Peter Boyle asked:




USDA Home Loan Program offers more credit flexibility in this concerned housing and lending market than traditional lenders do. It also provides low fixed monthly mortgage payments to help low-moderate income households.

For those that have a desire to live right outside city limits you should check this program out. You can get 100% financing and no down payment within eligible property areas. You will be surprised how many semi-rural properties fall within the programs eligibility.

A large percentage of our country ‘s greatest obstacle to home ownership is the lack in funds for down payment. USDA provides a solution not many know about. It overcomes down payment issues for an individual or family by loaning up to 100% of the appraised value of the property. This eliminates the down payment requirement.

The USDA Guaranteed Home Loan program helps low-to-moderate income individuals and families purchase homes. The approval process is fairly easy and fast, and the funds for the program are basically unlimited. Best of all, this loan requires no monthly mortgage insurance, only a 2% up front fee and that can be financed in the loan.

The program offers a 30 year fixed rate mortgage and no prepayment penalty. Under the Guaranteed Loan program, it guarantees loans made by private sector lenders. If the borrower defaults the USDA guarantee pays the lender. Borrowers work with the lender and make their monthly mortgage payments to the lender, not the USDA. Borrowers must have a two-year primary employment history and the dependable income must not exceed the moderate-income limit guidelines for the eligible property area.

This program offers more lenient qualifying guidelines than traditional mortgages. No minimum credit scores or previous housing history is required. Non-traditional credit is acceptable if no credit is available.

The loans can be used on new construction, existing homes, and homes in need of improvements. The rates are very low and repairs to a home may be financed 100%. The repair work on the home must be done by a licensed contractor.

There is also help for funds to close. All closing costs and prepaids can be financed by the seller, and 100% gifting is available to borrowers. There are no minimum cash contributions from the borrower.

If you have not owned a home in the past three years you can use the USDA home loan and the HR3221 bill to get into a home with no out of pocket money and take up to $7500 off your tax liability.

The tax credit must be paid back over a 15yr period at $500 a month interest free starting the following year. Speak to your local lender about the Housing Rescue Plan and HR3221.

What does this mean to renters? Based on today’s USDA housing loan rates and average rental costs, people can buy a $175,000 home for basically the same costs they pay in rent. For a personal rent versus own analysis contact a local mortgage consultant. If you have a property you have selected you can verify the USDA program eligibility using the following link or just click to gain further knowledge.

Frances

Max Hunter asked:


You have undoubtedly heard a plethora of advice when you mentioned you were considering buying a home. Everyone probably had an opinion, they always do. Some very well intended people probably gave you the worst advice you could possibly have received but you would have know way of knowing that.

Let us dispel some of the most common myths about home buying and loan selection. First and foremost the myth that the only type of mortgage to ever consider is a 30 year fixed rate mortgage. Perhaps when your parents or grandparents first considered buying a home this was true. The simple fact of the matter is that there are many loan packages available to buyers with all different financial circumstances and needs. For many a fixed-rate mortgage will be the right way to go. For others adjustable rate mortgages will make the most sense based on their financial situation. Your loan officer will be able to explain the differences between them and discuss which will make the best sense for you and your unique circumstances.

Another popular myth is that you should have a home in mind before you contact a mortgage professional. This is probably, however, the worst time to contact a mortgage professional. It is always best to start your home search only after you have spoken to a mortgage professional who can put a scope on your search for you before you fall in love with a home that is well beyond your financial means. A mortgage professional can save you hours of heartache when you try to compare a house within your means to those houses a realtor showed you but you simply cannot afford.

The only place you want to apply for your mortgage is with your personal bank. Or, at least that is what you will be told. Again, that may have been true about forty years ago, it is not necessarily true any longer. The mortgage market is competitive and there are many lenders that specialize in precisely this industry and are not retail banks. You may not want to close the door to the prospect of using one of these lenders because they very often offer the best loan packages.

