$7500 First Time Buyer Tax Credit Info
August 19, 2008 by Katie Wethman · 1 Comment
NOTE> This post applies only to homeowners who purchased in 2008. It’s official, the $7500 tax credit for first time buyers is now law. But how will it work? First of all, it’s not really a ‘credit’ per se — it’s an interest free loan. Nonetheless, as my first time buyer clients will tell you, [...]
How to Read a Good Faith Estimate or HUD-1
June 22, 2008 by Katie Wethman · Leave a Comment
It can be difficult to compare apples-to-apples when looking at closing cost estimates from lenders. There are lots of tricks that a lender can pull to make themselves look better, and there are so many expenses that’s it’s difficult to know which ones are “junk fees.” Let’s review terminology first. When you make a loan [...]
Complications Buying Condos Using FHA Financing
June 22, 2008 by Katie Wethman · Leave a Comment
FHA doesn’t play well with condos. Which is too bad, really, since FHA is such a perfect option for first time buyers since it requires only 3% down, as opposed to the 10% most banks are demanding right now. For a borrower to use an FHA loan to purchase a condo, it must be on [...]
Out: Exotic Loans, 100% financing; In: FHA, VHDA!
April 28, 2008 by Katie Wethman · Leave a Comment
FHA is back with a vengeance. It’s a key tool in the current lending environment for getting buyers qualified with only a 3% down payment (with gifts permitted in certain circumstances.) There are a few extra hoops to jump through, but I find more and more buyers are utilizing FHA now that the lending limits [...]
FAQ: Mortgage Loans – Conforming, Jumbos, FHA, Jumbo Lights
March 28, 2008 by Katie Wethman · 1 Comment
Although I’m not a mortgage broker or lender, I get a lot of questions from my clients and in my first time homebuyer classes about interest rates, points, and fees. There’s a lot of confusion out there right now about what the conforming limits are, how FHA works, and what the stimulus package impact will [...]
Fed Rate Cut – Why Didn’t Mortgage Rates Fall Much?
January 23, 2008 by Katie Wethman · 2 Comments
The Fed’s emergency three-quarters of a point rate cut didn’t have much impact on mortgage rates…or did it? Well, it did and it didn’t (don’t you love answers like that)? The bottom line is that the Fed Funds rate certainly impacts mortgage rates, but sometimes indirectly, and surprisingly, sometimes they can move in opposite directions! [...]
First Time Buyer Assistance Programs
October 21, 2007 by Katie Wethman · Leave a Comment
Believe it or not, this is a perfect time to start planning for a home purchase in the spring, especially if you’re a first time buyer. The reason I say that is that I find it takes most of my first time buyer clients at least 3 months from the time they first speak to [...]
FAQ: Earnest Money Deposits
August 5, 2007 by Katie Wethman · Leave a Comment
I love the Post’s Saturday Real Estate Mailbag. There’s always something interesting in there. (Though if you read it long enough, you do start to see the same questions over and over.) Here’s a good tried-but-true one that I often get from clients — how much should you put as earnest money? What IS “earnest [...]
"Junk Fees"
June 26, 2007 by Katie Wethman · 2 Comments
The Washington Post had a good, though short, Q&A on “Junk Fees” from mortgage lenders. Many people know BoA has a big promotion running right now for their “no fee mortgage plus” which advertises $0 closing fees and $0 application fees, with no PMI. (Update July 2007: See the article about whether BoA’s program really [...]
The Best "Rent vs. Buy" Calculator
April 15, 2007 by Katie Wethman · 4 Comments
Thanks, Mary Ellen, for sharing this cool link with me: One of the best Rent vs. Buy calculators I’ve seen, especially for the visually-oriented and “what if” type of people: Rent vs. Buy Calculator Check out the “Advanced Settings,” especially on Buying, where you can enter such things as condo fees (count on at least [...]
