Articles Tagged With: RESPA

February 9, 2011

FHA Home Loans: The HUD-1 Settlement Statement

Buying a home with an FHA loan involves a process with a set of milestones along the way. The first of set of milestones includes finding a suitable home, negotiating a price, applying and being approved for a home loan and agreeing to the terms and conditions. When it's finally time to close the deal, sign on the dotted line and get ready to take possession of the property, there's another important part of the process--getting a HUD-1 Settlement Statement.

February 1, 2011

FHA Extends Anti-Flipping Waiver

By Joe Wallace

In a move designed to help stabilize the U.S. housing market, the FHA has announced an extension of it's anti-flipping waiver, which temporarily allows the FHA to insure loans for properties owned by the seller for 90 days or less, through the end of 2011.

January 17, 2011

FHA Loans and Predatory Lending–Ask an Agent

By Bruce Reichstein

When a first time home buyer wants to apply for an FHA home loan, they have a lot of learning to do about the whole process. The marketplace is full of reputable lenders, but as with any industry there are some individuals and even whole companies with business practices designed to take advantage of the lack of knowledge a newcomer might have. That's one reason the FHA offers a collection of resources for house hunters which includes plenty of advice on how to avoid predatory lending.

December 22, 2010

FHA Appraisals : Are They Fair?

By Joe Wallace

In our last post we discussed the cost and process of FHA appraisals. Since the FHA appraisal is such an important part of the FHA mortgage process--the loan amount can't be established without the appraisal--it's good to know how and why the process works the way it does. One of the key aspects of getting a fair, accurate estimate of the reasonable market value of a home is the independence of the appraiser. How does the first time FHA borrower know the FHA-approved appraiser is assigning value to the home for sale that's actually consistent with market practices rather than helping the lender raise the FHA loan amount by over-valuing the property?

December 15, 2010

What is an Illegal Referral Fee on an FHA Loan?

By Joe Wallace

The FHA requires those who do business with it to follow guidelines and regulations that protect both buyer and lender from unscrupulous practices. But FHA rules aren't all. Congress passed the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act to prevent the practice of kickbacks and unethical referrals. According to the FHA official site, "RESPA was enacted because Congress felt that consumers needed protection from '... unnecessarily high settlement charges caused by certain abusive practices that have developed"...in some areas of the country."

November 4, 2010

Exceptions to RESPA Good Faith Estimate Requirements for FHA Loans

By Joe Wallace

The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act or RESPA, requires buyers to be more fully informed as to the costs of an FHA loan including how much they must pay for closing costs, and how much is refundable vs. non-refundable if the buyer has a change of mind and backs out of the loan. These FHA requirements are designed to protect borrowers from "gotcha" charges, unexpected expenses and other problems; RESPA is also designed to help lenders and buyers work together knowing that all terms are understood and expected.

November 3, 2010

FHA Loans and the Borrower’s Rights

By Joe Wallace

First time home buyers often feel a bit lost in the sea of loan vocabulary, federal laws and credit requirements they have to deal with in order to buy their new home. If you want to buy a new home with an FHA loan, there are plenty of people willing to help. Unfortunately not all of them have the home buyer's best interests in mind. That's one of the reasons for the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act or RESPA for short, which requires lenders to provide a standardized Good Faith Estimate -- a document that clearly lists the terms of the home loan and closing costs.