I’ve said upon more than one occasion that the factors at closing are all in the loan provider’s favor. Unless they signed up for multiple loans, the typical consumer has no leverage to get the loan provider to play it straight at closing, and actually deliver what they said they would back when you signed …
Category Archives: Mortgages
What Drives Loan Rates?
Supply and Demand. Now that I’ve given the short answer, it’s time to explain the macro factors behind interest rate variations. But I’m going to keep referring to those first three words. It is a tradeoff between the supply of money and demand for it. The most obvious thing influencing loan rates is inflation. This …
Lenders Holding Your Money Hostage
My lender told me that there is an application fee? He said an application fee of $250 and then we’ll need the appraisal fee and of course we’ll need an inspection. Does all this sound legit, is there always an application fee? If they are asking for upfront money, they are trying to hold your …
Games Lenders Play, Part I: Misleading Advertising to Get You to Call
I get the same junkmail and spam most of you folks do. They don’t know who I am when they send it out. It’s just that I know what’s going on behind the scenes with this stuff. So I thought I’d get out my calculator and deconstruct what’s going on with the advertisements I’ve gotten …
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Can You Get A Mortgage On a Condemned House?
The answer is a modified no. The same answer applies to property that is only structurally damaged, but not condemned. That condemnation is a matter of public record. I’ve seen any number of them while perusing title records. It shows up kind of prominently on the title commitment, which every regulated lender is going to …
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Altering the Mortgage Contract: The Lender trying To Add A Prepayment Penalty After the Fact
I recently closed a mortgage loan. The loan officer told me there would be no prepayment penalty. When the documents came there was none and the loan funded and closed. Two weeks later I got an e-mail stating some documents had been missed and we need to sign and return them. They contained a new …
“All Mortgage Money Comes From The Same Place”
This sentence is a textbook illustration of the most effective way to lie. Tell the truth, but not all of it. Not that I’m trying to coach habitual liars, but I am going to deconstruct this astoundingly dishonest claim that I keep encountering. It’s mostly used by less ethical loan officers trying to persuade someone …
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How Loan Providers Make Money
In an attempt to debunk some of the slanders that are floating around out there, this article is an itemization of how lenders and brokers make money on loans. The first method is obvious: Origination or discount points charged to the consumer. This is money that the person getting the loan is paying, or someone …
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 percent of all MCC Certificates. Each individual area has its own administrator. Within the County …
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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. Well, the answer is NOT to simply pay them. Paying off a five year old collection can cause your credit score to drop by 100 points. You say that makes no sense? Well, here’s the logic of …
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