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Will that keep the lender from coming after us? We refinanced seven months ago and now we do not want the house anymore this is an FHA secured loan.

PMI protects the lender. It is not designed to protect the borrower.

Actually FHA has a slightly different product. It is not called PMI (private mortgage insurance) it is called MIP (Mortgage Insurance Premium) Still it is designed to protect the lender not you.

I would not walk away without talking with the lender to see what can be done to sell or keep the house- you will regret it.

An Interview on America’s Nightly Scoreboard, FOX Business News with Heidi Lawler, Real Estate Expert, Home Loan Specialist, San Diego

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I forclosed on my home, but I had refinanced twice after the original loan. The house was originally 84,000. The first time I refinanced it went up to 93,000 and I used the extra cash to pay off my credit card debt. The second time I refinanced was to get a FHA secured loan to get a fixed rate. We received 1,900 cash back on that one. Will the act work for me? Thanks for your answers!

The “Act” as you call it basically only bails out the lenders and wall street people. Not us plain folks who work for a living. So right now, I would have to say that you would see little impact from this rescue plan. Besides if you were able to refinance to a fixed rate and afford the monthly payment, then you should be fine. If you haven’t made payments for more than 2 months, the lender can certainly foreclose on your property. Your note isn’t clear on that point.

The best way to find out is call a realtor. Realtors know everything! Ask them which companies in your town do FHA loans. They'll give you a few places that you can call. They'll do an application, and voile!
It's not complicated either.

I believe it's better to get a mortgage with people in your own town. They get to know you and are generally more helpful in the long run.
Good luck!
read up on FHA here:
http://www.FHA.com/default.cfm
http://www.hud.gov/buying/loans.cfm

My husband and I are interested in applying for an FHA mortgage soon. We’re worried that we may not qualify because my husband just graduated from college and thus doesn’t have 2 years of full time income history. Otherwise, our profile looks great.

1. Our credit score is around 720
2. Our outstanding debt consists mainly of low interest student loans and a small car loan we plan to pay off in the next few months.
3. My husband has a secure job as a software engineer and is currently making a base salary of $50,000 per year. His job performance the past 3 months on the job has been, according to his boss, “exemplary” so he will more than likely get a raise during annual evaluations in February. The demand for software engineers is expected to grow significantly as the baby boomers retire so right now, there nowhere for him to go but up.
4. We’ve decided that our maximum loan amount should be no higher than $125,000. Our ideal loan would be around $100,000. We plan on staying in the house for 10 to 20 years.
5. We live in Huntsville, Alabama, an area with a strong economy and low housing costs.
6. We have enough in savings to cover a 5% down payment.

The only factors that would exclude us from a traditional mortgage are the lack of employment history and small down payment.

If anyone has gotten a mortgage this way or has working experience with these loans please give me your feedback.

Oh, I’m sure you guys will qualify. I live in Huntsville too and my fiance and I have gotten pre approved for an FHA loan not too long ago. I make more than my fiance (around what your husband makes), and will be the primary one on the mortgage but at the time I only had about a year of full time income (first job after graduating from college). I don’t know where you plan to go, we went to Countrywide and are planning to go to Redstone Federal CU too, but the agent at Countrywide counted my years in school as part of my current job since my degree is relevant to my job. My credit score is in the high 700’s but my fiance has no credit, so we have to go FHA since we will both be on the loan. I’m sure you guys are fine. Go ahead and talk to a mortgage broker, now’s the time to buy!

I looked at a Condo in Atlanta (Northern suburb, good area) love it. My problem is that the owners will do any type of assisted load (FHA) they want a traditional loan with 10% down.
I can not cover the closing AND 10 % down. The realtor I met with loves the condo so much that she said she had been thinking of buying it. We started talking about a lease to purchase for a year. I have PERFECT credit and gross $4500 month.
The lease to purchase would only be a small amount more than what I pay for rent right now and where I am is old and falling apart ect. This is a brand new condo, granite counters, hardwood floors, stainless appliances etc.
1. People tell me wait and buy a house, that a condo is not a good investment. I don’t want a house. I want to be on a second (or more than second floor) to feel secure as I’m a single female. I do want a smaller place. Even if the condo sold for what I bought (as the market is bad) in a few years, would I not be better off than if I stayed renting for a few more years until I have the 10 %.
2. The money put aside in the lease money each month goes towards a kitty for my down payment at the end of the agreement (I believe the agent said $80 a month). If I do not buy the property at the end of the agreement, I loose that money correct?
3. I pay a deposit when I move to the condo (for the owner in case I damage the place and do not buy it). Do I get this money back when I buy?

