Entries from Dan Melson's La Mesa Real Estate and Mortgage Website tagged with 'loan qualification'
New Consumer Article: The 2010 Good Faith Estimate (Page Three)
Today we have the final installment in the series on the new Good Faith Estimate formThe 2010 Good Faith Estimate (Page Three). Your government that should be protecting you from the worst sort of mortgage provider lies is now actively...
New Consumer Article: The 2010 Good Faith Estimate (Page One)
It's been a while, but the most recent Transaction From Hell (seller's tenants didn't want to move out - or even let inspectors in) is finally over and I've had a little bit of chance to recover. Today's new consumer...
New Consumer Article: Changes In The Mortgage Market And Transparency Since 2005
It's been a while because I've been both busy and depressed over dis-improvements in the market and their effects upon consumers, but yesterday I found time to write a new article Changes In The Mortgage Market And Transparency Since 2005....
New Consumer Article: Automated Underwriting In Pre-Qualification or Pre-Approval Letters
The new consumer article for today is Automated Underwriting In Pre-Qualification or Pre-Approval Letters. Not to put too fine a point on it, automated underwriting is useless until all details of the transaction have been finalized. If you're selling a...
New Consumer Article: Some Offers Are More Equal Than Others
The new consumer article for today is Some Offers Are More Equal Than Others, talking about how to evaluate two different purchase offers even though they may be for the same or similar amounts of money. This is primarily important...
New Consumer Article: They Told Me Not To Make My Loan Payment
The new consumer article for today is They Told Me Not To Make My Loan Payment. Ladies and Gentlemen, that's one of the top ways to get yourself in trouble when you're refinancing. What if your new loan cannot be...
New Consumer Article: There Is No Fairy Godmother for Loans
The new consumer article for today is There Is No Fairy Godmother for Loans. To avoid becoming a government statistic, ask prospective loan providers the hard questions before you sign on the bottom line - or better yet, before you...
New Consumer Article: Student Loans and Real Estate Loans: Default, Repayment vs. Nonpayment and Consolidation
The new consumer article for today is Student Loans and Real Estate Loans: Default, Repayment vs. Nonpayment and Consolidation. These are the three issues that are most common for loan applicants to run afould of....
New Consumer Article: Restricted Sale Property: Very Difficult to Find A Loan
The new consumer article for today is Restricted Sale Property: Very Difficult to Find A Loan. Before you make an offer on restricted sale property, know that your financing options are going to be very limited, and being able to...
New Consumer Article: 105% Refinancing With No PMI (Maybe)
The new consumer article for today is 105% Refinancing With No PMI (Maybe). It goes over the straight scoop on Fannie and Freddie's new programs aimed at loss mitigation by helping people who would be able to refinance if values...
New Consumer Article: How Agents Should Respond To An Appraisal Below Purchase Price
The new consumer article for today is How Agents Should Respond To An Appraisal Below Purchase Price. The appraisal is a significant client protection, and trying to manipulate the appraisal to make the transaction happen is not in a buyer's...
New Consumer Article: Stretching Your Budget Means Compromise
The new consumer article for today is Buyers: Stretching Your Budget Means Compromise. It's something too rarely covered by the press, and by real estate agents. There are tradeoffs in every choice a buyer makes, and unless they have a...
New Consumer Article: Loan Fall-Out And The Effects Upon Consumers
The new consumer article for today is Loan Fall-Out And The Effects Upon Consumers. The days when loan officers are willing to lock loans with just a social and the identity of the property are ending, if not already over....
New Consumer Article: The Difference Between a Reliable and Unreliable Prequalification or Preapproval Letter
The new consumer article for today is The Difference Between a Reliable and Unreliable Prequalification or Preapproval Letter. Whether you're a buyer or a seller, having the right lender letter is a good thing. If you're a seller, you know...
