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| Consumers - What impact does your credit score .... - April 18, 2008 |
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What impact does your credit score have on your mortgage interest rate? In the ever changing world of mortgages, your credit score is now more important than ever. Not long ago, most lenders gave the same interest rate to a borrower that had a middle credit score of 620 and to the one that had an 800 score. That is no longer the case. Today, consumers are many times shocked to find out that they no longer qualify to get the best rate available due to their credit score. Understanding the new criteria that lenders are looking at will help you to avoid sticker shock. Most lenders have what is called "Risk Based Pricing". For example, a 630 credit score may have an interest rate that is 1.125% higher than the best advertised rate! That's a big difference. It is therefore critical to keep your credit scores as high as possible. Our goal at AboutHomeMortgages.com is to educate you and make you aware of the "mortgage world" that we are now in. We want to help you secure the best mortgage available on the market. If you would like to speak to one of our licensed experienced mortgage consultants about this, call us at (888) 679-7677 or email us at John.Santorineos@AboutHomeOwnership.com. Remember, you can start the mortgage approval process by clicking the "Apply On-Line" button that is right below the interest rates on our home page. Fill out the short application and email it to us. One of our consultants will then contact you shortly. Or call our office Monday through Friday and speak to one of our experienced licensed mortgage consultants. Our toll free number is (888) 679-7677. We want to be your preferred Lender! Posted by John A. Santorineos |
| Tips for avoiding Foreclosure - March 17, 2008 |
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Foreclosure filings nationwide jumped 60% in February compared with the same month last year. RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosure properties, said 223,651 homes got hit with foreclosure filings last month. What can you do to avoid foreclosure? Number one, don't panic but take immediate action! Do you have a good amount of equity in your property and you know you are going to have trouble making your mortgage payment soon? If you haven't been late on a payment yet, contact your Loan Officer immediately. Perhaps you can do a debt consolidation loan or a cash-out refinance. Do not be influenced by all the negative news. You may be just a refinance away from rebalancing your debt and saving your home and lots of pain. An FHA 30 year fixed loan allows for up to 95% cash-out on a home refinance as long as you have owned the property for 12-months. Call us and speak to one of our licensed consultants to see if you qualify for this or other loans that could save your home. Our toll-free number is (888)679-7677. However, if you have already fallen behind, here are some basic tips: * Don't ignore letters form your lender * Contact your lender immediately * Contact a HUD approved Housing Counseling Agency. Their toll free number is (800) 569-4287 This is a difficult time for thousands of families across the country. The housing market will eventually find a bottom which will slowly then stabilize housing prices. Till then, don't just hope any difficulties you have will just go away. Hope is not a good strategy when it comes to managing one's debt. You must courageously take action. Posted by John A. Santorineos |
| Will mortgage interest rates continue to go down? - January 31, 2008 |
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That certainly is an important question for all homeowners today. Many consumers are surprised when they hear on the nightly news that the Fed cuts rates twice in 6 business days but mortgage rates have not improved. The first thing that is very important to understand is what is the Federal Funds Rate that the Fed has been lowering? The answer to this question is found in our blog below dated November 2nd, 2007. Second, the stock market is influencing mortgage rates more than ever today. This trend may or may not continue. As stocks sell off, the bond market and mortgage backed securities receive billions of dollars of funds. If stocks find a bottom, and begin to return to their recent highs, mortgage rates may climb. Third and maybe at this point most important in my personal opinion. Fear! Banks are fearful, Wall Street is fearful. This emotion of fear is driving market swings like never before. No one wants to make a big mistake. Banks have lost billions with the sub-prime massacre and with the highest foreclosure rate in the history of our country. Even if the market improves, will the banks give up the better rates? Or will they try to make more of a spread to recover some of their billions? Here is a valuable lesson to remember: When everyone believes the market is going in a certain direction, beware! Our recommmendation is to lock as soon as you have a rate available that saves you money or allows you to do what you are wanting to do. Protect yourself. You can always refi again if the rates go down more. Call our toll free number if you want to work with trustworthy, experienced professionals that will help you navigate through today's volatile mortgage market. That number is (888)679-7677. Remember to count your blessings every day! Posted by John A. Santorineos |