First off I recommend you NOT buy a condo. you would be better off buying a townhouse. Remember too, at today's interest rates, every $100 of condo fees is worth about $20k in affordability. If your condo costs $100k with a $100/month condo fee, it's like qualifying for a $120k townhouse instead with no condo fee. condo's are NOT good investments in a declining market. In this market, you'll probably have to live there for 10+ years to make up for all the condo fees, interest, PMI etc. Your condo board has WAY TOO MUCH power over how you live, and will put restrictions making it difficult for you to buy/sell the property. They will make rules and regulations while you live there that are stupid, and make you change your way of life. Boards often have the power to do pretty much whatever they want, because not enough home owners go to the meetings to object.

Second off, your sellers can't be choosers. It's a buyer's market. if you have given them a sound offer, why do they care how you intend on financing it? The money will be there at closing. An FHA loan only requires you to put 3% down, so what's their problem?

If someone doesn't like your offer then move on… there's nothing wrong with an FHA loan with 3% down.

You're better off staying and renting for a few more years until you have the 10% down for a Townhouse.

As for question 2… you're an adult. You can save your own money. Keep the $80 in your own bank account where you get to keep the interest. It will take some dicipline, but you can do it!

for question 3… it depends on the lease/contract.

Just a little background… I am living in a WONDERFUL community there is a golf course, fishing, elemtary school, community pools, elementary school and other amenities. I have lived here for a year and pay a little over 1000 per month for a 3 bedroom 2.5 house with appx. 1700 sq feet. I have one kid in college and a 15 year old. I am a single parent.

I have been thinking about buying and have found a home in a neighboring subdivision that is currently under construction that will be ready in late August. It is 2100 sq feet, 4 bed, 2.5 baths, and selling for appx 152,000. I can put down 3% with an FHA loan and my mortgage payment is estimated to be around $1250 with an interest rate of 5.375%

1st link is current community

http://www.plumcreektx.com/

2nd link proposed community

http://www.hometownkyle.com/hometownkyle/outside_home.asp

What would you do and why? I need to move quick to obtion this rate and secure the home before someone else does.
the HOA fees are $330 annually and paid quarterly NOT through the mortgage
The $1250 INCLUDES taxes & insurance. It's broken down as Principal & Interest, Property Tax, Hazard Ins, and FHA Mortgare Ins. total est payment $1229.11
Financially I CAN afford the property. According to others I could likely afford MORE but the monthly mortgate payment is what I am looking at. Like you said with the tax benefits I think I will be comfortable with it.

i would definately buy the house. it is a great investment and you will be able to retire more comfortably because you can sell it when you get to the age.

Both Rates are locked and I need to decide for sure in a few days.

I can either get an FHA loan with at 5.5% interest with a 5.79% APR including insurance and only 10% down or a 5.5% interest loan at 5.6% APR with 20% down.

They are both 15 year mortgages. I am wondering if the FHA loan would be better even though the interest rate is higher since I could probably make an average of 8-10% on the stock market and if rates drop I can refinance and get a refund for the mortgage insurance.

The purchase price is $400,000. I am 24 and have $250,000 to my name. The nature of my business is not very secure however I expect to make appx $200,000 per year for the next few years but it could potentially drop off.

My credit is meh which is why I am not getting a 30 year loan. I expect my credit to be well over 700 within 6-24 months. I am considering refinancing in 2 years but I don't know how much of a gamble it is on interest rates.

Thanks,
Nick

If you can afford to put 20% down, the the 2nd loan is superior to the FHA. The APR is lower, the principle balance is lower, and the monthly payment would be significantly lower because at 80% LTV you won't have to pay PMI. Given the nature of your income, etc, the lower payment keeps your overhead lower and reduces your risk of cash flow problems.

Anyone who recommends an FHA loan for someone with 700 FICO scores and the ability to put 20% down is giving you bad advice. Don't factor in the stock market stuff- you evaluate loans on their individual merit. FHA is for people who are cash poor and credit challenged. And no matter how much you pay it down, you'll always have MIP/PMI on it. As for possibly refinancing, you want a loan that you can live with just in case you are unable to refi.

One piece of advice I'd offer is to get a 30-year loan and still make the same payments as if it were a 15-year loan. That way, if the creek runs high, you'll have a lower minimum payment. If everything goes fine, you'll still pay it off in 15 years.

Good luck

Okay… I'm a first time home buyer. My fiance and myself are wanting to purchase a home in the next 6 - 8 months. Our combined annual gross is 50k. She has just established credit w/ a secured credit card and an in store card. I advised her that it may be a good idea to finance a small piece of jewlery $100 - 200. Just to generate 3 forms of revolving credit. I myself have a score of 530. I am in the process of paying off my collections $3400 and I also just opened up 2 secure credit cards and am also going to open an in store. If we keep the balances low, pay on time every time.
1. What kind of increase can we see in our scores? A lender informed me that a 620 is the minimum? We want to buy a house for around 70 - 110k.
2. After our credit increases what kind of down payment and intrest shoud we excpect?
3. FHA Loans? How long do we need to maintain healthy activity on our report to qualify

I certainly hopes she likes that piece of jewelry! If you're purchasing a home, it's better to finance a piece of furniture, which would be seen as an installment loan, I believe.