State of the San Diego Real Estate Market March 2009
Reminds me of this gold rush movie (one that I recommend watching if you have a chance) Okay, it's not quite like that, but correctly priced properties are flying into "Pending". It has to do with supply and demand. At...
New Consumer Article: Investment Property and Loan Qualification
The new consumer article for today is Investment Property and Loan Qualification. It has become exceedingly difficult to get credit for rental income when you apply for a new mortgage, with the upshot being that when the lender won't agree...
New Consumer Article: Getting A Loan In A Paranoid Lending Environment
The new consumer article for today is Getting A Loan In A Paranoid Lending Environment. Lenders today are over-tightening lending standards in over-reaction to the losses they have taken (which were their own fault), effectively nuking the barn after one...
New Consumer Article: Military Housing Allowance and Loan Qualification
The new consumer article for today is Military Housing Allowance and Loan Qualification. For all the nonsense the military puts up with, this is one instance where the government treats them better than just about any other employer....
New Consumer Article: Be Careful Moving Your Down Payment Money
The new consumer article for today is Be Careful Moving Your Down Payment Money. Underwriters want to see a trail on any money you have. If you don't have or can't show such a trail, the presumption is going to...
New Consumer Article: Fifteen Year Loans
The new consumer article for today is Fifteen Year Loans: Are They A Good Idea?. Lots of nonsense gets put out there about fifteen year loans, and to many people there is a certain cachet to only needing fifteen years...
New Consumer Article: The Hope (Dashed) For Homeowners Program
The new consumer article for today is The Hope (Dashed) For Homeowners Program. I really thought that most folks understood this was all political theater - unlike the $700 Billion for lenders who screwed up by the numbers, intentionally disregarding...
New Consumer Article: The Qualification Letter I Use for My Buyers and Require For My Listings
The new consumer article for today is The Qualification Letter I Use for My Buyers and Require For My Listings, which talks about how I communicate that my buyers really are qualified, and how I ascertain that potential buyers of...
New Consumer Article: You've Got a Great Offer, But Can The Buyer Consummate It? (Cash to Close)
The new consumer article for the day is You've Got a Great Offer, But Can The Buyer Consummate It? (Cash to Close). These days, you have to pay attention to details like the limits of how much lenders are willing...
New Consumer Article: Mortgage Fraud Is Still Happening - What To Do About It
The new consumer article for the day is Mortgage Fraud Is Still Happening - What To Do About It. There are still tricks that the less scrupulous agents and loan officers are pulling that are just as fraudulent as at...
New Consumer Article: How Much Down Payment Do I Need and How Do I Get It?
The new consumer article for the day is How Much Down Payment Do I Need and How Do I Get It?. The title says it all: How much do you need, and ways of coming up with it in a...
New Consumer Article: VA Loans Have Become The Magic Bullet
The new consumer article for the day is VA Loans Have Become The Magic Bullet. It isn't that VA loans have changed; it's that everything else has severely tightened the qualifications. I'll try and have at least a couple of...
New Consumer Article: Will I Qualify for the Loan to Buy Real Estate During The Market Meltdown?
Today's new consumer article is Will I Qualify for the Loan to Buy Real Estate During The Market Meltdown?, which helps people answer the question of whether they will qualify for and be able to get a loan during the...
What Sort of Loan Can I Get? (October 2008)
Having had two separate very qualified buyers ask me if they could get a loan in the last two days was kind of an eye opener to all of the hype out there about how difficult it is to...
New Consumer Article: How Loan Modification Benefits The Real Estate Markets
Today's new consumer article is How Loan Modification Benefits The Real Estate Markets, in which I discuss the benefits that everyone, even those who aren't in trouble, get out of the loan modification program. A lot of people get upset...
New Consumer Article: Mortgage Loan Modification
Today's new consumer article is Mortgage Loan Modification, in which I discuss the basics of a program that lenders are cooperating with that keeps people in their homes and prevents the lender from losing money they don't have to. I...
