k Mortgage

October 20, 2021

Who May Contribute To My FHA Home Loan? Interested Party Contributions

Who my contribute to my FHA home loan? That is a question many want to know, and the answers don’t always point to the most obvious type of contribution the borrower may seek-the FHA mortgage loan required down payment. How much and to which areas can an interested party contribute to for the borrower’s FHA mortgage? FHA loan rules governing this topic are found in HUD 4000.1, the FHA Loan Handbook for single-family mortgage loan transactions. To begin, it should be noted that down payment source funds are strictly regulated and must come from a verifiable source the lender can investigate to make sure FHA loan rules have been followed. In general, down payment contributions cannot come from interested parties to include “sellers, real estate agents, builders, developers or other | more...

October 1, 2021

FHA Mortgage Relief Announced For Vermont Disaster Areas

By Bruce Reichstein

In many cases, the FHA and HUD make announcements about disaster relief after tropical storms, hurricanes, forest fires. But you don’t have to experience a Category 3 hurricane to be severely affected by weather; one excellent example of this comes with the HUD announcement of federal disaster assistance for parts of the State of Vermont that were in the path of severe storms and flooding at the end of July 2021. On September 29, 2021, there was a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for two Vermont counties–Windham and Bennington. Thanks to that Presidential declaration, HUD has offered an automatic 90-day foreclosure moratorium for those two counties–this affects those with FHA mortgages, “commenced on the date of the Presidential major disaster declaration, and foreclosures of mortgages to Native American borrowers guaranteed under | more...

September 16, 2021

Need To Remodel Your Home?

By Joe Wallace

What kind of FHA loan product is right for your home repair projects? Some people want to fund a remodeling or renovation project using a credit card, but what happens when you compare interest rates on your credit card to the rates you might be charged for an FHA refinance or an FHA 203(k) Rehab loan? The reason some people put these repair expenses on their credit cards has a lot to do with the time it takes to build equity in the home for a HELOC or a cash-out refinance. But for those who have the ability to refinance in order to pay for the work, the savings could be a major factor in your choices. Remodeling With An FHA Cash-Out Refinance The cash-out refinance option does require you | more...

September 10, 2021

Your FHA Mortgage And Natural Disasters In 2021

By Bruce Reichstein

In the early days of the month of September, the FHA and HUD have made a number of announcements regarding disaster relief for portions of the country that have experienced fires, floods, and hurricanes. The agencies have, from the start of September to September 10, 2021, issued no fewer than seven announcements related to disaster relief. The first of those, dated September 1, 2021, includes the following related to disaster relief measures for those who are in presidentially declared federal disaster areas: Foreclosure relief – There is an automatic 90-day moratorium on foreclosures of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured home mortgages beginning on the date of the major disaster declaration; Call the FHA Resource Center at 1-800-304-9320 for assistance FHA Rehab Loans — FHA Section 203(h) Rehabilitation Loans for disaster victims | more...

July 6, 2021

Buy A Fixer-Upper With An FHA Rehab Loan

By Joe Wallace

Do you know what an FHA 203(k) rehab mortgage loan is? This is the loan to ask for from a participating FHA lender if you want to buy a home to renovate instead of purchasing a “like new” home. What You Can Do With An FHA Rehab Loan Borrowers are allowed to apply for a new purchase loan or an FHA refinance loan under the 203(k) program, which the FHA loan handbook says may be used to buy and rehabilitate an existing one- to four-unit Structure, which will be used primarily for residential purposes. It can also be used to rehabilitate / refinance outstanding indebtedness “on the Structure and the Real Property on which the Structure is located” or to purchase and rehabilitate “a Structure and purchase the Real Property | more...

July 1, 2021

5 Things To Know About Home Loans

By Joe Wallace

What do you need to know about home loans? There are certainly more than five things you’ll want to remember, but this is a great way to begin the planning stages of your new home loan. Home Loan Tip #5: One Application At A Time When you are in the planning stages of a new home loan, it might not occur to you (at first) to think of all your finances as a single entity. This is important because your lender will certainly do so, and if you have applied for any other credit in the meantime it can make it harder for your loan officer to justify approving your home loan. Plan on applying for ONE line of credit in the year you commit to the loan–your mortgage. Home | more...

June 22, 2021

Home Renovation With An FHA Loan

By Joe Wallace

There are two kinds of home renovation projects; the ones you plan and the unexpected renovation you may need to do if there is a sudden problem in the home after purchasing it. An unexpected home renovation can be caused by many things that were not a factor at the time your home inspection was done; a water pipe can burst, a stove can prematurely stop working, or storm damage could cause a leak in your roof. Repair experts and contractors will be quick to point out that even a home that passes an inspection can develop such problems through no fault of the builder or seller. An unexpected home repair situation isn’t uncommon for home owners, so what’s a borrower to do when the need arises? You can fund | more...

June 15, 2021

FHA Mortgage Loan Facts

By Joe Wallace

What do you need to know about FHA home loans? Aside from dispelling the common myth that FHA mortgages are only for first-time home buyers or economically disadvantaged house hunters, there are many things you should know about the FHA loan program before you apply. FHA loans differ from other mortgages with their lower credit score requirements, low down payments, and zero penalty for early payoff of the loan. FHA home loans are for any borrower who can financially qualify and you do not need to worry about income limits or other need-based restrictions. There are some things you should know about FHA loans that are universal to all home buying experiences in America. One of those? No matter what your lender, real estate agent, or anyone else says or | more...

March 11, 2021

FHA One Time Close Construction Loans Versus FHA Rehabilitation Mortgages

By Joe Wallace

There are FHA home loans you can apply for that allow you to build or renovate existing construction. One type of home loan–one that lets you build instead of buying existing construction–is the FHA One-Time Close (OTC) construction loan. An alternative, known as the FHA 203(k) Rehabilitation mortgage and it is used to repair or renovate a home. One-Time Close construction loans and FHA 203(k) Rehab loans are similar–these two loans need approved builders to do the work, and they both require a minimum down payment unless you choose a VA or USDA OTC loan instead. One-Time Close Down Payment Rules FHA One-Time Close loans have a 3.5% down requirement for those with FICO scores within the qualifying range. Borrowers with lower credit scores may be required to put 10% | more...

February 25, 2021

HUD Announces Further Modifications Of Home Loan Policy During COVID-19

By Joe Wallace

The pandemic has forced many business owners, consumers, house hunters, and home sellers to rethink their approach to the task at hand. The FHA and HUD have modified many FHA loan rules to accommodate the need to socially distance and implement other coronavirus mitigation procedures and prevent the spread of the virus. And in 2021, those modifications must continue. On Tuesday, February 23, 2021, the HUD official site announced extensions of already-modified Single Family mortgage loan policies–modifications that would allow the FHA to help “maintain new mortgage originations for homebuyers and allow 203(k) rehabilitation projects to continue during the COVID-19 pandemic”. Extending these policies insures continued flexibility in certain guidelines for single family home loans. Why is it needed? To ensure home loans are available via the FHA program for | more...