Author Archive
May 6, 2013
The critical first step in the home buying process today is the pre-qualification/pre-approval process. Home sellers should be very selective when considering which buyer’s offer they will accept when they have multiple offers to choose from. The only thing worse than no offer, is selecting the wrong offer based on a meaningless pre-qualification letter!
The truth is most pre-qual letters only mean that the lender has pulled a credit score on the potential buyer and the credit score meets the minimum score requirements. This is simply the first hurdle in the total mortgage loan underwriting process. Lenders issue “pre-qual” or “pre-approval” letters every day based solely on a credit score only. The language in their pre-qual letter goes something like this: (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, Buyers, georgia, Judy Jones, listing, Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, mortgages, Real Estate, real estate agent, real estate career, Realtor, seller, success, Tips
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers | 2 Comments »
March 11, 2013
For the first half of 2013, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has made two major changes to their policies:
1. Monthly Mortgage Insurance Premiums (MIP) are scheduled to increase affective April 1, 2013. While Upfront MIP is remaining the same at 1.75%, Monthly MIP is changing from 1.25% to 1.35%.
2. June 3, 2013 the FHA will no longer allow an FHA borrower to cancel their mortgage insurance premium payments when the loan balance drops to 78% of the property’s value!
This is the fifth increase HUD has made to the FHA MIP cost in the past 3 years. In April of 2012, FHA increased the MIP rates from 1% to 1.75% on the Upfront MIP and from .90% to 1.25% on the Monthly MIP. (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, Buyers, case number, FHA, FHA case #, fha financing, FHA loan, georgia, HUD, Judy Jones, loan, Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, MIP, Monthly MIP, mortgage insurance premium, mortgages, Real Estate, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Upfront MIP
Posted in Agents, Buyers | 3 Comments »
February 18, 2013
How do I know what price range to look in? How do I make sure my offer is accepted? These are two of the most commonly asked questions from first-time and experienced homebuyers alike.
Give your buyer the added advantage of a true pre-approval, not just an empty pre-qualification in this highly competitive market where multiple bids are common and sellers are considering every aspect of every offer they receive.
Identify your property price range and strengthen your bargaining power by understanding the difference between pre-qualification and pre-approval. Here’s the difference: (more…)
Tags:assets, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, Buyers, first time homebuyers, georgia, homebuyers, income, Judy Jones, loan, loan amount, Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, mortgages, multiple offers, pre-approval, pre-qualification, prequal, Real Estate, success
Posted in Agents, Buyers | 1 Comment »
January 7, 2013
When lawmakers dodged the “fiscal cliff” last week, they also decided to extend the tax break for forgiven mortgage debt that was set to expire on Dec. 31, 2012. The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 has been especially important with the current glut of short sales and foreclosures, and it’s truly a “relief” that it has been extended until the end of 2013.
The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 was enacted on Dec. 20, 2007. The Act protects homeowners from paying income taxes on the deficiency difference between what they sell their home for and what they owe. Whether the home is sold in a short sale or foreclosed upon by their lender, these distressed homeowners are protected by the Debt Relief Act of 2007. (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, FHA, fiscal cliff, Foreclosures, georgia, Judy Jones, Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, MIP, mortgage, Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, mortgage insurance premium, PMI, private mortgage insurance premium, Real Estate, short sales, taxes
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers | 2 Comments »
November 12, 2012
If the Debt Relief Act of 2007 is not extended, 2013 could be a very Unhappy New Year for homeowners who have foreclosures and short sales!
New headlines are warning of a financial cliff that is approaching with the end of 2012, and the real estate industry will be hit particularly hard! It’s the expiration of the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007.
The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 was enacted on Dec. 20, 2007. The Act protected homeowners from paying income taxes on the deficiency difference between what they sell their home for and what they owe. Whether the home is sold in a short sale or foreclosed upon by their lender, these distressed homeowners have been protected by the Debt Relief Act of 2007, which is set to expire on Dec. 31, 2012 unless Congress acts… quickly! (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, Congress, Debt Relief Act, equity, foreclosure, georgia, Judy Jones, Metro Brokers Financial, Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, mortgages, Real Estate, short sale
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers | 7 Comments »
August 20, 2012
You might have heard rumors or received e-mails stating that all real estate sales would have a new tax in 2013 due to the passage of the Health Care Law. Here are the basic facts:
- Yes, there is a new 3.8% tax that is part of the recently passed Health Care Bill.
