Tag Archive for: fannie and freddie

Did Immigrants Push Home Prices Up 30% During The Biden Years – Like The Right Is Saying? Vantage Scores Save Deals!

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I. VantageScores Are Saving Deals! I blogged about the new credit-scoring model, VantageScore, last year and got yelled at by my team because no investors (lenders that buy our loans) accepted VantageScores at the time. VantageScore is an alternative to FICO for credit scoring — built by Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion jointly. Fannie and Freddie now allow lenders to use VantageScore 4.0 instead of FICO, and it can score thinner credit files (with fewer accounts) than FICO can. Long story short: we now have investors that accept them, and we’re closing loans for borrowers whose scores were too low to work in the pre-VantageScore days. Borrowers who can’t qualify under the FICO model because their scores are too low should explore the VantageScore alternative.Read More

Condos: Balcony Issues; FHA Spot Approvals; Owner Occ Ratios; One Owner Has > 10% Of Units

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I met a wealthy developer who bought an entire 600-unit condo project after the 2008 meltdown for about $21 million ($35,000 per unit).Read More

New VantageScore 4.0 Credit Report Uses Rent & Utility Payments; Woohoo Or Uh Oh?

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The Federal Housing Finance Agency (the agency that regulates Fannie and Freddie) Director, Bill Pulte, posted this on X yesterday: “My ORDER today … will allow for Americans to use their RENT [and utility payments] to qualify for a mortgage. Credit history will no longer just include credit cards and loans. This is HUGE.”Read More

Moody’s Downgrades U.S. Debt; Rates Scream Higher! Uh oh…

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In 2020, Fannie and Freddie executives suddenly remembered that their firms were effectively government-sanctioned monopolies, allowing them to charge whatever they wanted.Read More

Loan Buybacks Are Surging and DANGEROUS!

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Russian Mobster Sending Me Lots of Business Around 2004, an agent referred a Russian gentleman to me for a purchase. He was very wealthy, very well-dressed, very polished, very serious […]Read More

Manufactured Homes – Guidelines, Confusion, Appraisals, Rates

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Per our mortgage bank: “any dwelling unit built on a permanent chassis and attached to a permanent foundation system is a manufactured home. The manufactured home and the land on which it is situated must be titled as real property. Other factory-built housing (not built on a permanent chassis) - such as modular, prefabricated, panelized, or sectional housing is not considered manufactured housing.”Read More

Fannie/Freddie Yank Their 1/2 Point Refi Fee

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On Saturday night my wife Heejin and I had a wonderful date at an outdoor Italian restaurant. The food and weather were perfect, and the ambiance was even better with […]Read More

Fannie Mae’s New 50 Basis Point Fee Slams Refinance Borrowers

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As I mentioned yesterday, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac imposed a new fee of 1/2 point, or 50 basis points, on all refinance loans – catching the entire mortgage world […]Read More

Fannie & Freddie Breaking Off From Government Control?

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INTEREST RATES COULD SHOOT UP AT ANYTIME We often remind both borrowers and agents that interest rates are generally expected to remain low for some time, but that does not […]Read More

Jumbo Rates Are LOWER Than Our Conforming; Jumbo vs. Conforming

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Our Jumbo rates are as much as 1/2 percent lower than our Conforming (Fannie and Freddie) rates. Our low Jumbo rates are also available for qualified borrowers down to the […]Read More

2019 Conforming Loan Limit Increases – Good and Bad

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PEOPLE WALKED AWAY FROM MORTGAGE OBLIGATIONS B/C THEY WERE UPSIDE DOWN In 2006, a relative of mine asked me to help her qualify for a condo purchase. Wanting to help, […]Read More

“Jumbo” Rates Now Lower Than Conforming (Fannie and Freddie) Rates

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Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac now have serious competition for “high balance” loan amounts above $453,100. For years, few Jumbo lenders could match Fannie’s and Freddie’s “conforming” loan rates. (As […]Read More

If You Owe Income Taxes, Can You Get a Mortgage? Yes!

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Income Taxes Owed Income tax liabilities are a frequent issue during tax season, and worthy of addressing again. Borrowers can get mortgage financing if they owe income taxes, in most […]Read More

Conforming Loan Limits Way Up For 2018; What It Means

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Fannie and Freddie’s 2018 conforming loan limit increases open the door for more buyers to access lower rates and easier guidelines—though the benefits come at a cost to all taxpayers, even those in areas with low home prices.Read More