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[VIDEO] Ask a Mortgage Broker – Downpayment and Closing Costs
By Scott Schang |
NOTE: This article was originally published on BuyWiseMortgage.com and being republished here with permission from the authors. Ask ...
Is This the Best Time to Buy a Home?
By Scott Schang |
I often get asked about the best time to buy a home.... This specific time of the year ...
Life After Bankruptcy – An Interview with Sam Parker of MyCreditGuy.com
By Scott Schang |
Bankruptcy Can be a New Beginning if When You Know How to Recover Gracefully. I had the pleasure ...
Mortgage Brokers are Fighting Back with Lower Rates, Less Fees, and More Options for Consumers
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Mortgage Brokers across the Nation are joining forces to educate consumers and Real Estate professionals about the many ...
2019 Home Buyers Capitalize on a Shifting Market
By Scott Schang |
2019 Home Buyers are coming out of one of the most volatile interest rate markets we've seen in ...
How Will the 2018 Tax Law Changes Affect You?
By Scott Schang |
2018 tax law are bringing pretty significant changes for most tax payers this year. Last week I caught ...
2019 Guide to Understanding Mortgage Insurance
By Scott Schang |
Mortgage insurance is one of the most misunderstood, and yet most valuable homebuyer assistance tools available on the ...
Qualifying for a No Appraisal Home Loan?
By Scott Schang |
A no appraisal home loan is available with Conventional financing underwritten by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. ...
Buying Your First Home in 2019?
By Scott Schang |
Buying your first home is a little scary, mixed with a whole lot of exciting! 2019 looks like ...
[VIDEO] Interview with a Millennial First Time Homebuyer
By Scott Schang |
This Millennial first time homebuyer was well prepared and asked lots great questions. I was so impressed with ...
2019 Financial Health Checkup?
By Scott Schang |
Start 2019 off on the right foot by following this simple and powerful financial health checklist. Why do ...
2019 Real Estate Market Predictions
By Scott Schang |
There is a significant and noticeable shift in interest rates and home prices as we roll into our ...
Bank Buster Wholesale Jumbo Roars Onto Market
By Scott Schang |
Mortgage Brokers Celebrate a New Wholesale Jumbo Mortgage Loan available in December, 2018. This new wholesale jumbo mortgage ...
Homeowner’s Insurance Expert Interview with Keir Jones
By Scott Schang |
This week I catch up with Keir Jones, a State Farm Insurance Agent, and we discuss homeowner's insurance. ...
California Wildfire Victims Eligible for No Downpayment Mortgage?
By Scott Schang |
California Wildfires The devastating California Wildfires have made Thanksgiving, and the upcoming holidays, a little more challenging for ...
Estate Planning with Anna Serrambana
By Scott Schang |
It was my extreme pleasure to be able to interview Anna Serrambana from SurfCityLawyers.com in Huntington Beach, California about ...
Single Women, Successful Homeowners
By Scott Schang |
The Rise in Single Female Homeowners This post is being republished with permission from www.SurfCityLawyers.com. Ana and Christine ...
Seller Concessions Secret to Reversing Rising Interest Rates?
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
Realtors and Lenders Work Together to Reverse Rising Interest Rates with This Creative Home Buyer Assistance Strategy. Rising ...
Last Chance to Strategically Refinance?
By Scott Schang |
Smart Reasons to Strategically Refinance Before Interest Rates Rise Much Higher. Interest rates continue to rise as we ...
The Essential Packing Guide for Moving
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Packing before moving has to be one of the most frustrating tasks known to man. If you're like ...
Smart Homes Can Pay Off Big With Savings
By Scott Schang |
Smart homes are a smart idea. Even if you have trouble using the toaster, you've probably heard about ...
How to Avoid Credit Repair Scams
By Scott Schang |
The goal of most credit repair scams is to get you to pay a monthly fee for as ...
Restoring Credit After Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Restoring your credit after bankruptcy can be surprisingly easy if you follow this advice. Bankruptcy can be a ...
Authorized Users and Co-Signing for a Mortgage
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Should You Co-Sign for Someone? How will it Affect Your Ability to Qualify for a Mortgage? In this ...
Meet Evan Wade – Veteran Housing Advocate
By Scott Schang |
Evan Wade - Expert Interview Evan Wade is a professional mortgage loan officer, and valued member of our ...
How Do Home Buyers Win in a Seller’s Market?
By Scott Schang |
Buying a home in a competitive seller's market can be an uphill battle for the unprepared home buyer. ...
How to Get Your Closing Costs Paid by Others
By Scott Schang |
Now that you have enough money for your down payment, here's how to get your closing costs paid ...
Refinance Rush Triggered by Lower Rates
By Scott Schang |
Home owners are rushing to refinance as the last hope of lower rates looks to have passed, again. ...
Interest Rates Hit 2018 High – What’s Next?
By Scott Schang |
This article looks at 2018 interest rates, taking a cautiously optimistic approach toward being prepared for what the ...
FHA Waives CAIVRS Waiting Period After Foreclosure, Short Sale or Deed in Lieu?
By Scott Schang | | 12 Comments
CAIVRS is an automated monitoring system that tracks defaults on Government debt. If you have been a victim ...
Beware of Hidden Costs With Buyer Assistance
By Scott Schang |
Buyer assistance is a great way to get into your first home, and it's important to understand the ...
HomeOne First Time Home Buyer Mortgage
By Scott Schang | | 6 Comments
Freddie Mac announces a NEW first time home buyer mortgage 3% down payment first time home buyer mortgage ...
USDA Guaranteed Home Loan
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
USDA Guaranteed Rural Development home loans offer 100% financing to eligible home buyers throughout the United States. In ...
Why Home Prices Go Up During Summer
By Scott Schang |
Home buyers will face higher home prices this summer, here's why! If you've been thinking about buying a ...