| IS NOW A GOOD TIME TO REFINANCE? - December 4, 2007 |
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There are many factors to consider. I will review some market news and conditions that may affect your ability to refinance and I will do this by means of a hypothetical example. Here's the example: You presently have a 5/1 arm that is coming due next August. Should you wait or refi now? Three Factors to consider: 1. How is real estate moving in your community? If you wait, lets say till April to start, what if property values continue to fall? If you don't have much equity in your home right now, waiting might make matters worse. An appraiser needs to find solds in your community from the past 6-months. If your market place has many foreclosures, short sales or vacant homes, chances are in 4-5 months the appraised value may even be lower than what it is now. Home price trends for most regions are negative. You may believe rates will be better by spring. However even if they are, if property values keep sliding, you may no longer be able to refinance. The more you wait, the harder it may become to refinance. 2. Lenders are closely monitoring price trends. Many lenders have suffered major losses of billions of dollars. What is one way they protect themselves? They eliminate and change some of the programs they offer. For example, many lenders are changing the LTV (Loan-to-value) requirements on loans. Perhaps they had a program that allowed a 95 LTV. Now, this program may only go up to 90, 85 or even 80 LTV. Lenders in the near term will probably continue to tighten their guidelines, so take that into account. Especially is this important if you had done some type of stated income or no doc income loan in the past. May have already been eliminated. 3. The final factor I am going to discuss, most consumers are not aware of. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac basically make up the rules that lenders follow when doing a mortgage of a conforming loan amount which currently stands for any A paper loan that is $417,000 or less. Both recently announced that effective March 1st of 2008 they are introducing tier pricing depending on your credit score and your LTV. So lets say your credit score is in the low 600's and you are thinking about waiting until March to refinance. If the rates are the exact same then as they are today your interest rate may be 0.50% higher then! There are many more factors to consider of course. The moral of the story is today may be the best time to refinance. Make sure you consult a knowledgeable Loan Officer. The market is very complex. Working with a professional will protect you and your family. Call us on our toll free number if we can be of help at (888) 679-7677. Here's an interesting thought: A problem is something you can do something about. If you cannot do something about a situation, then it's a fact of life, not a problem. Make today a masterpiece no matter what challenges you are facing! Posted by John A. Santorineos |
| The Fed cuts the rates again! - November 2, 2007 |
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That's the second month in a row that the Federal Reserve has cut the rates. How does this rate cut affect mortgage interest rates? Contrary to what many may think, the Fed does not cut mortgage interest rates. The Fed lowered what is called the Federal Funds rate. This is the interest rate at which Banks lend balances at the Federal Reserve to other Banks overnight. Does the Fed cut then benefit the consumer? Yes it does. Do you have a home equity line of credit? A line of credit is based on Prime Rate. Prime Rate moves immediately based on what the Fed does. When the Fed cut the Federal Fund rate by 0.25%, Prime Rate went down by the same amount and is now at 7.50%. Two months ago Prime was at 8.25%. So we have seen a nice 0.75% improvement. Nationwide, this small fraction is saving consumers billions of dollars of interest each month. There are many dynamics that affect mortgage interest rates. Although the Federal Reserve does not cut mortgage rates, indirectly it does affect them. For example, economists and Wall Street were expecting this Fed rate cut. As a result, the bond market and mortgage back securities rallied which caused mortgage rates to move lower before the Fed rate cut. However, many times after the Fed rate cut, mortgage rates go up instead of down. There is profit taking and many other concerns in the market that may cause this to happen. The moral of this story is make sure your loan officer is an experienced professional that understands what really affects mortgage rates. The next scheduled Federal Reserve meeting is December 11th. Will they cut again? We'll have to wait and see. To learn more about the Federal Reserve visit them at federalreserve.gov. The site is very informative and educational. Now is a great time to refinance your ARM. Call us at (888) 679-7677. One of our experienced Mortgage Planners will tailor a plan just for you. Have a grateful spirit today and each day! P.S. Email me to receive a free copy of my "Seven Power Questions" for great mental health. John.Santorineos@AboutHomeOwnership.com Posted by John A. Santorineos |