Online mortgage lenders are risky. That is what traditionalists will say. Though you should be careful in selecting an online lender, there are many safe and reliable retailers. You will want to make sure that they have an encrypted, safe site that you can comfortable input your information. Very often these lenders are actually a network of lenders that combined can offer you the most possible loan packages to choose from. It is important to know that the site is encrypted and safe before you input your personal information. Most sites will have information on the site regarding the measures they take to protect your information.

If your credit is not great you will never get approved for a mortgage is what you have probably heard time and time again. There is an entire, tremendous industry that has been created to provide mortgages to people with poor credit or no credit history at all. Rather than have your friends and family deny the loan that you had not even applied for yet, speak to a mortgage professional who has the means to open the door to this entire world of lenders waiting for people with little, no or bad credit.

If you do not have a big enough down-payment your mortgage payments will be huge and you will have to pay PMI. Again, this is simply not true. There are countless mortgage packages available to people with little or no down-payment, including many packages that combine loans in order to prevent your having to pay PMI (private mortgage insurance).

The home loan industry is a vast industry that grows annually. The key to your success in maneuvering in the industry is to speak to mortgage professionals rather than well-intended but ill-informed family and friends. Though your family and friends may offer good advice, very often they just proffer myths that have long ago been busted. We have addressed but a small number of these myths in this article, there are countless. The best thing to do is get the information directly from the source- a mortgage professional rather than the people around you who may have misinformed you when they heard you are thinking of buying a home.



BILLIE

Kate Ford asked:


1934.

America is swallowed up in The Great Depression. Only 40% of America is a homeowner.

The normal mortgage is limited to 50% of the home’s value. If you want to buy a home, that means you must come up with a 50% down payment.

The 30 year fixed rate mortgage, considered the staple of mortgage financing today, doesn’t exist. Home loans are fixed rates for only a few years, ending in risky unmanageable balloon payments.

Banks are scarce that will help homeowners searching for mortgages.

Unemployment becomes the norm. More than 2,000,000 construction workers alone are jobless.

The Federal Housing Administration with its FHA mortgage loans is conceived in this setting.

In 1934, the federal government created the most successful government program in history, the Federal Housing Administration, also known as FHA. The purpose – to revive the dream of homeownership.

FHA has continued to the housing rescue many times throughout its history just as it did during the Depression.

After World War II, housing was in short demand. Veterans returning from the war wanted to settle down but there was a shortage of housing and mortgage financing.

Again FHA came to the rescue. FHA home loans made it possible for returning Veterans to get mortgage financing for their families after the war.

In future eras, low to moderate income workers, senior citizens and the physically challenged benefited from FHA’s energy. Apartment dwellings were created in mass, providing safe and secure housing for Americans who might have gone homeless. FHA had come to the rescue again.

In the 1970′s, the American economy ran rampant with out of control inflation. Energy costs threatened to undo our economy.

FHA appeared on the scene providing emergency financing for apartment owners strapped for cash. FHA helped keep them above water lessening the chance of greater financial disaster.

In the 1980′s, private mortgage insurers were pulling out of any states in America whose economies were prominently connected to oil production. Recession was reeking havoc but FHA moved to steady decreasing home prices by insuring FHA mortgage lenders against loss.

The success of FHA home loans has made the United States the best housed country in the world. By 2001, 68% households purchased their homes.

But here is the most amazing part of all. FHA is not taxpayer funded. It is not subsidized by the Federal Government. It is totally and completely funded by insurance premiums collected directly from FHA borrowers.

Today, FHA is coming to the rescue again. We are all well aware that the housing market is in the dumps. Selling a home is difficult. Refinancing is also difficult. Lenders have disappeared and money is tight.

George W. Bush has enacted Hope For Homeowners in recent days. This program was created specifically for borrowers facing difficulty making mortgage payments. When Hope For Homeowners begins in the last quarter of ’08, homeowners can take advantage of FHA home loans to finance into secure home loans.

More over, the Federal Housing Administration has greatly expanded loan limits to aid in stabilizing the housing and home loan industry.

Watch for more of my articles on FHA where I will highlight the benefits of FHA-insured refinancing and tips for qualifying to buy a house with FHA home loans.



ALVA