Cash Out Refinance to Pay Off Debt
By Scott Schang |
Is a cash out refinance to pay off debt a good idea, or not? There are two sides ...
86 Counties with NO HomeReady or Home Possible Income Limit
By Scott Schang |
Did you know there are low cost conventional loan programs with no income limits? Available in Low to ...
How Much Can Homeowners REALLY Save at Tax Time?
By Scott Schang |
Mortgage tax deductions and credits make tax time a little less stressful when you own a home. If ...
2019 Guide to Qualifying for a Mortgage with IBR Student Loans
By Scott Schang | | 97 Comments
When you have student loans, qualifying for a mortgage can get tricky. UPDATE January 2019: Student loans will ...
Is This Conventional Jumbo Loan a Game Changer?
By Scott Schang |
March 2018 - NEW Conventional Jumbo home loan alternative was announced earlier this month. Conventional Jumbo Highlights Up ...
5 Reasons Refinancing Make Sense in 2018
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Refinancing your home is one of the great benefits of homeownership. Unlike most retirement accounts, you can borrow ...
How Increasing Interest Rates Impact Home Buyers
By Scott Schang |
Increasing interest rates are causing big issues for home loan shoppers in 2018. Shopping for a lender that ...
NEW: California School Program Shocks Education Industry?
By Scott Schang |
The NEW California School Program offers more down payment and closing cost assistance to first time home buyers. ...
3 Things Every Homeowner Should Know About 2018 Interest Rates
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
2018 Interest Rates Are Rising Faster Than High Tide During a Full Moon. In this article, we explain ...
Mia Schultz, Mortgage Therapist
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
https://www.facebook.com/FMWHome/videos/1840061916028356/ Meet Mia Ferraro Schultz I had to laugh when Mia referred to her self as a "mortgage ...
2018 Buyer Assistance Update Making California More Affordable?
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
NEW 2018 Income limit allows more California first time home buyers to qualify for down payment assistance. Income ...
No Appraisal Home Loan Saves Time and Money
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
2018 home loans use big data and automation to make your mortgage easier to qualify for and less ...
Is a Home Equity Loan Tax Deductible in 2018?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
A home equity loan allows you to borrow against the value of your home by taking out a ...
3 Great Reasons for Buying a Home in 2018
By Scott Schang |
Buying a home is something that most folks would love to do, but many believe they could never afford ...
Mortgage Interest Tax Deductible in 2018?
By Scott Schang | | 6 Comments
The short answer is Yes. All homeowners, and most home buyers will still be able to write off ...
2018 MCC – First Home Buyer Tax Credit
By Scott Schang | | 12 Comments
MCC mortgage credit certificates are a dollar for dollar Federal tax credit only available to eligible first time ...
Veteran Homeowners Win Fight Against Predatory Lenders
By Scott Schang |
Veteran Homeowners Receive a Huge Win Against Predatory Lenders. Any VA streamline refinance loan started after March 25th, ...
2018 FHA Loan Limits Increased
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
2018 FHA loan limits were announced last week, As predicted, FHA has followed the Conventional loan limit increase ...
2018 FHA Loan Limit Increase Likely
By Scott Schang |
NEWS: FHA Announces loan limit increases in 2018! See update here The 2018 FHA loan limit was not ...
2018 Loan Limit Increases to $453,100
By Scott Schang |
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announces that Conventional loan limit will increase in all but 71 Counties ...
Will Mortgage Interest Deduction be Around in 2018?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
The mortgage interest deduction is again at risk as the House tax plan looks to limit this tax ...
Will CFPB Changes Make Mortgages Easier in 2018?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Richard Cordray, Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) resigned from his position as head of the ...
Meet Katy Parsons – Mortgage Expert for the Self Employed
By Scott Schang |
Katy Parsons Expert Interview Katy Parsons is a professional loan officer that specializes in helping self employed families ...
Mortgage Expert More Important Than Automation?
By Scott Schang |
J.D. Power, a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics, releases a telling 2017 report ...
Meet Steven Woloszyk – First Time Home Buyer Expert
By Scott Schang |
Steven Woloszyk Expert Interview Steven Woloszyk is a professional loan officer, and an expert at guiding first time ...
Freddie Mac Stops Allowing $0 on IBR Student Loans
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
Qualifying for a mortgage with income based student loan payments just got a little harder. Freddie Mac stops ...
Meet Jim Duffy – Mortgage Expert
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Jim Duffy Expert Interview It was my great pleasure to sit down with Mortgage Expert Jim Duffy the ...
2017 New Reverse Mortgage Gets Positive Review?
By Scott Schang |
Guest Author: John A. Krochman | Branch Manager - NMLS# 278683 | Broadview Mortgage Corporation Cell / Text ...
How Bank Statements Can Kill Homebuyer Hopes at the Closing Table
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
Avoid Surprises One of the final and most important steps toward closing on your new home mortgage is ...
The Shocking Truth Behind Mortgage Call Centers
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
When Telemarketers Compete, You Lose! It Could Happen to Anyone These are actual, recent (2017) online ...
CAIVRS Waiting Period After FHA Foreclosure
By Scott Schang | | 14 Comments
The Question The CAIVRS waiting period is important if you had a FHA mortgage on a home that ...
Foreclosure After Bankruptcy Waiting Period
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
The Question I received a great question this week from one of our readers regarding the waiting period ...
Disaster Relief Mortgage Offers 100% Financing
By Scott Schang |
Show Notes On this week's show, I've invited two mortgage veterans to discuss mortgage options that are available ...
Qualify for a Mortgage with Temporary Leave Income
By Scott Schang |
What is Temporary Leave? Temporary leave from your place of employment is usually short in duration and is ...
