The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently issued new rules that were designed to create a “back to the basis” approach for mortgage lending. The new rules have been implemented to lower the risk of defaults and foreclosures. Under the new regulations, mortgage lenders are being asked to follow the Ability to Repay rule and Qualified […]
Seniors have used reverse mortgages as a lifeline to deal with urgent financial needs, causing them to fall into a financial crisis. The National Council on Aging says one-third of its counseling clients have mortgage debt that exceeds 50% of the value of their home. When using a reverse mortgage to pay off existing mortgages […]
(Huntington, NY) — Brian Leibowitz, CEO and Owner of Affordable Financial Services LTD, says the government’s proposal to do away with the mortgage interest deduction (MID) will negatively impact the mortgage lending industry as prospective homeowners will hold off on buying a home and fewer purchase applications are filed. U.S. Congressman Dave Camp of Michigan, […]
Sigtarp, a report from the Troubled Asset Relief Program, showed that borrowers who had their mortgage payments reduced under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) are still having trouble keeping up with their payments, despite having their payments reduced on average by more than $400 a month. During the third quarter of 2009, forty-six percent […]
President Barack Obama recently announced that the Federal Housing Administration may need a bailout to the tune of $943 million in taxpayer money to keep the agency afloat. If this were to happen, it would the first time in FHA’s 80-year history that the government-based mortgage insurer would need a bailout. The FHA is taking […]
A recent study by NeighborWorks shows that prospective homeowners who underwent pre-purchase counseling before obtaining a mortgage were less likely to default on their mortgages than those who did not seek counseling. NeighborWorks studied 75,000 mortgages originated between 2007 and 2009 and found that those who went through the counseling program were 33% less likely […]
A recent report from CoreLogic announced that 100,000 more borrowers attained positive equity during the third quarter of 2012 while fewer mortgage holders were in negative equity at the same time. In Q3 2012, there were 1.4 million borrowers that moved into positive equity, compared to roughly more than 1.3 million the previous quarter, according […]
The Federal Housing Administration has announced that it will be implementing changes to its Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program by the end of the month. These changes include a moratorium on the Standard Fixed Rate HECM reverse mortgage and creating guidelines for conducting financial assessments of borrowers and an escrow account to pay for […]
The Wall Street Journal noted that the Federal Government may incorporate borrowers who use organizations other than Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac into the mortgage refinancing program by allowing precarious loans, backed by private investors, to be transferred to government-backed agencies. The program is said to also include “underwater borrowers,” whose homes are not worth […]
With the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act about expire at the end of 2012, real estate professionals have limited time to conclude short sale closings. According to RealtyTrac, short sales from borrowers who had overdue payments in the third quarter of 2012 increased by 22 percent year-over-year, while short sales from borrowers who made their payments […]