Mortgage Lenders Have New Disclosure Rules Coming
At the end of this month — July 30 — new disclosure rules will be applied to mortgage lenders. In recent years, mortgage loans have become more complex, and mortgage lenders and brokers have not always been forthcoming when it comes to disclosing the true costs of the loans. Many consumers made decisions they might [...]
Want a Loan Modification? Don?t Pay for It
As one might expect in these economic times, as people become desperate for help, scams are popping up all over the place. There are foreclosure prevention scams, in which the unscrupulous take money from the unsuspecting and promise to help them halt foreclosure, and there are a number of other scams at work. With all [...]
Forget the Hotel; Rent a Vacation Home
Image by Vijay Gunda via Flickr
Sometimes you don’t need to buy a home to enjoy it. This is especially true of a vacation home. Instead of staying in a hotel when you go on a longer vacation, consider renting a vacation home.
Rent a vacation home
If you are staying for a week or more, you can [...]
Are You Practicing for Your Mortgage Payment?
Image by TheTruthAbout via Flickr
Many people do not realize the dramatic change in housing costs that a mortgage can result in. Indeed, for many people, a mortgage payment costs more than rent. And that’s before you add in taxes, insurance, possible HOA fees, maintenance and utilities. (Realize that when you buy a home, with more [...]
Does Your Home Come with a Hidden Transfer Fee?
Something new and somewhat sinister is popping up in some places. I have seen it here in Utah, where I live. It’s called a transfer fee, and it is usually hidden within the mounds of paperwork that you have to do in order to buy a home. Here’s how it works:
The developer, homebuilder or even [...]
Treasury Offers More Grants for Affordable Housing
The government has been providing money for various programs aimed at halting blight and foreclosure, as well as creating affordable housing. One program, the Neighborhood Stabilization Program, recently saw money begin flowing. Another program, aimed at affordable housing projects in different states, has been issuing grants through the Treasury Department. National Mortgage News Online reports [...]
Refinancing for 125% of The Value of Your Home
Recently, there have been some efforts to make refinancing more widely available to those who have been hit hard by housing market in the form of much lower housing values. Indeed, with housing values dropping, many homeowners have found themselves upside down on their mortgages, unable to refinance to lower rates (and payments) because of [...]
Reader Question: How Long Does It Take to Get Mortgage Financing?
Image by TheTruthAbout via Flickr
Every now and again I receive a question from a reader. I woke up this morning with this question in my inbox:
How long does it take to get mortgage financing and appraisal?
First of all, it is important to note that appraisal is usually part of the financing process. Before the financing [...]
Mortgage Fraud Continues to Rise
Image by Renegade98 via Flickr
Mortgage fraud remains a very real part of the housing market. In fact, the incidence of mortgage fraud has actually increased. Since last year, mortgage fraud has increased 36%. BloggingStocks reports on the continuance of mortgage fraud:
According to the agency, reports filed through March put fraud reports on track to [...]
Boston Fed Looks at Why Loan Modification is Having Limited Success
Image via Wikipedia
For many, one of the options to try when it comes to foreclosure prevention is loan modification. In this process, mortgage lenders modify the loan, changing such terms as interest rate, payments and sometimes even principle. However, even with the incentives being offered to mortgage lenders to engage in loan modification, such programs [...]