Hurricane Relief Mortgage Allows 100% Financing
By Scott Schang |
HUD Hurricane Relief Options In the wake of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria this, HUD announced a reminder ...
Buying Multi-Family as Your First Home
By Scott Schang |
Show Notes A Multi-Family residence, also known as a duplex, triplex or fourplex, is a powerful investment strategy ...
How FHA Mortgages Work
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Show Notes FHA mortgages don't always get a fair shake. I often speak to home buyers that claim ...
Mortgage Included in Bankruptcy?
By Scott Schang |
Including a mortgage in a bankruptcy will not prevent you from buying again, and you might be surprised ...
How Homebuyer Assistance Works
By Scott Schang |
Show Notes Homebuyer assistance programs, for the purposes of this discussion are defined as money available for the ...
The Digital Mortgage Explained
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Show Notes Who wouldn't love an easy button? The internet, and technology has created easy buttons for many ...
Do New HECM Rules Hurt Seniors?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
2017 HECM Update I would like to extend a special thank you to a lender friend of mine ...
Josh Lewis – Expert Interview
By Scott Schang |
Josh Lewis has been in the mortgage business since 1995, and he shares a wealth of knowledge and ...
2017 DU Underwriting Updates
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Over the weekend of July 29th, 2017, Fannie Mae rolled out it's latest major update to Desktop Underwriter ...
How Portfolio Loans Work
By Scott Schang |
Show Notes A portfolio loan is not necessarily a specific loan program, but an approach to lending that ...
How to Use Gift Funds when Buying a Home
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
Show Notes It is very common to use "gift funds" to help with the down payment and closing ...
How Automated Underwriting Systems Work
By Scott Schang |
Show Notes Automated underwriting systems (AUS) are used by all traditional lenders to determine your eligibility for a ...
How to Buy a Home with Student Loans
By Scott Schang |
PodCast Show Notes: Student loans weigh heavy on many Millennial first time home buyers. These loans will show ...
How to Buy a Home after a Financial Hardship
By Scott Schang |
Show Notes Having a financial hardship in the past does not mean that you cannot qualify for a ...
Buy or Rent? Which is Better for You?
By Scott Schang |
This guest post was contributed by Real Estate Experts, a leading real estate agency in the Chapel Hill ...
Millennials Buying FHA Units as First Home
By Scott Schang |
Primary Residence Units Millennials have figured out a little used, but very smart strategy for jumping into real ...
How Much Mortgage Can I Afford?
By Scott Schang |
Rent is Crazy Can I afford a mortgage? There's got to be another way, right? The cost to ...
Why Sellers Don’t Like Offers with FHA Financing
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
The Problem Are you hitting road blocks getting your offers accepted by home sellers? It could be your ...
Home Loan Denied Because it’s Not Easy Enough?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Bait and Switch? Home loan denied because it's not easy enough? Yes, it's true, and it happens every ...
VA Manual Underwriting – Employment Gap
By Scott Schang | | 5 Comments
Experience Matters Jim Duffy is one of the experts that we count on to solve underwriting challenges that ...
VA Manual Underwriting – Credit Reporting Errors
By Scott Schang |
VA Experience This is another great example of VA manual underwriting heroics. As part of our series on ...
VA Manual Underwriting – Ch 13 BK and Short Sale
By Scott Schang |
Manual Underwriting VA manual underwriting success stories are something that we love around here! VA loans are a ...
VA Guidelines – Manual Underwriting
By Scott Schang | | 6 Comments
Second Chance If your lender is unable to get an automated underwriting approval, or if you've been turned ...
4 Refinance Options after Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang |
Refi Fast Lane Refinance options are available to many homeowners that were forced into bankruptcy during the recession ...
6 Major Fannie Mae Guideline Updates in 2017
By Scott Schang | | 10 Comments
Home Loans Easier? In an aggressive move to make qualifying for a Conventional home loan easier, Fannie Mae recently ...
Qualifying for a Mortgage with Self Employed Income – 2017 UPDATE
By Scott Schang |
Self Employed Easier? On May 30th, 2017 Fannie Mae announced a shocking relaxation of the guidelines that determine ...
Fannie Mae Loosens Debt to Income Ratios in 2017
By Scott Schang | | 18 Comments
Updated July 29th, 2017 In a May 20th announcement, Fannie Mae released a sneak peek of it's 10.1 update ...
Home Loan Outside the Box?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Not Easy Enough One of the biggest challenges you will run into while applying for a home loan is ...
Cash-Out Refinance Guidelines
By Scott Schang |
February 2018 UPDATE - A cash-out refinance is going to be more expensive in the future as interest ...
Reduced Cost Student Loan Consolidation for Homeowners
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
Updated Guidelines Fannie Mae recently announced a new refinance underwriting guideline that relaxes lending rules on borrowers with student loans. ...
Buy a Home with Your Zero Payment ($0) Student Loan
By Scott Schang |
Income Based Payment It is not uncommon to have a zero payment ($0) on a student loan that ...
Jumbo Loan Low Downpayment Options
By Scott Schang |
Get the Low Down A Jumbo home loan is any mortgage that exceeds conventional conforming loan limits for the ...
Portfolio Loan Interest Rates and Guidelines
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Specialized Solutions A portfolio loan is a home loan that falls outside of the underwriting guidelines of more ...
New 2017 Student Loan Guidelines Make Homeownership Easier
By Scott Schang | | 15 Comments
Effective Immediately A new student loan guideline published by Fannie Mae will make it much easier for you ...
Fannie Mae IBR Student Loan Updates Make it Easier to Buy a Home
By Scott Schang | | 9 Comments
Removing Hurdles Fannie Mae announced today that they are removing hurdles that will help homebuyers with student loans. Previously, ...