New Consumer Article: "Buy and Bail" or Buying One Home Before Foreclosure on Another
Today's new consumer article is "Buy and Bail" or Buying One Home Before Foreclosure on Another, describing lender response to what has become a widespread phenomenon, as people think they are somehow saving themselves money try to defraud lenders in...
New Consumer Article: The Return of Portfolio Lending
Today's new consumer article is The Return of Portfolio Lending, on the subject of what a portfolio loan is and the differences between portfolio and security based lending, and what the return of portfolio lending means, even to those who...
New Consumer Article September 9, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Personal Loans For A Real Estate Down Payment, which discusses an uncommon but doable alternative for rapidly acquiring a down payment. It has significant downsides even if done correctly, and if you do it wrong...
New Consumer Article September 5, 2008
Today's new consumer article is The State of the Loan Market and How Much You Can Borrow September 2008 (Part II), which discusses the loan market and the state of lender paranoia that currently prevails, and the possible solutions to...
New Consumer Article September 4, 2008
Today's new consumer article is The State of the Loan Market and How Much You Can Borrow September 2008 (Part I), which discusses the loan market and the state of lender paranoia that currently prevails. If you are one of...
New Consumer Article September 3, 2008
Today's new consumer article is What Do Loan Qualification Standards Accomplish?, which talks about the good that having and adhering to standards of qualification does, and the problems it avoids for all concerned....
New Consumer Article September 2, 2008
Today's new consumer article is All Buyer Assistance Programs Require Full Documentation of Income, in which I go over one requirement of all government programs, first time buyer programs, and all other programs where a consumer is getting assistance to...
New Consumer Article August 28th, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Rent to Own and Lease With Option to Buy, which talks about one alternative to the traditional sale that usually gets a seller a higher price, while not requiring a buyer to come up with...
New Consumer Article August 26th, 2008
Today's new consumer article is What If You Cannot Refinance Later?, which addresses a very real concern that there are many reasons why people may not be able to refinance their property at a later date, so even though the...
New Consumer Article August 19, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Loan Qualification Standards: Qualifying Rate and Payment, which talks about how the calculations that determine whether or not you qualify for the loan you apply for....
New Consumer Article August 13, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Why Lenders Don't and Won't Tell Borrowers Their Loan Was Turned Down, which discusses why most lenders don't make this very simple disclosure. Basically, it's because they lose money by being honest....
New Consumer Article August 12, 2008
Today's new consumer article is What Buyers Need: What Sellers Should Want to Supply, a companion article to yesterday's, helping sellers to be successful by thinking like buyers....
New Consumer Article August 11, 2008
Today's new consumer article is What Sellers Need: What Buyers Should Want to Supply, which talks about thinking like a seller for buyers....
New Consumer Article July 21, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Buying Teardown Properties and Condemned Buildings, a discussion of the basic issues of buying property with condemned buildings, or ones that you just don't like and want to replace. There's another article set to...
What to Do When Your Loan is Declined
Loans are declined, or actually, the next thing to it, all the time. It is pretty rare for a loan to be outright rejected; I do not recall ever having had a loan outright rejected. That's a sign of a...
How Can I Lower The Down Payment Requirements So I Can Buy Real Estate?
With a few lenders starting to loosen their requirements slightly in San Diego, it's becoming increasingly obvious that the bottom is behind us. However, the issue has now become, "I don't have much of a down payment. How do...
Why Do Purchase Escrows Fall Apart? (And Why Is It Happening More Often?)
There have always been real estate transactions that fall apart. The reasons why they fall apart are as varied as the people who enter into the transaction in the first place. Let's get back to the very basics for...
NEWSFLASH! SAN DIEGO DECLINING MARKET DESIGNATOR REMOVED!
I have just gotten an email from one of my wholesalers (who shall remain publicly unnamed) removing the "declining market" designation from San Diego loans! This particular lender is still not willing to do 100% loans, but they will...
