Mortgage News in the Carolinas
Mortgage Guidelines
Is An FHA Mortgage Better Than A Conforming One?
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The FHA is insuring a greater percentage of loans than during any time in recent history. In 2006, it insured roughly 5 percent of the purchase mortgage market. Today, it insures one-quarter. ”Going FHA” is more common than ever before — but is it better?
The answer — like most things in mortgage — depends on your circumstance.
Like its conforming counterpart, an FHA-insured mortgage is available as a fixed-rate loan and as an adjustable-rate one. Payments are made monthly and come without prepayment penalties.
That’s where the similarities end, however, and decision-making begins. For homeowners and buyers across Charlotte , FHA mortgages carry a different set rules as compared to conforming loans through Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac that can render them more — or less — attractive for financing.
For example:
- FHA mortgages can be assumed by a subsequent buyer. Conforming loans may not.
- FHA mortgages require mortgage insurance, regardless of downpayment. Conforming loans do not.
- FHA mortgages do not have loan-level pricing adjustment. Conforming loans do.
FHA mortgages also require smaller downpayment requirements versus a comparable conforming mortgage. FHA calls for a minimum downpayment of 3.5%. Conforming mortgages often require 5 percent or more.
And, lastly, FHA mortgages are priced differently from conforming ones. Since 2005, the average FHA mortgage rate has been below the average conforming mortgage rate more than 50% of the time, meaning that an FHA mortgage’s principal + interest payment is lower than a comparable Fannie/Freddie loan.
Today, conforming mortgage rates are lower.
So, which is better — FHA loans or conforming ones? Like most things in mortgage, it depends. FHA-insured loans can be big money-savers or money-wasters. To find out which is best for you, ask your loan officer for today’s market interest rates and study the results.
With less than 20% equity, the answer is often clear.
Get Your Applications In : FHA Mortgage Insurance Premiums Rising 0.25 Percent April 18, 2011
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After this week ends, the FHA is raising mortgage insurance premiums on its new Charlotte borrowers. It’s the FHA’s third such increase in the last 12 months.
Beginning with FHA Case Numbers assigned April 18, 2011, mortgage insurance premiums will be higher by 25 basis points per year, or 0.25%.
Against a $200,000 loan size, the MIP increase adds $500 to an FHA-insured borrower’s annual cost of homeownership. All new FHA loans are subject to the increase — purchases and refinances.
Existing FHA-insured homeowners across Carolinas are unaffected. Premiums do not rise for loans already made.
The FHA is increasing its mortgage insurance rates because, as a group, the FHA is insuring a much larger percentage of the U.S. housing market.
In 2006, the FHA held a 4 percent market share. By 2010, that share ballooned to 19 percent and, today, it’s estimated to be even higher.
In its official statement, the FHA says that the quarter-point MIP bump will “significantly strengthen” its reserves which are depleted because of delinquencies and defaults. By law, the FHA’s capital reserves must meet certain levels.
Therefore, to meet these requirements, the FHA is rolling out its new mortgage insurance premium schedule:
- 15-year loan term, loan-to-value > 90% : 0.50% MIP per year
- 15-year loan term, loan-to-value <= 90% : 0.25% MIP per year
- 30-year loan term, loan-to-value > 95% : 1.15% MIP per year
- 30-year loan term, loan-to-value <= 95% : 1.10% MIP per year
In order to calculate what your FHA monthly mortgage insurance premium would be, multiply your beginning loan size by your insurance premium in the chart above, then divide by 12.
The FHA also charges a 1 percent, up-front mortgage insurance premium at closing. That figure remains unchanged.
Fannie Mae Guidelines Change Monday. Apply Today To Lock In To “Old” Rules.
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Fannie Mae rolls out new mortgage guidelines Monday. Therefore, if you’re in the process of applying for a conforming home loan, consider giving your complete application by the close of business Friday.
All Fannie Mae applications taken on, or after, December 13, 2010, are subject to the changes.
As compared to mortgage guidelines updates of the last 3 years, Monday’s roll-out is relatively small. There is no change to the maximum debt-to-income ratio, for example; nor is there an increase in the minimum FICO score requirement.
Most mortgage applicants in Charlotte and nationwide will be unaffected.
Others, however, will find getting approved to be more difficult.
The most major change is with respect to revolving and installment debt. This category includes credit cards, charge cards, and student loans, among others. Going forward:
- Debt with fewer than 10 payments remaining must now be included in an applicant’s monthly obligations.
- Debt not reporting a monthly payment must be assigned a payment equal to 5% of the outstanding credit balance.
These edits will raise applicants’ debt-to-income ratios, and may push some of them beyond the maximum allowable limits, resulting in a denial. People with relatively large car payments are especially susceptible.
Another change relates to receiving gift funds for a purchase. Unlike debt calculations, though, the “gifting” process is getting easier.
Under the new Fannie Mae guidelines, buyers of owner-occupied, 1-unit properties (i.e. single-family homes, condos, townhomes) can forgo Fannie Mae’s customary, minimum 5% downpayment contribution from personal funds. Downpayments can be comprised 100 percent of gifted and/or granted monies.
Buyers of second or investment homes, or multi-unit properties must still make a 5% downpayment from their own funds.
And, lastly, Fannie Mae is easing some of its documentation requirements. Salaried applicants from whom commissions and/or bonuses paid account for less than 25% of annual income will have fewer paystubs to produce for underwriting.
Fannie Mae’s complete guideline changes are available online at http://efanniemae.com.
Bank Mortgage Lending Policies Appear To be Easing
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The tightening in mortgage-lending policies that characterized the last 3 years appears to be slowing.
According to the Federal Reserve’s quarterly survey of senior bank loan officers, roughly 1 in 10 lenders added mortgage qualification hurdles between April and June. It’s a huge departure from just 2 years ago when the mortgage industry was facing its first wave of challenges.
During that period, eight in 10 lenders added hurdles.
For mortgage applicants in Charlotte , this quarter’s Fed survey results signals that mortgage lending may have reached its limits of restriction.
Since 2007, mortgage guidelines have become increasingly restrictive. There’s extra scrutiny on assets and tax returns; employment history is given more weight; loan purpose matters. There’s a bevy of traits that can stand between you and an approval that didn’t exist a few years ago.
That said, lots of homeowners are still getting loans.
Verifiable income, good credit scores and equity are the “magic formula” and banks want to lend to good credit risks. And the best news for those that qualify is that mortgage rates are fantastic right now.
According to Freddie Mac, mortgage rates are as low as they’ve been in history.
So, if you’re among the many wondering if now is the right time to buy a home — or refinance one — remember that, although mortgage guidelines likely won’t get worse, mortgage rates probably will.