Bankruptcy and Foreclosure Success Story
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Find the Right Lender We created this website to protect consumers from misinformation and inexperience. Our goal is ...
Shocking Lies that Loan Officers Tell
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Why Are You Lying? Statistically speaking, the volume of lies that loan officers tell readers of this site ...
Are You at Risk of Being Turned Down for a Home Loan?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Do I Qualify? The truth is, the most risk comes from working with a loan officer that is inexperienced, ...
How No Waiting Period Portfolio Loans Work
By Scott Schang |
Portfolio Loans Portfolio loans give homebuyers options for buying a home after a financial hardship with little to ...
New Down Payment Grant is a Game Changer
By Scott Schang |
Down Payment Grant There is an experimental new conventional loan program available that offers a down payment grant for ...
First Time Home Buyer Programs
By Scott Schang |
Buying Your First Home Buying your first home can be both exciting and scary at the same time. ...
Graduated Payment Loan Lowers Interest Rate 2% In First Year
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Ease Into Ownership A new home loan program lowers your interest rate by 2% in your first year, and ...
Loan Officer Approved and Now You’re Declined?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Being told that your previously approved loan is declined is an inconvenient result of the lack of underwriting ...
Community Home Advantage Program
By Scott Schang |
Community Home Advantage Program A new community assistance home loan program is now available for specific zip codes ...
How to Refinance an Investment Property
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Refinancing an investment property is much more difficult than a traditional refi on an owner occupied home. There ...
Student Loan PAYE, REPAYE & IBR Mortgage Guide
By Scott Schang |
Paying For Education Pursuing an advanced education is getting more and more expensive. Especially if you're pursuing an ...
Ask Me Anything About Buying After Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
Buying after bankruptcy is a topic that we have become experts at. We get readers from all over ...
Loan Options Your Lender Will Not Tell You About
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
My Lender Said.... This is one of those times when I wish I had a bigger megaphone than ...
Is an Adjustable Rate Hybrid Mortgage (ARM) Right for You?
By Scott Schang |
Safe and Predictable Option If you got caught up in any of the mortgage mess from the past ...
Conventional Low Down Payment Options for Purchase or Refinance
By Scott Schang |
Get the Low-Down Few people know that Conventional financing will allow less than a 20% down payment. I ...
Can My Lender Decline My Mortgage by Mistake?
By Scott Schang |
We have been informing, educating, and empowering consumers on this website for almost 10 years now. We get tens ...
Why Automated Mortgages Do Not Work……Yet
By Scott Schang |
Failure to Launch Rocket Loans are all over TV, radio, billboards, and it seems like everywhere you look. ...
FHA Slashes 2017 Mortgage Insurance Premiums
By Scott Schang |
FHA Lowers Costs This morning, in one of the final moves before handing over the reigns to President ...
VA Student Loan Underwriting Guidelines
By Scott Schang |
Deferred Payments VA Guaranteed loans are the only underwriting guidelines that will allow you to have deferred student loan ...
FHA and USDA Student Loan Guidelines
By Scott Schang |
Deferred Payments FHA does not currently allow you to have deferred student loan payments when qualifying for a home ...
Fannie Mae Student Loan Guidelines
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Deferred Payments Fannie Mae does not currently allow you to have deferred student loan payments when qualifying for a ...
How to Refinance After Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang |
Your options when trying to refinance after bankruptcy are most often limited by the experience of your loan ...
Freddie Mac Student Loan Guidelines
By Scott Schang | | 53 Comments
Deferred Payments Freddie Mac does not currently allow you to have deferred student loan payments when qualifying for ...
Are Self Employed Mortgages Making a Comeback?
By Scott Schang |
Qualifying Income Let's face it, the only difference between a standard, traditional loan and a "self employed" home ...
Mortgage Broker, Lender or Bank – Which is Better?
By Scott Schang |
Is there a Difference? The short answer is Yes, there can be a huge difference. But it's probably not ...
Conventional Loan Limits Increase in 2017
By Scott Schang |
Increased for Most UPDATE: See California 2017 FHA loan limits UPDATE: See California 2017 Conventional loan limits UPDATE: See ...
Minimum Down Payment Requirement 2019
By Scott Schang |
Minimum Down Payment by Loan Type VA - Veteran Housing Benefit - No Down Payment USDA Guaranteed - ...
Qualifying for a Home Loan with Collections, Charge Offs or Judgements
By Scott Schang |
A lot of people have had challenges in the past, resulting in a collection, charge-off, or judgement showing ...
Jumbo Home Loan after BK, Foreclosure, Short Sale or Deed in Lieu?
By Scott Schang |
Jumbo Loan Woes There are many areas in the Country that require a Jumbo home loan if you want ...
Homebuyer Assistance Alternatives
By Scott Schang |
Assistance Alternatives There's a good chance that you're here as the result of a google search about homebuyer assistance alternatives. ...
2017 Mortgage Interest Rate Predictions
By Scott Schang |
Interest Rates are on everyone's radar after the Election. Regardless of which dog you chose in the race, ...
10. Finish Line – Signing, Funding, and Recording
By Scott Schang |
The Finish Line Once you've signed your Closing Disclosure, you're almost done. You are able to sign your ...
3. How to Hire a Loan Officer and Real Estate Agent
By Scott Schang |
Hiring a Loan Officer Hiring a loan officer is more important than hiring a lender. You will not ...
Bonus – Mortgage Terms and Explanations
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
If you're here because your "so called" loan officer is launching abbreviated mortgage terms and acronyms at you like ...
8. Finding the Best Homes for Sale
By Scott Schang |
Getting Lucky Finding the best homes for sale relies heavily on your ability to be lucky. When I say ...
Bonus – How Your Agent and Loan Officer is Paid
By Scott Schang |
Motivation It's important to understand how your Loan Officer and your Real Estate Agent are paid and why ...
