The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) just announced that the FHA Annual Mortgage Insurance Premiums will be reduced by 30 basis points. Basis points are charged to homebuyers who procure an FHA-insured mortgage. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) states that this reduction, which goes into place on March 20, 2023, could possibly save [...]
FHA mortgages allow for the full downpayment to be a gift. Currently, FHA mortgages require a 3.5% downpayment from a buyer, in addition to local closing costs, including transfer taxes, mortgage costs, title company and local charges, and possibly other closing costs. What many FHA homebuyers may not know is that the 3.5% downpayment can be [...]
FHA condo recertification should get easier, thanks to the passage of H.R.3700 - Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2016 on July 14. It also lowers the current owner-occupancy from 50% to 35%, which should hopefully make more Baltimore County condominium communities eligible for FHA financing. Right now, there are a number of Baltimore County condo [...]
FHA will reduce the mortgage insurance premium it charges from the current 1.35% to .85%, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. President Barack Obama is scheduled to make an announcement on January 8, 2015. FHA mortgages are popular because borrowers can obtain loans with as little as 3.5% downpayment. The credit standards [...]
New 3% downpayment programs will become available in December 2014, thanks to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. According to a Bloomberg news report, the companies will start offering this low downpayment program beginning December 13th. Currently, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac make up more than half of new home loans. They have allowed down payments as [...]
FHA loans can be a good loan program for many buyers; however it is not the only low down payment option. Conventional 5% down financing is available, and in most cases, the mortgage insurance is much less than FHA -- in some cases it may be 50% less! So while FHA may offer a lower [...]
2014 FHA Loan Limits are going to drop tremendously in the Baltimore real estate area. The Baltimore area includes Baltimore County, Baltimore City, and Harford County. There are other areas included per the HUD.gov site. In 2013, FHA loan limits for Baltimore County homes has been $560,000. In 2014, Baltimore County FHA loan limits are [...]
The Government shutdown is affecting most mortgages, according to an email I received from a lender. Though FHA announced they would continue processing applications during the shutdown, there are many other loan types, and it turns out, all of them may be affected in some way. Why would your conventional mortgage be affected? 1) The IRS [...]
Despite plans to the contrary, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) today said that FHA loans will continue to be processed during the government shutdown. Originally, FHA said that they would not be able to process loan applications due to the fact that 96% of their employees will be furloughed, according to an article by CNNMoney. [...]
The FHA Back to Work - Extenuating Circumstances Program is in effect as of August 15, 2013. What is the FHA Back To Work - Extenuating Circumstances Program? It is a program for potential mortgage applicants who have gone through a financial hardship due to either unemployment or large reduction in income. The FHA Back [...]