by Irene Moustakas | Mar 3, 2014 | Featured, Tips
Can you purchase a home or refinance your existing mortgage and not pay anything to do so? The simple answer is yes, but it definitely needs more explaining. There are costs associated with every purchase and refinance; the question is how they are paid. The best way...
by Irene Moustakas | Feb 23, 2014 | Featured, Industry News, Loan Programs and Products
Back in the day, we only had a conforming loan limit (currently $417k), and any loan amount above that was considered Jumbo. Now we have three levels of loan limits and down payment requirements for Conventional loans. (FHA will allow 3.5% down payment up to a...
by Irene Moustakas | Feb 12, 2014 | Featured, Loan Programs and Products
Mortgage Insurance is one of those necessary evils in purchasing a home with less than 20% down payment. The purpose of Mortgage Insurance is to protect the lender against the possibility of default. Yes, this is something you pay but does not have any real benefit to...
by Irene Moustakas | Jan 23, 2014 | Tips
Your qualifying ratio, also called the debt-to-income (DTI) ratio, is one of the three main factors in getting a loan. The other two are the Loan-to-Value ratio (considering down payment or equity), and your credit score. There are many other factors in getting a...
by Irene Moustakas | Jan 21, 2014 | Featured, Rates, Tips
Rising interest rates can drastically reduce the max purchase price you qualify for. Depending on the loan amount, a rise in rates of just .25% can potentially cost you hundreds of dollars (in particular with the high loan amounts in our Bay Area). But even with...
by Irene Moustakas | Nov 21, 2013 | Featured, Loan Programs and Products
The new “Qualified Mortgage” Rule will be taking place in January 2014, which will result in the discontinuation of Interest-Only loans. There may be a small handful of portfolio lenders that will continue to offer interest-only loans, but for the most part, they...
by Irene Moustakas | Nov 15, 2013 | Featured, Industry News
Earlier this year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released the details for the “ability to repay” and “qualified mortgage” rule. The rule will go into effect on January 10, 2014. “[The Qualified Mortgage] is intended to create a class of ‘safer’...
by Irene Moustakas | Oct 23, 2013 | Featured, FHA
Although FHA (government-insured) loans are more expensive than Conventional, there are many reasons why homeowners and homebuyers go this route of financing. The most common is for its minimal down payment requirement, but there are other reasons. See below for a...
by Irene Moustakas | Oct 17, 2013 | Featured, Loan Programs and Products
A Jumbo loan (any loan amount exceeding $625,500) is common in our high-cost area. Jumbo loans are considered more risky to lenders, so their interest rates are higher and guideline requirements stricter. You have choices in Jumbo loan programs – your decision can...
by Irene Moustakas | Oct 3, 2013 | Featured, Miscellaneous
This blog post on Emergency Preparedness is shared by professional organizer Melissa Stacey. She specializes in organization for your home, office and small business. She works with each client to create a unique organizing system that is geared toward their specific...