Bonus – New Home Owner Checklist
By Scott Schang |
Congratulations! You've successfully closed on the purchase of your new home and you are officially a Homeowner! Once ...
9. Offer Accepted….Now What?
By Scott Schang |
Now it's Our Turn This is where your preparation pays off. I trust that you've chosen well, and ...
7. Searching for Homes Online
By Scott Schang |
Trusting Data Searching homes for sale online is incredibly easy to do, and can actually be quite fun! There are ...
6. Home Buyer Assistance
By Scott Schang |
A Helping Hand Buyer assistance is a topic that I'm very experienced with in my home State of California. ...
4. Get Pre-Approved for a Home Loan
By Scott Schang |
Getting Pre-Approved Getting pre-approved for a home loan should be one of the first steps towards becoming a homeowner. ...
1. Buying Your First Home?
By Scott Schang |
Start Here Buying your first home is both scary and exciting at the same time. It gets incredibly ...
2. First Time Home Buyer Education
By Scott Schang |
Education is Empowerment First time homebuyer education, also called first time homebuyer counseling, is a requirement of many buyer assistance ...
When Does My Waiting Period Start?
By Scott Schang | | 12 Comments
When Can I Buy Again? Trying to figure out the waiting period after Bankruptcy? Foreclosure? Short Sale? Deed ...
Trended Credit Data – Fannie Mae DU 10.0
By Scott Schang |
Credit Qualifying Over the weekend of September 24th, 2016, Fannie Mae is updating DU to Version 10.0, and introducing ...
Mortgage Insurance – PMI vs FHA, Which is Better?
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
A mortgage insurance policy is required anytime you have less than a 20% down payment, or equity, at the ...
Reserve Requirements for Multi Financed Properties
By Scott Schang |
Investor Relief? Fannie Mae policy changes the reserve requirements for borrowers with multiple financed properties in Desktop Underwriter ...
FHA No Wait after BK, Foreclosure, Short Sale?
By Scott Schang |
An FHA streamline refinance might be your ticket to lowering your rate and payments with no waiting period ...
No Cost FHA Refi Lowers Your Rate and Loan Balance?
By Scott Schang |
Frustrated with FHA? Why? Are you one of those people that hate their FHA mortgage because it has ...
Critical Credit Decisions That Can Make or Break Your Home Loan
By Scott Schang |
Don't Be Surprised When applying for a home loan, your credit is one of the most important factors ...
Use a Short Term Portfolio Loan to Buy Now, Save Later
By Scott Schang |
Short Term Solutions It's been a few years now since your bankruptcy, foreclosure, short sale or deed in ...
Zombie “Second Mortgages” Haunt Unsuspecting Homeowners
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Foreclosure Nightmares A second mortgage included in bankruptcy can foreclose years after it has been discharged, and can ...
6 Reasons Why FHA is Better Than Conventional
By Scott Schang |
Somewhere along the line, FHA loan got a real unfair reputation as being a loan option that you should ...
Are Big Box Lenders are Failing Homebuyers?
By Scott Schang | | 6 Comments
Changing the Game? Big box lenders are those companies that advertise on television and radio with claims about ...
Secrets to Buying Sooner After Hardship
By Rick Kent |
Have you been looking for home financing options that allow recent credit challenges related to Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Deed ...
What Your Attorney Didn’t Tell You About Including Your Mortgage in Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang | | 20 Comments
Mortgage Discharged? My expertise is helping homebuyers understand the lending guidelines for buying a home after a financial ...
Down Payment When Buying Multi Family Units
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Buying Multi Family With interest rates as low as they are after 1st quarter 2016, home loan financing ...
Do You Know Your (Loan) Limits When Buying Your Home?
By Rick Kent |
Home Sweet Home You have worked hard to prepare for the purchase of your new home and are ...
The Rental Property Easy Button
By Josh Lewis |
Building Wealth Many of us dream of owning a portfolio of rental properties. Acquiring a property and using ...
3 Fatal Income Calculation Mistakes (and how to avoid them)
By Scott Schang |
Unique Perspective I am in a unique position as lender. Because I have been educating and empowering homebuyers ...
Qualifying for a Mortgage with Income Based Repayment (IBR) Student Loans
By Josh Lewis | | 291 Comments
Getting a Mortgage with Student Loans Qualifying for a mortgage when you have IBR student loans can put ...
Low Rates Inspire Creative Solutions
By Scott Schang |
Low Rates When it comes to paying interest on a mortgage loan, everybody likes low rates, that's too ...
How to Buy a Duplex with FHA Financing
By Scott Schang |
3.5% Down Payment Do you dream of having your tenants make your mortgage payment for you each month? ...
Great Mortgage Rates (When Preparation Meets Opportunity)
By Josh Lewis |
Everyone loves getting a great deal. In the mortgage world, the concept of a great deal usually means ...
Is a Portfolio Loan a Good Option?
By Scott Schang | | 33 Comments
Not What You Think When you hear terms like hard money, or private money, or portfolio loan, many ...
Jumbo Loan Options After Financial Hardship
By Scott Schang | | 16 Comments
A Jumbo loan is typically much less flexible than traditional financing like Conventional or FHA if you've had ...
What Do Lenders Look at to Get a Loan Approval?
By Rick Kent | | 2 Comments
Beyond Guidelines Understanding what lenders are looking for in the documentation you provide when trying to qualify for ...
3 Reasons Why Interest Rates May Drop in 2016
By Rick Kent |
Rising Rates Wrong? Many thought that the Federal Reserve’s decision in December to raise interest rates by .25% ...
New Homeowners Benefit From Lower Rates
By Scott Schang |
A Penny Earned Saving money always feels like a great accomplishment. Have you ever noticed when you're at the grocery ...