San Diego Real Estate Market: June 2008 Advice
My advice to sellers is very simple: Hold off if you can. Things have already improved, but better times are coming once more inventory clears. The prognosis for this is very good. I'm seeing fewer short sales, at least...
Protecting My Buyer Clients Good Faith Deposit
As I wrote a few days ago, the buyer's deposit is always at risk. This is just a fact of real estate transactions. I could pretend it's not so, but that wouldn't keep the deposit from being at risk...
Buying Out A Partner - With Complications
First of all I love the information on the site. I've done some research into buying a home and have talked to several people who have bought homes and I can never believe the stories I've heard. My response...
Can I Afford This Property?
Cold Hard Fact for today: The average Real Estate Agent or Loan Officer is not motivated to tell you that you can't afford your property. For the agent you are trying to talk people out of a property after they...
Joint Loans for Unmarried People
We aren't married. How do we buy a house together? Basically, the same way that married people do. The qualifications are exactly the same, provided that you both will be living in the property. If not all of the...
From How Much You Make to A Payment You Can Afford
I'm clueless about how home loans work. Is there any way to figure out how much I can afford to spend per month on a home. If I were to get a home for $(figure) how much would that...
Time in Line of Work for Mortgage Qualification - What Counts?
Question from an e-mail: Hi, I have a question about mortgages. My boyfriend and I are looking to buy a home, and since I have recently quit my job he would be the primary applicant. He makes $44k and we...
Writing Real Estate Purchase Offers to Beat Higher Competing Offers
I just last week closed a transaction where my clients did not make the high bid (or even close), but did get the fully negotiated purchase contract and the property. By building an airtight case that this client was...
Consult a Loan Officer to Make a Purchase Offer
I don't know how many people have told me the story of the Purchase Offer That Was Accepted But Couldn't Be Done. They come to me because they lost their deposit or are about to and they want some way...
April 2008: Why Loan Rates Are Cheap
Despite all the hype, rates (or, actually, the tradeoff between rate and cost) are pretty darned good right now. I'm at home right now, but yesterday, for someone with average credit (national median) and 20% down payment or equity, I...
Paying Off Old Past Due Bills Without Hurting Your Credit
People sometimes ask how they can improve their credit if they have old collections on their credit record. The answer is NOT to simply pay them. Paying off a five year old collection can cause your credit score to drop...
My Sixty Second Public Service Announcement about Buying Real Estate
Here was an idea I had: Pack a list of the most important things consumers need to know about buying real estate, as packed into the words I can say in sixty seconds without sounding like an over-clocked squirrel. Here...
Retirement Account Contributions and Mortgage Loan Qualification
I know 401k contributions impact a persons Adjusted Gross Income, thus would it also affect the amount a person could qualify for? If so, I will delay enrollment for a few months... This depends upon what documentation you use to...
Trying to Hurry Real Estate - Don't
Hi--I just found your site today. The best I've ever seen/read, etc. Thank You!! I do have a question I didn't see addressed regarding our current situation/dillemma: Our present home, which we've lived in for 8 years, is worth...
Sourcing and Seasoning of Funds
People sometimes ask, "Why should the lender care where I got the money for the down payment? I earned it, it's mine - cash is cash!" They're right as far as they go. In general, the lender doesn't care...
Jumbo Conforming Loans: Tougher Standards Than Conforming Loans
Effective April 1st and for the rest of 2008, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be buying loans above the current limit of $417,000. The is a result of the economic stimulus package signed by President Bush on February 13th....
If Your Loan Falls Through
"What do I do when the loan falls through" That depends upon when it falls through and what situation you're in. If you're in a refinance situation, you generally keep making payments on your old loan until and unless...
What Do I Really Need To Know To Buy a House and Get A Loan?
While I have been reading the site for about a year, I have tended to gloss over or completely ignore the posts regarding real estate and purchasing a home. That is, until about two weeks ago when I had...
