No Bull Agent

Homeowner in Distress? The HAMP and HAFA Programs May Be for You.

Homeowners in distress continue to dominate the headlines.  The recent article “Home Prices in San Diego County Take a Breather” posted on SignOnSanDiego.com states, “The proportion of the resale market made up of homes foreclosed on in the prior 12 months slid last month, down to 28.4 percent, compared to 38.6 percent a year earlier, making it the lowest since November of 2007, according to DataQuick.”  Though this statistic shows the number decreasing, 28.4% is still a large percentage and varies from market to market.  Homeowners are looking for options and as of April 5, another became available.

The Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program (HAFA) provides an option for homeowners who are in danger of losing their homes through foreclosure under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).  For reference, HAMP is a loan modification program put in place to reduce monthly mortgage payments for delinquent or at-risk homeowners.  This original program was put in place for loans originated on or before January 1, 2009 and for borrowers who are at least 31 days delinquent.  The program is scheduled to end December 31, 2012.  So, HAFA is for homeowners who have taken advantage of HAMP and are still at risk of foreclosure.

According to Realtor.org, HAFA provides incentives through a short sale or deed-in-lieu of foreclosure to avoid foreclosure on a loan eligible for modification under HAMP. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: borrower, california, distressed, HAFA, HAMP, home owner, kaplan, nobullagent, san diego

Mortgage Rate Update for the Week of July 6, 2010

Information in this post is provided by Greg Wickstrand, Home Loan Consultant for HomeServices Lending.  He is a guest blogger who provides us information from a lender’s perspective.  For additional posts by Greg, please visit his BLOG.

What’s Ahead for Mortgage Rates this Week:  July 6, 2010
By:  Greg Wickstrand

Mortgage markets improved last week as economic data revealed a slowing U.S. economy.

Major stock indices fell to 2010 lows in response to a weak jobs report among other data points, forcing worldwide investors into the relative safety of U.S. government-backed bonds.  This category includes mortgage-backed bonds and the extra demand helped to drop rates.

Once again, mortgage rates improved and Freddie Mac is reporting new all-time lows on three popular, conforming loan products:

• The 30-year fixed rate mortgage
• The 15-year fixed rate mortgage
• The 5-year adjustable rate mortgage

Low rates mean low payments and you can’t know your options until you ask.

This week, mortgage rates may move slowly. There’s very little data set for release because markets were closed Monday in observance of Independence Day, and because the second calendar week of a month is traditionally data-slow. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: california, home buyer, interest rate, july 6, kaplan, Lending, market, mortgage, nobullagent, san diego, update

Is the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Extension Necessary?

President Obama is expected to sign an extension, approved by the House and Senate, to the June 30 first-time home buyer tax credit deadline.  Why is this extension important and is it necessary?  The simple answer is “yes” to both questions.

The original timeline for the first-time home buyer tax credit, as detailed in our previous post, stated that a home buyer must be in contract by April 30, 2010 and close by June 30, 2010 to be eligible for the credit.  Many first-time buyers positioned themselves to take advantage of this credit which is evident by the increase in sales during the month of April.  The current challenge is getting some of these transactions done in the 60 days previously given between the two deadlines.  This timeline can be especially short considering short sales are still taking, on average, from four to six months to process.

There are many opinions as to why short sales take so long.  The general consensus is that lenders are playing “catch-up” to the mass influx of these transactions, are short staffed and are reworking their processing procedures on the fly.  This extension is important and necessary for these buyers who need the additional time, for no fault of their own, to complete their transactions.  Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: buyer, california, credit, extension, fraud, home, inmate, kaplan, nobullagent, san diego, Tax