How Real Estate Tax Breaks Work
By Scott Schang |
Tax Benefits Homeownership is one of the most powerful tax savings vehicles available in America today. With the ...
RENT VS. OWN: Are You Asking The Wrong Question?
By Josh Lewis | | 1 Comment
A Critical Question A quick Google search for the phrase “rent vs own” returns 283,000,000 results. Obviously, this ...
How to Battle Discrimination Against Veterans and VA Loans
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
The Ugly Truth There is a very disturbing and ugly pattern of discrimination against VA Loans that happens ...
How Do Mortgage Rates Work?
By Rick Kent |
What Are Your Rates? On almost a daily basis I receive calls from people interested in purchasing or ...
How do Reverse Mortgages Work?
By Rick Kent |
What is a Reverse Mortgage? A Reverse Mortgage is a loan secured by a primary residence of 1 ...
Important Fannie Mae Changes Make Qualifying Easier in 2016?
By Rick Kent | | 1 Comment
December 12, 2015 Fannie Mae will update its Automated Underwriting System (AUS) to implement changes to file requirements ...
VA Loans – Do You Know Your Benefits?
By Rick Kent |
Your VA Benefit When it comes to home financing, it is hard to beat the opportunities provided through ...
How Do I Get A Loan Approval? Credit,Capacity,Collateral
By Rick Kent |
Education Reduces Risk Whether you are getting ready to purchase a new home or are looking to refinance ...
3 Ways to Not Pay Mortgage Insurance
By Scott Schang |
Mortgage Assurance I often hear that homebuyers, and homeowners want to avoid mortgage insurance on their home loan. ...
Are There Any Risks With Using Down Payment Assistance?
By Scott Schang |
Get the Facts I'm sure you've heard it from parents and mentors your whole life..."If it sounds too ...
5 Ways to Take Advantage of Low Interest Rates
By Scott Schang |
Rare Rate Drop The reality of mortgage rates is that they change every single day. The ability to ...
3 Important Changes to FHA Loans September 2015
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
New Guidelines FHA is going through a significant overhaul of it's underwriting guide, as well as the guidelines ...
How Much Do I Need to Buy a Home?
By Scott Schang |
How Much Downpayment Do I Need To Buy A Home Depending on what kind of loan you are ...
How to Qualify for a FHA Loan with a Low Credit Score
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Not Bad Credit Having a low credit score does not necessarily mean that you have bad credit, or ...
Interest Only Portfolio Loan Options
By Scott Schang |
What We've Learned Interest only loans were very popular at one time, and were mostly associated with what ...
How Conventional Automated Underwriting Decisions Work
By Scott Schang | | 26 Comments
What is Automated Underwriting? Computer generated mortgage loan underwriting decisions are the most common way to get approved for ...
These 3 Things Can Help You Sell Your Home for the Highest Price
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Planning for Profits Selling your home for the highest price is much more science than it is an art. ...
First Time Buyers Boost Options with this Tax Credit
By Scott Schang | | 8 Comments
Mission Impossible? A recent Associated Press article, Mission nearly impossible this spring: Finding a home to buy, talks ...
How Mortgage Credit Certificates Work – Introduction
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
A Mortgage Credit Certificate, commonly known as MCC, is a dollar for dollar tax credit similar to the first ...
Home Improvement Loans Offered by FHA
By Scott Schang |
Repairs Preventing Refinance? There are two types of home improvement projects. The first type is not necessary, but ...
Fannie Mae Removes Buy and Bail Rule
By Scott Schang |
Restriction Removed Approximately 1 year after the rapid decline of home values in the aftermath of the great ...
How Much is Your Credit Score Costing You?
By Scott Schang |
Your credit score has a direct impact on the cost of your home loan. Knowing how this works ...
Top 3 Biggest Mistakes Homebuyers Make
By Scott Schang |
Save Yourself Time, money and sometimes your dream home could be at risk if one of these mistakes goes ...
Veteran Mortgage Benefits to Remember
By Scott Schang |
If you are an eligible military Veteran, you are eligible for a special home loan program that allows ...
How Lenders Calculate Qualifying Income
By Scott Schang |
Qualifying Income Assuming you have good credit and assets to buy a home, the most important factor in qualifying ...
How Credit Scores Impact Interest Rates
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Your interest rate is directly impacted by your credit score and the equity in your home. While there ...
Fannie Mae Raises LLPA Fees for Most Borrowers
By Scott Schang |
A loan level price adjustment (LLPA) is a method that conventional loans use to factor in risk factors ...
5. Pre-Approval Preservation
By Scott Schang |
Financial Lockdown Once you’ve received a Pre-Approval from your lender, it is vitally important that nothing changes in ...
Short Sale Waiting Period Waived if Included in Bankruptcy?
By Scott Schang | | 8 Comments
Changes to the waiting period for mortgage debt that was discharged through bankruptcy took place over the weekend of August 16th, ...
How to Buy a Home After a Short Sale
By Scott Schang |
After a financial hardship like having to short sale your home, it's important to know that your next home is within ...
Low Rates Slow Lenders Down
By Scott Schang |
Low Rates There are very few people complaining about interest rates plummeting to near historic lows in July ...
How VA Streamline Refinance Works
By Scott Schang |
The VA streamline refinance offers a reduced cost, reduced paperwork solution to help eligible Veterans take advantage of ...
How Does a FHA Streamline Refinance Work?
By Scott Schang |
An FHA streamline refinance is a reduced cost, reduced paperwork loan program available to anything that currently has ...
Qualifying Basics – First Time Homebuyer Survival Guide
By Scott Schang |
From qualifying for a home home to shopping, offering and closing on your first home can seem quite ...
What is Tax Advantage Mortgage Insurance?