Your credit score is atrocious from the lender's point of view and just barely within the limits of a sub-prime loan.

I'd say that your fiancee is in much better shape than you are, but you should both wait for several months before applying for a mortgage. During this time, SAVE MONEY FOR A DOWN PAYMENT. If you put down at least 20% (and closing cost), you can avoid PMI (private mortgage insurance). This will save you $45/month, which is roughly $600 per year in your case. The other way to avoid PMI is by paying up-front (about 1%) and rolling this into the cost of your mortgage.

I guess since you're paying collections, you can't settle for a lower amount. Are you paying your original creditor or are you paying a third party? You should see if they'd be willing to erase the item from your credit report if you paid them. Of course, I don't know what kind of luck you'd have with that.

If you pay bills on time and in full, it looks really nice to those who are looking at your mortgage application. Reducing your debt is another good thing, but if you have too much available credit, your lender may want you to close the accounts and this would hurt your score.

Is there any way that your fiancee could qualify entirely in her name with her income?

AVOID ARMs LIKE THE PLAGUE!!! Interest rates are going nowhere but up, ESPECIALLY for sub-prime.

(1) I don't know enough about your credit report to give you an accurate answer. I'm assuming that since your bill went into collections that it was severely late. Late payments can really ding your credit score, considering that it accounts for 35% of the FICO. Debt-to-credit-limit ratio is 30% and you should keep this ratio as low as you can. 15% is calculated from the age of your accounts, so do whatever you can to keep your oldest credit cards. Reduce the credit limit if you have to, but keep them open! Pay the balances off in full each month if you can. If you use the card frequently enough, you won't show $0 as the balance on the credit report. (TRUST ME! I've paid my credit card off in full every month and it always shows a balance.) 10% is mix of credit and you have the least control over that aspect, really, since no one says what the prime mix is. (You don't need a loan of each type to have a good score…) 10% is the search for new credit. Since you both recently got secured credit cards, it may take a few months to get your scores up as these inquiries hurt your score.

(2) I'd still suggest giving at least a 20% down payment. As for interest rates, if you get a fixed-rate mortgage, it will be cheaper in the long-run. The method the lender will take to figure out your FICO score will depend on who the lender is. Some will average all 3 FICO scores (1 from each credit bureau), some will take the middle score, some will take the lowest score.

(3) Consult the website's FAQ section.

I want to know what is the best deal I can work out with my loan officer or if I should see anyone else before accepting this offer. I was pre-approved for a $350,000 FHA Mortgage, 30 year fixed, with 6.5% interest rate, 2 points and a 5% seller concession. I have heard that this is not a great deal. If I did not have 2 points would that money for that 2 points be put towards the mortgage? I would like to know what I can negogiate with him so that it works to my advantage and is also the best for me. Our median credit scores are 672 for me and 610 for my husband. We make a littler over $90,000 a year and both have steady jobs. No collections or Late payments for about a little over a year. The only thing that is keeping my husband's score from increasing is what he has been working on over the past few months which is his balance on one of his credit cards, its a little over the 30% limit but not that bad with a bal of $550.00, and this is also his highest. Within the last year we have paid off all collections and debts we had on our credit. I have no credit card debt but 2 installment loans, an eductional loan, a car loan and one secured credit card with $200 limit w/ zero bal and a revolving credit card with $400 limit w/ zero bal. My husband has one installment loan, one reg credit card and two revolving credit cards below their limits. He has had some credits cards that went into collections but have been paid off so they are just listed as closed under his report. My total debt a month is $786.00. My husbands debt is about $250.00 monthly. With this being said what would you suggest a better deal? Should I try getting him to drop the rate but keep the points? or take the points off and leave the same interest rate? or change another complete deal. We plan on refinancing in a year or two to get a lower rate. Pls help, NO SPAMMING, or advertising your business! All I need is a few suggestions on what I should do from either personal or professional experience. Thanks so much.

As a senior loan officer in all 50 states I see that you can do better. Why refinance in one year. You want to get the best rate you can get today and avoid all of that. You also cant assume that the rates are going to get lower. You could get the same deal and not even pay the 2 points. The loan program that you are doing is fine based on the income and credit. Need more info shoot me an email. This is not a scam or a solicitation just your friendly neighborhood loan office looking to help.