- Yes, this new tax comes into effect January 1, 2013.
- No, this is not a transfer tax that will be charged on all real estate sales.
- The tax will only impact individuals who have more than $200,000 adjusted gross income (AGI) and joint tax filers who have more than $250,000 AGI on their joint tax return. (more…)
Tags:Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, Real Estate, georgia, Judy Jones, atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, rental income, investment property, real estate tax, health care, health care reform, net capital gains, health care bill
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers | 1 Comment »
July 2, 2012
What if I told you your information is being sold and you don’t even know it…. but you can stop it! It’s the practice of selling “Trigger Leads” and this is how it works:
After a borrower submits a loan request, lenders pull a credit report from a Credit Bureau. The Credit Bureaus get the data they use to generate credit reports from companies that are called Repositories. There are 3 Credit Repositories: Experian®, TransUnion®, and Equifax®. Each time a Credit Report is ordered, the Credit Bureau sends a request to the three Repositories for the most updated data on that consumer. This order creates an Inquiry that the Credit Repositories turn into cash by selling the information as a “Trigger Lead”. (more…)
Tags:Metro Brokers, Equifax, Experian, TransUnion, Metro Brokers Financial, georgia, Judy Jones, atlanta, atlanta real estate, mortgages, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, trigger leads, credit bureau, loan request, repositories, credit report, selling leads
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers | 1 Comment »
May 14, 2012
“What are your rates today?” This seems like such a simple question. However, there is no simple answer to this seemingly simple question.
Interest rates vary greatly based on loan type, loan size, loan term, and lock-in time, region of the county, world markets, bond prices and many other volatile indexes. These factors have a major impact on the movement of interest rates, but this list does not include the most important factor, the specific borrower’s credit score, LTV, DTI, property type, source of down payment, etc! (more…)
Tags:Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, Judy Jones, atlanta real estate, mortgages, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, interest rates
Posted in Agents, Buyers | Comments Off
March 19, 2012
HUD announced this month that they were raising the Mortgage Insurance Premiums (MIP) effective April 1, 2012. The Upfront MIP is changing from 1% to 1.75% and the Annual MIP is changing from .90% to 1.25%.
Before you panic about this bad news… the bottom line is that on a $100,000 FHA base loan amount, the payment will increase less than $7 per month as a result of both MIP premium increases. (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, FHA, georgia, HUD, Judy Jones, Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, MIP, mortgage insurance premium, Real Estate, real estate agent
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers | Comments Off
August 22, 2011
Most agents and homebuyers are not aware that the IRS is often one of the major delays to be able to meet the closing date on time. You may be asking, “How does the IRS delay the mortgage process?” Well, every mortgage lender in the U.S. today must obtain the IRS transcripts for the homebuyer’s last 2 years of filed federal tax returns.
These transcripts are provided by the IRS once the mortgage lender sends in the signed 4506-T form that allows the release of the homebuyer/borrower’s filed tax records.
The Mortgage Lenders must obtain a “Clear 4506-T Result” from the IRS before they can move the loan file forward and on to closing. There are many reasons for a FAIL result on a 4506-T request, but in 80% of the cases it is because of an “Invalid Address”. (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, closing success, failed closing, georgia, irs, irs 4506-t, Judy Jones, Metro Brokers, mortgages, Real Estate, real estate career, Realtor, success, tax records, Tips
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers | 3 Comments »
July 25, 2011
There have been rumors and various news reports circulating that FHA will soon be allowing unemployed Americans who have an FHA insured mortgage to miss up to 1 year of mortgage payments without being foreclosed on.
My hope in writing this article is to provide more details on this topic that is sure to prompt more and more discussions and questions.
IMPORTANT: Please note that only the customer’s current lender can give them a final answer on if they qualify under this program. The number to call is on their mortgage payment coupons or monthly statements from their current lender. (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, Fannie Mae, FHA, Foreclosures, Freddie Mac, HUD, Judy Jones, loans, Metro Brokers, Metro Home Mortgage, mortgages, Real Estate, success, Tips
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers | 4 Comments »
September 20, 2010
My second “Closing Killers” story is about buyers relocating from Idaho who expose their closing to one of the Closing Killer gang leaders: “Opening New Credit”!
Sam and Sue Spud had found a peach of a deal in Peachtree City. This foreclosed home was perfect. It had taken the Bank seller over 7 weeks to respond to their offer. They were finally under contract and heading for closing. If they missed the original closing date, they would have to pay the seller $100 per day to extend the closing date. Their loan application had been in process for over 3 weeks… everything looked “fine”.