By Scott Schang |
Tax Advantage Mortgage Insurance is a great option for buying or refinancing a high Loan to Value (LTV) ...
How to Prepare for Buying a Home After Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang | | 10 Comments
A Simple Plan Going through bankruptcy is both emotionally and financially exhausting. Buying a home after a bankruptcy ...
Qualifying for a Mortgage with Student Loans
By Scott Schang |
Student Loan Payments The biggest challenge with student loans is that they are often deferred while you are ...
5 Things You Might Not Know About VA Loans
By Scott Schang |
VA loans becoming more and more popular as market changes have brought to light the features of this ...
3 Advantages of Private Mortgage Insurance
By Scott Schang |
Private mortgage insurance offers much more flexibility for home buyers with less than a 20% down payment. Many ...
What is a Reverse Home Equity Conversion Mortgage?
By Scott Schang |
A Home Equity conversion Mortgage (HECM), also known as a Reverse Mortgage, is government insured loan program offered ...
10 Creative Ways to Pay for Down Payment and Closing Costs
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
There are many ways that you can raise the money to cover your down payment and closing costs ...
How to Remove Mortgage Insurance
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
The ability to remove mortgage insurance is a topic that not many home owners understand. Both Private Mortgage ...
Why do Lenders Lie About Homebuyer Assistance?
By Scott Schang | | 7 Comments
You're Not Alone A local lender friend of mine, Brad Yzermans of HomeLoanArtist.com, is one of the good ...
Low Interest Rates Benefit the Prepared
By Scott Schang |
Warning: Falling Rates Last week interest rates dipped to near historic lows again, driven by global economic volatility ...
Buy Sooner if Mortgage Included in Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang | | 4 Comments
You can now buy sooner after Guideline changes announced by Fannie Mae on July 29th, 2014. Fannie Mae has changed ...
Buying After Short Sale Waiting Period Extended
By Scott Schang | | 3 Comments
Buy Again After A Short Sale - And Have 20% Down UPDATED: Last week Fannie Mae announced a ...
Fannie Mae Waives Waiting Period on Foreclosure after Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang | | 272 Comments
On July 29th, 2014 Fannie Mae made an unprecedented move to loosen up waiting period for borrowers that ...
3 Qualifying Surprises That Home Buyers Can Avoid
By Scott Schang |
You do not want any surprises while you're in the middle of an escrow on a new home. Most ...
Why Home Buyers Get Turned Down
By Scott Schang |
I am always surprised at how many potential home buyers are unwilling, or reluctant to gather all of ...
Buyers Beware: Open House Survival Guide
By Scott Schang |
The danger of window shopping at an open house is that you could fall head first into an ...
The Ultimate Home Buyer Guide to Credit Improvement
By Scott Schang |
Not Now. Not No! Credit improvement is not something you should spend money on if you are trying ...
Rent vs Own Doesn’t Address All Buyer Concerns
By Scott Schang |
The "rent vs own" argument doesn't even begin to address the questions that first time home buyers have. ...
An Insider’s Guide to Credit Preservation
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Credit preservation is proactive act of doing the right things to increase your credit scores. In many cases, ...
Employment History for a Mortgage Application
By Scott Schang |
Your employment history includes calculating income and establishing continuity of employment. There are a lot of moving parts ...
When is FHA the Best Loan?
By Scott Schang |
What is the best loan for a first time home buyer? FHA loans get a bad rap, but ...
Lazy Lender? What They Don’t Know Will Hurt You
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
There's No Excuse Homeowners and homebuyers have plenty of reasons to be both suspicious and cautious about working ...
3 Ways to Reduce Housing Costs
By Scott Schang |
Reduce housing costs and enjoy lower payments and fixed costs on your home. We all want to save ...
Should I Pay Discount Points on my Home Loan?
By Scott Schang |
Return on Investment I know it seems counterintuitive saying that spending money will save you money, but that's ...
FHA Back to Work Extenuating Circumstances Explained
By Scott Schang |
Victims of the recent recession may be eligible to buy a home in as little as 12 months ...
How Home Buyers Win in a Competitive Real Estate Market
By Scott Schang |
2018 home buyers should prepare for a very competitive real estate market. The key to winning is planning. ...
First Time Homebuyer Basics – Where Do I Start?
By Scott Schang |
Start at the Beginning Buying your first home is one of the most exciting things you will ever do. It ...
Should I Get An Adjustable Rate Mortgage?
By Scott Schang |
An Adjustable Rate Mortgage, or ARM, is a valuable home mortgage financing option that can offer a wide ...
How are Credit Scores Calculated?
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Credit scores are calculated each time you pull your credit, based on which model the creditor is using. ...
Can a Short Sale After Bankruptcy Hurt My Credit?
By Scott Schang | | 65 Comments
Challenges with the economy, job loss, lay offs and a slow recovery has forced many homeowners to file ...
How Do I Fix A Zombie Foreclosure?
By Scott Schang |
Boomerang buyers are those families that fell victim to bankruptcy, foreclosure or short sale in the past and ...
Zombie Foreclosures Haunt Boomerang Buyers
By Scott Schang | | 10 Comments
When this phenomenon first began to rear it's ugly head, I initially tried to avoid using the term ...
How to Improve Your Credit After Bankruptcy
By Scott Schang |
Improving your credit after bankruptcy is like getting a complete fresh start. This past week I've had 3 ...
Credit Report Errors Prevent Purchase After Short Sale
By Scott Schang | | 27 Comments
Errors On Your Credit Report Could Cost You Thousands The credit monitoring companies aren't lying when they make ...
Home Loan Qualifying Guidelines for Maternity Leave
By Scott Schang |
Maternity leave does not have to prevent you from buying a home. One of the greatest motivating factors ...
