Category: Mortgage
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Looking for a Path to Homeownership? Look Again at Down Payment Assistance.
The typical person can’t afford the typical home. As property values keep rising, down payments aren’t getting any easier to make. If you know the feeling, have you looked up down payment assistance? It can be a grant, with no repayment requirement. Or it could be a loan — possibly a forgivable loan. Even if…
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What Resources Exist for Deed Holders Who Need Cash?
Ever heard the phrase house rich, cash poor? It can be frustrating to have a valuable home and empty pockets. You might be dealing with job changes, emergencies, new goals, hopes and dreams… And you need cash. Can you reach into your property value to get the cash now — without downsizing to a cheaper…
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Troubleshooting After Divorce: My Name Is Still on My Ex’s Mortgage.
Maybe your ex got your former home through your divorce. And maybe you thought it made sense to let your ex keep the loan — after all, the interest rate on it is great! And those are your kids living in the home… why make life harder for them by complicating the status of the…
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Borrowing Against Your Equity: HELOCs, Home Equity Loans…and Interest Rates
One of the opportunities you have as a deed holder is the ability to borrow against the home equity you build over the years. But wait. How high is the interest rate you’ll have to pay? Is it worthwhile to pay that rate, in light of what the funds you borrow can do for you…
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Tapping Into Home Equity Puts a Lien on Your Deed. Consider the Risks.
Many deed holders have accumulated a lot of home equity over recent years. Financial gurus online often encourage homeowners to tap into it. After all, why not take advantage of a home’s rise in value to get cash and do something on your bucket list? But handy as they are, home equity loans do come…
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I’m a Senior, Looking for a Mortgage. Will I Be Treated Fairly?
Great question. The first thing to know is that the Equal Credit Opportunity Act is on your side! Under this federal law, lenders may not consider an applicant’s age as a reason to approve or turn down your application. Simply stated, seniors can get mortgages if they demonstrate their ability to make the monthly mortgage…
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The Rise and Rise of Down Payments
A down payment is the portion of a home’s purchase price the mortgage borrower pays upfront. You knew that. But did you know the median down payment for U.S. homebuyers is now more than $55K+? That’s remarkable. It was less than $45K just last year. Buyers often try to put 20% of the purchase price down.…
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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Gets Tough on Mortgage Loan Junk Fees
Are lenders’ “junk fees” pushing the high cost of closing on a home even higher? The federal government thinks so. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) says fees need to be more transparent, understandable, and reasonable. Why are the fees charged? Are they really “junk”? Do borrowers get a say in what they pay? Let’s…
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Can’t Wait to Move. (If Only We Could Pack Up Our Low Mortgage Rate and Take It With Us!)
Some people wish they could move, but hesitate to sell their current homes. They might be thinking: “I’d gladly sell my home right now, if only I could shift the remaining 25 years of my 4%-interest mortgage to the next house I buy! (Oh, well.)” “Giving up our 3% rate and getting a new mortgage…
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Wraparound Mortgages: When They’re Used and How They Can Help
Ever heard the term wraparound mortgage? Because this is actually a set of two mortgages for the same home, it’s more complicated than a regular mortgage. It can present special risks, and it’s less commonly seen in the world of real estate. That said, some have used it to be able to get a home…
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All About DTI: How Much Debt Is Too Much If I Want to Buy a Home?
Receiving the deed to a home is a major milestone. Typically, it depends on an earlier milestone: the mortgage approval. Apply for a mortgage, and lenders will consider your debt-to-income ratio (DTI). Why the DTI? Essentially, the lender wants to know how much of your earnings you spend, using credit. A low DTI suggests that…
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Vacation Property Loans? What’s the Scoop?
Some people buy homes, and run vacation rental businesses through them. They might even run their businesses from afar, through apps. And they do it without having to qualify for a loan based on their incomes. These borrowers seek out an unconventional — yet popular — form of mortgage. Lenders approve these loans based…
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Buying Without Your Spouse? What to Know About a Purchase Money Mortgage
Sometimes a homebuyer who’s married wants to buy property as an individual. They want to be the sole buyer, with no other name on the closing papers. How can it work? Consider the purchase money mortgage. As Cleveland’s CrossCountry Mortgage® company explains, “if a married person wants to purchase a property without their spouse being…
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What’s a “Scratch and Dent” Mortgage?
Last year, mortgage lending slowed to a crawl. So, the lending industry had some extra time on its hands. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac took advantage of some of that extra time to go over the loans they purchased in the sizzling hot market of 2020-21. During those frenzied months, underwriters were under pressure to…
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Before Applying for Your Mortgage, Get Familiar With the Official Consumer Toolkit
Know Before You Owe is a set of mortgage guides from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). It shows home loan seekers the steps they need to take to open and handle a mortgage account. It provides detailed information on interest rates, and explains how to find comparable deals on loans, too. This makes perfect…
