I’m so embarrassed that my last blog post was back in March! I had my baby in early April, so life has been a whirlwind in managing baby and work. Both are absolutely wonderful though and my life is quite full and busy. The lack of blog posts is certainly not due to any lack of news in the industry. To follow are just a few highlights of what has been going on. I do hope to blog much more frequently, so will be expanding on some of these points in individual posts. Stay tuned!
- Interest rates are still the lowest they have ever been from a year-over-year standpoint. I look back at my client list and think of how many times I told some clients that we probably would not be refinancing again, and yet, opportunities to refinance at a lower interest rate and no cost keep coming up.
- Lenders recently rolled out stricter underwriting guidelines for self-employed borrowers and condo/townhouse unit owners, so if you fall into this category, it is a little harder to get a loan.
- The Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) 2.0 program rolled out, and some homeowners are able to take significant advantage of refinancing into low rates despite being underwater. If your current loan is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac (click on the links to see) and was originated prior to 6/1/09, you can refinance under HARP. I just locked in a client today under HARP in a 30 Year Fixed loan at 3.625% (APR 3.684%) and underwriting came back with a Property Inspection Waiver (no appraisal!), even though their Loan-to-Value ratio is 108%. It’s an amazing opportunity.
- In general, current minimum down payment requirements are:
CONVENTIONAL LOAN:
Up to $417k loan amount (Conforming loan): 5% down with good credit
$417,001-$625,500 (High-Balance Conforming loan): 10% down
Above $625,500 (Jumbo loan): 20% down
FHA:
Up to $729,750: 3.5% down payment
That’s a small and quick highlight of some things. Here’s to keeping up with blogging despite having a little 7-month old! Wish me luck, and of course, always call or send me an email if you have questions or if there is anything I can do to help you.
