November 5, 2009

Good News!  Congress just passed, and President Obama is expected to sign into law, an extension of the first time buyer tax credit!  It not only keeps the first time home buyer credit, it will give current home owners of at least 5 years a $6,500 tax credit if they buy a new home.  It also raises the income limits to $125,000 for singles and $225,000 for couples.

October 12, 2009

The past several weeks have been very good for the mortgage business.  Rates have continued to improve overall.  As of today, a 30 year fixed, conventional loan on a pruchase or rate/term refinance is 4.87 5% to 5.125%, depending on credit score, loan amount and LTV.  If you have an existing FHA loan, this is a great time to do a FHA streamline refinance. There is minimal documentation required, no appraisal, and great rates.  A 15 year FHA streamline is around 4.5%, 30 year fixed is 5%, as of today.

As I said, this is a very easy loan to obtain.  Give us a call today!

September 21, 2009

We are still on that rate roller coaster.  30 year rates today are around 5.0% to 5.125%. There are many changes from Fannie Mae and FHA in the works. We hope to provide some of the details to you this week.

July 31, 2009

The past two weeks have seen rates on a roller coaster.  We were concerned that we were on an upward track that would only keep going up.  Thank goodness that didn't turn out to be the case.  Rates have started back down again.  A 30 year fixed is around 5.25% as of this afternoon! We have hopes that next week will be better.  The point is this, these rates will not last indefinitely. If you are in a position that refinancing or purchasing makes sense, get the ball rolling now!

July 17, 2009

No one really knows.  There is constant chatter within the industry about rates and when/if they will go back down to the 4.875% range.  Let me say this again....NO ONE KNOWS!

My advice is to see how much you could save by refinancing where rates are today.  Divide that monthly savings into the cost(s) of refinancing tosee how long it would take to break even.  If the cost recuperation time is less than how long you plan on staying in your home, perhaps you should refinace now.

I do believe that you should refinance now if you are in a ARM loan that will be adjusting before you plan to sell or move. I am in the process of minimizing my monthly out-go.  I am paying down my credit cards and eliminating as much of my monthly nut as possible.  My advice is for everyone to do the same.  Tougher economic times are ahead.  Plan accordingly.

If you are in a stable situation and can take advantage of the great home prices that exist today, do so. What a marvelous situation for you! We are seeing people save money everyday by buying a home in this market and actually paying less money each month than they were paying in rent!

Contact us today if you are in either position, a need to refinace or the opportunity to buy! 

June 30, 2009

Rates have been very volatile over the past 2 weeks.  A fixed 30 year was as high as 5.875%.  Things have calmed down a bit, around 5.375% today. The point is this, no one knows where rates are headed.  Most folks who do what I do, believe rates will continue to be volatile but edging up over the summer.  Some are predicting the lower 6's by the end of summer.

If you are thinking of buying, start the process now.  The "4% rate" a lot of folks were hoping for is, in my opinion, out of the question.  Find one of the affordable homes that are out there today and make an offer.  We know that rates are relatively low now, we don't where they will be in the future.

May 29, 2009

Well, it looks as if the bubble has burst.  Rates have spiked dramatically in the past week. While we believe we will see a little improvement in the next week, we don't believe rates will go back down to the 4.75% or 4.875% range. So, if you have been sitting on a fence hoping for even lower rates than we have had over the past few months, you have probably hurt yourself.  But, lets keep things in perspective, interest rates in the mid to lower 5s isn't bad.  I would strongly urge you to consider moving on a mortgage before rates edge even higher.  Many people in my industry believe rates will be in the upper 5s before the end of summer.

April 14, 2009

The story below is still pertinent.  There has not been much movement in rates...some days are up a little bit and some days are down a little bit. PLEASE do not stay on the sideline waiting for lower rates any longer.   I believe that we are seeing them as low as they will ever be.  Let us begin the process of determining how much you can save on your existing mortgage, or how low your payments could be if you purchased a home now.

I will be writing an article in the next few days on the governments program for those "upside down" in thier homes.  We have just gotten the information on how the program will supposedly work. Please check here in a few days for more info.  

March 28, 2009

There have been numerous media reports with so-called experts saying that 4%, perhaps even 3% mortgage interest rates may be coming.  I don't think so.  We are 3 months in on a major refinancing boom.  The purchase market is becoming more active.  Lenders are doing more business than we have seen in years, perhaps even more on the horizon.  

Rates today, on a 30 year fixed mortgage are around 4.75% to 4.875% with little or no points (depending on credit score, loan amount, and loan to value). The talking heads haven't figures out that with such a huge amount of mortgage activity, there is little reason for lenders to lower rates even more.  Literally, most lenders are operating at capacity.  Underwritng and processing times are longer than normal due to the volume of business.

How long will rates this low last?  Who knows? What we do know is that rates are at all time lows, today.  For every .125% lower rate, per hundred thousand borrowed, you save approximately $7. If your current rate is 6% on a $200,000 loan, you could save over $140 per month by refinacing now.  Why risk any of that for a possible but in my opinion, somewhat unlikely, $14 to $28 more?

Give us a call, or fill out the application in this site and submit it today.  Whether your buying or refinancing, now is a good time to act!