No Automatic FHA Loan Approval 3 Years After Foreclosure
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Qualifying for a FHA loan 3 years after meeting the waiting period is not a guaranteed. Tens of ...
FHA Mortgage Insurance Permanent 2013
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
FHA mortgage insurance has been required to be remove automatically when the current balance hits 78% of the ...
Money Saving Mortgage Insurance Options
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Mortgage insurance is something that most first time home buyers are going to have to deal with. ...
Debt to Income Ratio too High?
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Your debt to income ratio is what determines how much you qualify for when applying for a home ...
Using Seller Concessions When You Buy Your Home
By Scott Schang |
.Seller concessions occur when an interested third party like a seller, real estate agent or lender contribute to ...
What Does it Mean to Reaffirm Your Mortgage in Bankruptcy?
By Scott Schang |
To reaffirm your mortgage is a topic that comes up quite often and seems to be very misunderstood. ...
Including a Mortgage in Bankruptcy DOES NOT Affect Home Ownership?
By Scott Schang |
I have written several articles about how bankruptcy, short sale, foreclosure or deed in lieu of foreclosure will ...
Conventional Low Down Payment is Cheaper than FHA Alternative
By Scott Schang |
Conventional financing with a 3% down payment is, for certain home buyers, a far better option than FHA ...
Home Appraisal and Home Inspection When Buying A Home
By Scott Schang |
Protect yourself with an Appraisal and Home Inspection as part of your due diligence when you buyer. The ...
Was Your VA Home Loan Declined? Don’t Take No For An Answer
By Scott Schang | | 113 Comments
If your VA loan was denied, it's possible that your loan officer made a mistake or the lender ...
Mortgage Included in Bankruptcy?
By Scott Schang | | 341 Comments
Since 2011, I have been focusing much more time and energy to educating folks about being able to buy ...
FHA Streamline Refinance – What’s the Catch?
By Scott Schang | | 32 Comments
I know that sometimes FHA home loans get a bad rap because of the mortgage insurance premium, but there ...
5 Creative Down Payment Sources for Home Buyers
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Coming up with the down payment and closing costs is the most common reason renters give for not ...
Buy Again Sooner after Short Sale or Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure?
By Scott Schang | | 73 Comments
NOTE: Short Sale and Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure guidelines were changed in August, 2014 - See new ...
How to Avoid Mortgage Advertising Landmines
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Avoiding mortgage advertising landmines is not a topic that I'm real happy to have to write about. Thing ...
Are Adjustable Rate Mortgages Risky?
By Scott Schang |
Adjustable rate mortgages, or ARM loans, are often blamed for the "toxic mortgage" time bomb that went off ...
Adjustable Rate Mortgage Basics
By Scott Schang |
An adjustable rate mortgage, or ARM, is an incredible option under the right circumstances. ARM loans made up ...
Foreclosure, Deed in Lieu, Short Sale – Which is Better?
By Scott Schang | | 6 Comments
Buying after foreclosure is a topic that I am passionate about. You should know that there is light ...
Can I Rent Out My Upside Down Home and Buy Again?
By Scott Schang | | 34 Comments
Is your home upside down? Falling home values and record low interest rates make this an incredible opportunity ...
Mortgage Discharged in Bankruptcy is NOT Free and Clear?
By Scott Schang | | 1122 Comments
December 2017 UPDATE: When Fannie Mae changed the waiting periods for a foreclosure on a mortgage included in ...
Rent to Own – Good Idea or Not?
By Scott Schang | | 11 Comments
Rent to own sounds like a really good idea until you start asking questions. I get this question ...
UPDATE: Buy Again One Day Out of Short Sale?
By Scott Schang | | 14 Comments
UPDATE: Last week I passed along a recent guideline update regarding FHA's stance on allowing the financing of ...
FHA One Day Waiting Period After Short Sale?
By Scott Schang | | 6 Comments
FHA will waive the waiting period after a short sale, if you can meet some pretty strict criteria. ...
Tax Refund Qualifies as Mortgage Down Payment?
By Scott Schang |
A tax refund is one of several ways to come up with a down payment and closing costs ...
Mortgage Interest Deduction Going Away?
By Scott Schang | | 7 Comments
The Jobs Act and Tax Cuts bill modifying the mortgage interest deduction was signed into law on December 22nd, ...
Home Buyer Beware or Be Empowered?
By Scott Schang | | 1 Comment
Home buyer beware as call center lenders hit the airwaves and internet with better ads and bigger promises. ...
FHA Home Loan – The Best Option for First Time Buyers?
By Scott Schang | | 30 Comments
FHA loans are a very popular and affordable choice if you are a first time home buyer. It ...
Raise your credit score 5 points in 5 minutes
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Did you know that receiving credit card offers in your mailbox can hurt your scores? Have you ever ...
Gift Funds for Down Payment and Closing Costs
By Scott Schang | | 21 Comments
Gift funds are sometimes a very misunderstood closing costs solution. Receiving gift money is a very way that ...
Competitive Advantage: Under 30 Day Escrow Will Appeal to Sellers
By Scott Schang | | 2 Comments
Here's an article that I originally wrote when the real estate market was a little more competitive back ...
2019 When Can I Qualify for a Mortgage After Bankruptcy, Short Sale, Foreclosure or DIL
By Scott Schang | | 2322 Comments
Qualifying for a mortgage after financial hardship is normally only a matter meeting a minimum waiting period. The ...
Timing When Buying Can Reduce Closing Costs
By Scott Schang | | 6 Comments
When Buying a home, the month of the year and the day of the month can affect your ...
Getting Pre-Approved for a Home Loan vs. Being Pre-Qualified
By Scott Schang |
What's the difference? There is no greater misunderstood term in Real Estate than the loan "Pre-Approval." (See our ...