It Could Be More Difficult to Get a Loan – Soon
July 20, 2009
News from the Mortgage Reports this morning that loan approvals will be getting more difficult soon.
You guys remember when we talked about Fannie Mae? No, not the chocolates. The organization that buys loans on the secondary market.
Basically, lenders want to be able to sell their loans to Fannie Mae, so when Fannie Mae comes out with new guidelines, lenders change their guidelines too. The latest update from Fannie Mae is due to become in effect at the start of September.
You can read the whole article about the new Fannie Mae guidelines here In a nutshell, your documentation can’t be more than 90 days old, your tax returns and tip income comes under greater scrutiny, stock market assets are only given 70% of market value, and retirement assets are only assigned 60% of market value. And you can’t use a spouse’s expected income to help qualify, say, when moving to Tucson, until that person actually has a job.
There are also new, more restrictive rules for duplexes, whether you will live in part of the duplex or not.
If you’ve got a loan pre-approval and are waiting on the sidelines, you might want to pick up that phone and have a chat with your lender, see if these new guidelines will impact you and how much you can purchase. And if you’re looking for a lender, send me an email and I can recommend several excellent ones.
Buying Foreclosure Homes with FHA Financing in Tucson
July 15, 2009
What home buyer doesn’t want a bargain?
More and more often in this market, I’m coming across first time home buyers looking for that special foreclosure deal - and want to use FHA financing.
FHA is an attractive option for people who intend to live in the house they purchase, because it only requires a 3% down payment. Lots of home buyers - especially first time home buyers - take advantage of programs like FHA to get into a home with low down payment.
However.
Traditional FHA financing requires that the house be in good enough condition to qualify for that loan. And quite honestly, so many of the foreclosed homes in Tucson that I see aren’t in good enough shape. I’ve participated in enough FHA financing deals that I’ve got a pretty good eye for what will and what won’t pass muster.
There’s good news though - but expect to jump through a lot of hoops.
FHA has a fix-up loan program, the FHA 203k, where you can finance fix-up costs. The funds for repairs are placed in an escrow account and are released in draws as the work is completed. And as with all FHA loans, they can be used on 1-4 unit properties that the owner will occupy.
Those loans aren’t nearly as simple, so be sure you’re working with people that understand the process!
More resources from the HUD site:
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