Why All The Fuss Over Real Estate Transactions?
Why doesn't real estate just sell for the asking price instead of having to go thru all the paper work...? Wouldn't it be easier to just put a price on it and sell it for that price? We don't...
What Do You Know That I Don't Know?
Whenever I go scouting in public forums, somebody is always asking, "What's the secret? How do you get rich in real estate?" The alternate to this question is "What do you know that I don't?" These people are sure there's...
The FHA Secure Program - Saving Some Homeowners From Foreclosure
This is a temporary program, launched by President Bush and Congress a few months ago. Its goal is to prevent as many homeowners as is reasonable from losing their homes through foreclosure. It won't help you if you bought...
FHA Loans: Poised for a Comeback
I want to state that I am in no way shape or form an FHA loan guru. I haven't done an FHA loan in years. But with the new developments in the market rapidly transforming FHA loans into being...
How Soon After You Purchase A Home Can You Refinance?
Legally, immediately. With that said, there are economic reasons why it may not be a good idea for you to refinance. If you have a prepayment penalty, you're going to have to save a lot of money to make it...
Conforming Loan Limits and the Economic Stimulus Package
Sometime today, February 13, 2008, President Bush is scheduled to sign the Economic Stimulus Package into law. Maybe it's already happened by the time this publishes. I've made my opposition plain from the time it was first proposed, but it's...
The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy of Lender Fear
I knew that people, particularly first time buyers, were going to be forced into condominiums in San Diego, I just didn't know how soon. Most people, particularly first time buyers, want 100% financing. Actually, most first time buyers don't...
Issues with Relocation Loans
Sooner or later, a pretty fair proportion of the population are going to get an offer for a much better job, but the catch is that job is located in another city on the opposite end of the country. What...
What Fees Can You Recover If Your Loan Is Denied?
"What mortgage fees can i recover after loan denial" was a search I got. The answer is basically, "None." Indeed, one of your search criteria should be mortgage providers that don't charge anything up front, except maybe a credit check...
Issues Relating to One Spouse Qualifying For A Loan On Their Own
"I am married but want to refinance my house only in my name. What do I have to do?" This is actually pretty easy, and there are at least two ways to potentially accomplish this, depending upon lender policy...
What Pre-Approval Should Mean
People are understandably hazy on the difference between pre-qualification and pre-approval. Pre-qualification is a non-rigorous process whereby somebody says that based upon the information as presented to them, it appears you'll qualify for the loan. Pre-approval should be more rigorous....
Private Mortgage Insurance Rates Jump
I knew this was coming. With holders of second mortgages not wanting to go above 90% Loan to Value Ratio, sellers of Private Mortgage Insurance, (PMI) have the "less than 10% equity" market all to themselves. The rates had...
Dealing With Looming Forclosure - Get Out of Denial
Last week, I got a call from a hard money lender, asking what I could to to "rescue" one of his clients by refinancing. He was being about as altruistic as a drowning man. What he really wanted was...
Loan Cosigners in Real Estate - A Lot of Risk For Not Much Gain
Every so often I get questions about loan cosigners. The main borrowers do not qualify on their own, so they get someone - most often mom and dad - to cosign. Now this is a different thing, or so I...
How Can Buyers Get the Lowest Possible Price on the Best Possible Property?
The first piece of advice I have for buyers who want to get a fantastic bargain is to find a good buyer's agent (this guy is one of the best in San Diego County). Nothing else will make as...
Another Refinance Boom - With a Difference
With rates having nose-dived in recent weeks, we're experiencing a refinancing mini-boom. Now that rates have fallen by about a full percent from where they were most of the last year, people are waking up to the fact that...
First Time Buyer Programs: The Mortgage Credit Certificate (MCC)
This is a nationwide program for first time home buyers that helps them qualify for the loan by saving them even more money on their tax bill. With that said, however, the state of California accounts for more than 50...
