Maria Ny asked:




This article summarizes the differences between conventional and government loans for first-time buyers, homeowners looking for mortgage refinancing, and those looking to cash out on equity for loan consolidation, debt consolidation or home improvement through home equity loans (second mortgages).

Conventional Mortgages

o Not guaranteed or insured by the Federal Government.

o Features 0% to 20% down payment options.

o Usually fixed mortgage rates for 15 to 30 years or adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs).

o Maximum conforming limit is $417,000. Otherwise, it’s a jumbo or non-conforming conventional loan.

Government Mortgages

o Insured against default by the Federal Government, making qualification less stringent:

- FHA loans are insured by the Federal Housing Administration.

- VA loans are guaranteed by the Department of Veteran Affairs.

o FHA loans require 3% down payments and are 15 and 30 year fixed rate loans or 1 year ARMs.

o VA loans are only available to eligible veterans or surviving spouses of deceased veterans.

o No down payment required–up to 100% financing allowed.

o Maximum loan amounts for government loans are set geographically.

o Mortgage refinancing into government loans is only available to existing holders of government mortgages.

Stated Income Mortgage Loans

“Stated-income mortgages are for people who make the money they say they make, but that amount doesn’t show up on the bottom line of their income taxes,” says Hugh McLaughlin, president and CEO of KMC Mortgage Services Inc., a lender and broker in Naples, Florida. They are non-conventional loans with higher rates than conventional mortgages–borrower interest rates depend on several factors: income stability, debt-to-income ratio, credit score, down payment and property appraisal value. Stated income mortgages can be 15 or 30 year fixed rate loans or adjustable rate mortgages.

Joseph

Darin Sewell asked:




Bad credit mortgage refinancing loans help borrowers with credit problems refinance an existing mortgage to either payoff debt or get cash out. If your credit is poor because of excessive credit card debt then bad credit refinancing is one of the best ways to improve your credit score.

Bad credit refinancing is typically for home owners who have credit scores under 620 and have late mortgage payment’s in the last 12 months. Sub prime lenders are the main source for these types of loans and many will lend to bad credit borrowers with a 30, 60 and even a 90 day late payment on record. Although the amount of equity you can borrow will be greatly reduced with the amount of late payments you have. Qualifying Credit scores for sub prime loans begin at 500 and go all the way up to 700, at a 500 credit score expect to be able to borrow 70-80% of your home appraised value. The higher your credit score the higher the Loan To Value you can borrow.

Many sub prime lenders offer 2 or 3 year Adjustable Rate Mortgages to bad credit borrowers, short term Adjustable mortgages are not a good idea for the bad credit borrower. The biggest drawback to an ARM is that if you should fail to improve you credit score and be unable to refinance, your payments will begin to rise when your adjustment period begins. The rise in payments can often be hundreds of dollars a month making your mortgage difficult to pay. When applying for a bad credit home loan It is best to stick with a fixed rate subprime mortgage, if you need a lower payment ask your mortgage broker about 40 year fixed rate subprime loans.

With the availability of subprime home loans bad credit refinancing can be a great way to improve your credit score, however when the wrong programs are chosen it can do just the opposite. Use a good reputable mortgage broker and always use common sense when shopping for your subprime home loan.

Learn More About Bad Credit Home loans

Jeff

Frank Collins asked:




The home loan industry has changed stated income loans requirements if you don’t know yet. Most lenders now want full documentation loans and borrowers qualifying by using traditional debt to income ratio calculations. This directly affects the high cost housing markets like California, Florida, and the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut as well as parts of Maryland, Virginia, and Massachusetts. The reason is a lot of homeowners in these markets used adjustable rate mortgages and qualified by using stated income, stated assets and some instances no verification of employment.

The adjustments for adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) will continue through 2010 and into 2011. Most homeowners will be unable to refinance due to loss of equity in their home, their job, or other hardship. So, their best option is to negotiate with their loan servicing company or let the home go into foreclosure. Homeowners need to understand that when they send in a payment to the lender or loan servicer, that is their primary business to collect debts not negotiate with the public to change terms or modify interest rates. Furthermore, in a majority of the cases the borrowers do not get through to the right person or worse yet call them back in a timely fashion until they are close to foreclosure.

If a borrower has a truthful hardship and the bank is slow to react or refuses to listen what happens is a foreclosure results and the borrowers credit is hurt for seven years. When you are facing this situation and getting nowhere with a business and you don’t get the results you need in a timely manner, you should hire an attorney who specializes in foreclosures and loan modifications!

There are many stories from borrowers who say they most banks will not discuss your situation unless you are behind two to four months in payments. Once that occurs, your hard earned credit scores from years of being responsible are wiped out. Furthermore, you may never be eligible for a home loan at market rates for quite some time.

The solution is to use a loan modification company that actually does have an attorney on staff to get answers and responses quickly so your situation is resolved quickly. You end up keeping your home, getting a loan modification, reducing your interest rate to an affordable level, and in some cases reducing your loan principal but there’s no guarantees. An experienced debt representative from the attorney backed loan modification company will call you to see if you do qualify based on certain criteria.

Although, some firms will take your money even if you don’t qualify. Those are the ones you have to watch out for. They hit you when you’re down. Work with a loan modification company that has success, years of experience, paralegals and an attorney on staff. You will feel more at ease knowing you have the best team working on a solution for you whether it be a short sale, a deed in lieu of foreclosure, tax ramifications of short sale, or a loan modification.

A lawyer who specializes in negotiating with lenders can achieve magical results especially if they find RESPA or TILA violations to use for leverage. A real estate attorney understands how to speak their language and get the lender to negotiate. When a homeowners uses an Attorney, the lender’s loss mitigation and legal department become very receptive and responsive. Get a good legal team on your side to stop foreclosure and get a loan modification!

Sara