Their agent and loan officer had told them not to make any changes to their credit or finances until after closing. (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Buyers, closing, closing killer, credit score, FHA, georgia, GFE, good faith estimate, HERA, HUD, Judy Jones, Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, mortgages, opening new credit, Peachtree City, pre-clising verification, Real Estate, underwriting, undisclosed debt
Posted in Agents, Buyers | 4 Comments »
August 30, 2010
Homebuyers who are taking advantage of the great home values and historically low interest rates are finding the mortgage qualifying process much harder than ever before.
I’ve put together several stories based on real buyers from recent deals that were almost killed by the top “Closing Killers” in the market today. The names have been changed to protect the innocent.
Our first story is about a first time homebuyer couple who barely escaped the sneaky Closing Killer, “Unexplained Deposits” who is part of the Closing Killer gang led by “Opening New Credit”!
Harry and Sally were buying their first home. The house had originally sold for over $250,000. Harry and Sally were able to secure a signed contract for $134,500 with the seller paying all closing costs. They had applied for an FHA 30-year fixed rate loan, putting down only 3.5%. They only needed $4,700 for down payment and 2 months reserves of the PITI (principal, interest, taxes and insurance) payment to qualify for the loan. When they finally sent their current monthly bank statement to the mortgage processor, it showed a current balance of $16,000! Much more than what they needed to close! But wait… did this bank statement reveal a possible Closing Killer: Unexplained Deposits”? YES! (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, Buyers, closing, debt, Fannie Mae, FHA, Freddie Mac, georgia, Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, mortgages, Real Estate, real estate agent, VA
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers, Uncategorized | 9 Comments »
July 19, 2010
With the new LQI (Loan Quality Initiative), buyers better not make ANY purchases until after closing or there might not be a closing! Even after the mortgage loan is approved, lenders now do a final credit check to make sure nothing has changed.
This means that homebuyers could now find their closing stopped the day of closing if they make any new purchases or changes to their credit, income or assets after they make loan application. The LQI rules require lenders to re-check all of the borrower’s data to ensure that there have been NO changes since the loan application.
In the past, homebuyers were sometimes advised by their Realtor and Loan Officer not to make any purchases or open any new credit until AFTER the closing. Now with the new LQI lender re-verification of the borrower’s mortgage file within days prior to closing, homebuyers could stand to lose more than their loan approval. (more…)
Tags:atlanta, atlanta real estate, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers, buyer, Fannie Mae, FHA, georgia, Judy Jones, loan quality initiative, Metro Brokers, Metro Brokers Financial, mortgages, Real Estate, real estate agent, seller
Posted in Agents, Buyers, Sellers, Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
June 14, 2010
The current economic climate we find ourselves in could easily be titled, “The Good, The Bad and the Ugly”, “The Best of Times and the Worst of Times” or even, “I have good news and I have bad news”
I’m a very strong believer that if you know what to expect and have an understanding of possible challenges and plan for them and anticipate them, bad news or challenges can be overcome.
Well, here’s the GOOD News:
• Interest rates are at 50 year lows.
• Home prices are at 10 year lows in some markets.
• It’s a buyer’s market.
• FHA HUD homes can be bought with $100 down.
• There are a large number of homes to choose from.
• Etc., Etc.
Some have grown complacent to all this good news. Some even thought there was better news coming and missed the only Federal Homebuyer Tax Credit in History!
Well, here’s the BAD News:
• The low interest rates mean that Lenders have more to lose than gain by making loans!
• These lenders have already lost large sums due to unpaid mortgage loans that have resulted in the drop in home prices.
• Risk rules the Lending world today, making getting a new mortgage a very difficult and long process.
So, be prepared for the reality of the new lending requirements. It’s definitely worth it when you consider what they have to gain.
(more…)
Tags:atlanta real estate mortgages, Judy Jones, lending requirements, Metro Brokers Financial, mortgage industry, mortgages, obtaining a mortgage, risk
Posted in Agents, Buyers | 8 Comments »
The critical first step in the home buying process today is the pre-qualification/pre-approval process. Home sellers should be very selective when considering which buyer’s offer they will accept when they have multiple offers to choose from. The only thing worse than no offer, is selecting the wrong offer based on a meaningless pre-qualification letter!
