Articles Tagged With: Pre-approval

May 20, 2019

FHA One-Time Close Construction Mortgage Basics

FHA home loan options are not limited to existing construction housing. FHA borrowers, including first-time home buyers, have the option to apply for a FHA One-Time Close Construction loan. This allows any borrower who financially qualifies to have a home built for them from the ground up. FHA One-Time Close loans have some basic requirements; some of these are FHA loan program rules, but others are unique to an individual lender. For example, FHA One-Time Close mortgages, also known as FHA OTC loans, technically allow a borrower to build a home with more than one unit. But many lenders may restrict these mortgages to single-unit properties. Or they may not permit the financing of certain closing costs, require higher FICO scores, etc. Much depends on the rules of the specific | more...

May 9, 2019

Fact And Fiction About FHA Home Loan Approval

By Joe Wallace

First-time home buyers and experienced home owners alike may have misconceptions about what it means to get an FHA loan. Here are some of the most common facts and fictions about buying a house with an FHA loan. FHA Loan Fact: FHA Mortgages Have Lower Down Payments and Credit Score Requirements 3.5% down is all that is required for borrowers with qualifying FICO scores. FHA loan minimum standards are more forgiving that some conventional mortgages but you will need to see whether lender standards allow certain lower credit scores to get loan approval with a higher down payment. Lender standards apply in addition to FHA loan minimums. But the fact is, your lender has the ability to work with your FICO scores in many cases. FHA Loan Fiction: You Have | more...

May 7, 2019

FHA Home Loans: Things To Do, Things Not To Do

By Joe Wallace

FHA home loans, like all mortgages, represent a major investment for a borrower. There are things you should do in the FHA home loan process to get closer to loan approval, and there are things you should definitely NOT do as a new home buyer. Do you know what they are? FHA Loans: DO Work On Your Credit As Early As Possible Your FICO scores will determine the interest rate you are offered and the amount of the down payment required. It’s best to examine your credit report at least a year ahead of your loan application to make sure you have plenty of time to work on credit issues. FHA Home Loans: DO NOT Run Up More Debt Prior To Your Home Loan Opening new credit cards, adding more | more...

April 5, 2019

FHA Loan Facts

By Bruce Reichstein

When you start doing research on home loans and want to learn what it takes to qualify for an FHA mortgage loan as either a first-time home buyer or as a return borrower, you will find websites with lists of loan approval requirements. Some of those FHA home loan approval requirement lists look like this: A credit score of 580 or higher for the lowest down payment A debt-to-income ratio of 43% or less 3.5% down payment 1-2 years of consistent employment history A property that meets FHA standards OR A home eligible for FHA 203k rehab loan financing You may find a caveat on lists like these stating that they are “general guidelines” and that is true. What isn’t always included in those caveats is that additional lender standards | more...

April 2, 2019

FHA Streamline Refinance Loan Rates

By Joe Wallace

There are lots of online lending websites discussing interest rates for mortgage loans. But what do you need to know about FHA home loan interest rates and refinancing? If you want an FHA Streamline refinance loan, you will be applying for a refi loan that generally requires the transaction to have some tangible benefit to the borrower such as a lower monthly payment or a lower interest rate. When you shop around for lenders offering the best interest rates, remember that one very important factor applies; until you enter into a mortgage rate lock commitment with the lender, today’s interest rates will not apply to your loan. In other words, until you have a commitment in writing for the interest rate, daily and weekly rate fluctuations will apply. The mortgage | more...

March 19, 2019

FHA Home Loan Approval And Undisclosed Debt

By Joe Wallace

Some first-time home buyers are tempted to leave information off of credit applications, hoping that the lender won’t find out or that the omitted information will get lost in the details of the loan. But this is not a good strategy; FHA home loan rules in HUD 4000.1 anticipate such issues and there are instructions to the lender accordingly. Leaving out crucial information including certain debts may jeopardize FHA home loan approval. FHA Loan Rules For Undisclosed Debt In a situation where the borrower fails to disclose debts and the lender discovers them by other means, HUD 4000.1 instructs the loan officer as follows for undisclosed debt that does not involve another mortgage: “When a debt or obligation (other than a Mortgage) not listed on the mortgage application and/or credit | more...

March 4, 2019

FHA Home Loan Approval By The Numbers

By Bruce Reichstein

Do you know what it takes to get a home loan approved? When you apply for an FHA mortgage loan or an FHA refinance loan, you should know about the following numbers and how they work together to get you into your first home or an upgrade to a newer property as a repeat home buyer. FHA Home Loan Approval Numbers: One One is the number of people obligated on the loan who are required to live in the real estate secured by the FHA mortgage as their full-time residence. At least one borrower obligated on the mortgage must live in the home as their primary home. FHA Mortgage Loan Approval Numbers: Two Two is the number of years of employment the lender is required to verify for all potential | more...

February 26, 2019

Plan Ahead For Your First Home FHA Loan

By Joe Wallace

You can never start planning too early when it comes to buying your first home. There are a lot of variables to take into account when planning your FHA home loan including the nature of your home loan itself. FHA Home Loans: Different Loans For Different Needs The first-time home buyer who wants to buy real estate that needs repairs will apply for a different FHA home loan than those who want to have a home built for them from the ground up using an FHA One-Time Close construction loan. The FHA fixer-upper loan is known as an FHA 203(k) Rehabilitation mortgage and can be applied for as either a new purchase loan or a refinance loan. The type of FHA loan you will need for mobile homes/manufactured housing is | more...

February 18, 2019

Happy Presidents’ Day 2019

By Bruce Reichstein

Happy Presidents’ Day 2019! Today banks and markets are closed, and we pause from our usual schedule of writing posts and giving information about FHA home loans to observe the holiday. We return with our regular content schedule tomorrow. Thank you very much for reading!

January 15, 2019

First-Time Home Buyer Advice: How To Buy Your First Home With Less Cash Up Front

By Bruce Reichstein

First-time home buyers often need to save as much cash up front on the transaction as possible. There are ways you can prepare for your FHA home loan in the planning stages that can help you buy your first home with less out-of-pocket costs. Do you know what they are? First-Time Home Buyers Should Work On Lowering Credit Card Balances Very Early Whenever Possible One very important factor in qualifying a borrower as a good credit risk when buying a first home? The amount of debt the first-time borrower carries versus the amount of monthly income. Your debt ratio is just as important as FICO scores, and the lower your debt ratio, the better off you will be when the lender goes to approve or deny the home loan application. | more...