Loan Quote Guarantees
Because most loan providers will not guarantee their Federal Good Faith Estimates or California MLDS forms, I've been telling folks that the best suggestion (other than doing their loans myself, of course!) that I can give them is apply for...
Buyer's Markets Are A Great Time For Moving Up
I have said repeatedly that buyer's markets, particularly a buyer's market as strong as this one, is not the time to be selling a property if you have any choice. There is one exception: People looking to turn around and...
Practical Applications: Credit Cards versus Home Equity Line Of Credit
I got an email raising a lot of issues. Some I'm going to deal with very quickly, others I'm going to spend some effort on, but nothing as in depth as a full article would have. I'm going to keep...
Real Estate and Mortgages: Back to Basics?
Over the course of the last few months, I've gotten mass messages from basically every lender I do business with, saying it's time to "get back to basics". About a week ago, my favorite A paper lender became the last...
Getting Another Mortgage Loan After A Short Sale
Our home isn't worth what we owe. So say you were just an average person selling and buying a house, meaning you put your house up for sale, get a contract to purchase on it then go put in offer...
Quitclaiming Property with a Mortgage
I am currently living with my parents and they wish to deed of gift their house to me but they still have a remaining mortgage on it. Is it possible to do this or do they have to pay off...
Loans Not Funded
I got a question about "what does it mean if my loan is not funded after right of rescission?" It likely means your loan provider lied to you, probably from day one. Once you have signed documents, there shouldn't be...
When The Underwriter Makes A Mistake
"challenging underwriters mistakes in housing loan paperwork" was a search that I got. You can't challenge them. Butting heads with an underwriter is stupid and counterproductive. There's only one person who gets a vote, and it's not you, whether you...
New Proposed Federal Reserve Rules: Is This Supposed to Be Helpful Regulation?
I was thinking we were ready for a recovery here in San Diego, but if these go through unamended, that will not be the case. Just in time to be the Grinch that Stole Christmas, the Federal Reserve has...
Can Someone Be Added to an Existing Mortgage?
Got a search for that, and it occurred to me that it is a valid question. The answer is yes. The degree varies. You can simply contact the bank to make yourself responsible for payment. They are usually happy to...
First Time Buyer Programs and Multi-Family Housing
Can I qualify for first time home buyer financing if I buy a duplex and live in one and rent out the other? I thought if I bought a duplex, lived in one side and rented out the other would...
Real Estate and Loan Agents Selling Mortgage Life Insurance
Just got another in a long series of emails about this horrid product: (identifying details redacted) Learn How To Make More Money Per Client ($500-$1000) In This Workshop You Will Learn Why The Most Successful Mortgage & Real Estate Professionals...
Asset and Income Rentals - Borrowing Trouble at Usurous Rates
I found this article by Ken Harney in the paper. WASHINGTON - Call it funny money for the housing boom: Now you don't need actual cash in the bank to buy a house. All you need is somebody who says...
How to Avoid A Repeat of the Housing Market Mess
HR 3915 is not the answer. We've been here before (in the early 1990s), congress did something remarkably similar except a little bit more sane. It didn't work then. Why would we expect it to work this time? Among many...
Improving your Credit Score and Tradelines
Working with a borrower all day today. Truly ugly situation because he doesn't have a long history of credit, and this is the major obstacle to getting the loan done. He actually makes the money, and has a sufficient history...
The Last Time I'm Going to Write About Blame for the Housing Market Mess
Who is responsible for the sub-prime mortgage failures? There's a lot of blame to go around. Regulators for failing to police existing Federal Reserve regulations on the lenders. This includes both Clinton and Bush era regulators. Bond rating agencies for...
Problems with Multiple Mortgages
We have several rental properties that we own (more than 10). When we were younger, before we got married, we both moved around a lot and bought houses, moved, stayed a year or so and did it again. I...
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