Your Home Appraisal –what’s the Big Deal?


Think about why this is true. A good appraisal is the best reassurance that the lender won’t lose its pants on the transaction. If the borrower defaults, the lender still has a marketable property that can be sold to recoup its losses. All of which makes it understandable why lenders are so picky about appraisals. And with recent changes in the industry, the focus by lenders to obtain good appraisals is at the forefront.

Appraisals typically cost anywhere from $350 to $400. However, if the house is gigantic, multi-unit or in the boondocks, it could run more. The cost varies on property type, location and square footage.

The most common type of appraisal is the Uniform Residential Appraisal Report (URAR). It consists of interior and exterior photos and sometimes (depending on the age of the home), a complete cost breakdown of the property and comps (comparison sales of homes nearby that meet the proper criteria). These comps help determine the “market” approach. Each comp sale is adjusted in value when stacked against the home being evaluated (the one you’re buying or refinancing). Usually you will see a comp below the value of your home, in line with the value of your home, and a third above the value of your home. Kind of like the three bears. But if the valuation gets tricky, you can see fourth, fifth and sixth comps. The net value of the comps is estimated based upon the approaches used to come up with the appraised value of your property (meaning the appraiser performs some type of calculation that’s kind of like an average, but not necessarily a true average. Confused yet?)

URARs also, typically but not always, reflect a cost approach, which determines what the value would be based upon what is estimated it would cost to rebuild the home, less depreciation. The final estimated value of the home is then determined by using a melding of the market approach described above and cost approach (if applicable).

Lori Babb, Staff Appraiser for Mortgage Investors Group of Knoxville, TN, further explains comparables. “The best comparables are those similar in size, style (ranch, basement rancher, 2 story, etc.), age, and are close in proximity to the dwelling being appraised,” she explains. “Unique properties will typically require more adjustments than the average properties.”

So, say you’re Bill Gates and want to secure a mortgage on a $200,000 home (I know, it’s ridiculous, but I’m trying to make a point). He’s got the best credit profile a lender could imagine, yet the house appraises for $175,000. Deal or no deal? You better believe it’s no deal. The sales price will have to be lowered, or Mr. Gates will just have to pay cash for his new home (you think he can afford it?). The point is, your average Joe won’t go ahead with the deal without a price adjustment, and he will be obligated to pay for the appraisal regardless of the outcome of value.

Dan Tyrell, principal of Knoxville area’s Tyrell Appraisal Service, Inc., has this comment about value, “When determining value of a single family house, beauty is more than ‘skin deep’. Fresh paint, new carpet, new appliances, and nice landscaping all enhance the marketability of a house. Not so obvious items also impact the appraised value of a house. For instance older houses that have replaced plumbing/electrical systems, updated HVAC systems, newer roofs, replacement windows, etc. lower the effective age of the property which in turn increases the appraised value.”

There are other types of appraisals that are not as common, like an Automated Valuation Model (or AVM). In this case, different factors combine to ensure the value of the home (it’s worth $200K, but your loan amount is only $100K) and your unbelievable credit worthiness (800 credit score!), allowing you to skip purchasing a typical appraisal. You may also only be required to get a “drive by” appraisal, where the appraiser just inspects the exterior of the subject for size, looks at the lot and makes you wonder who that person standing by your mailbox is.

Most lenders control what appraiser is used to determine the value of your home. After all, it’s their money on the line. The appraisal is such an important factor to the mortgage transaction – make sure you’re satisfied with the results. Your lender will make sure it is satisfied!



Repossession

Home Loans –possible Hurdles and Solutions


A Home Loan is a long-term legal contract between a customer (home loan seeker) and the bank. Hence it is very important for a home loan seeker to be fully aware of all the legal terms and conditions that involve in the processing of a home loan.

A home-loan seeker may face several difficulties including certain legal issues in the processing of a home loan. He/she has to be very careful and must have a good knowledge of all the legal aspects pertaining to home loan processing. The following tips will greatly help you to educate yourselves in this regard and obtain a hassle-free home loan.

1. Home loans process starts with documentation. Documents pertaining to a property are of great value and play a key role in completing the process. So, a home loan seeker must be very careful when submitting the documents to the bank. Never submit any fake or unclear documents that may create confusion or misguide the banks; banks have every right to take legal action against those who misguide them.

2. The details that you furnish in the application form should not include any discrepancy. Banks make a careful study into these details, and if they find discrepancy, your application is certain to be rejected without any prior notice.

3. Retain all your receipts of the amount paid towards the credit card bills as banks may ask for the receipts of the payments once the details are found in CIBIL.

4. A panel of advocates will scrutinise the documents submitted by the home loan seeker. They will obtain the search reports from the concerned sub-registrar office to find out the details of deeds and the vendors pertaining to that specific property. If they find any discrepancy in the documents, banks will ask the customer or vendor for clarification or for other supporting documents.

5. Property that the home loan seeker intends to acquire will be evaluated by technical valuers, and if any find any deviations in the property, customer has to submit additional documents to support the deviations.

6. Upon completion of the entire process, vendor has to verify all his original documents with the bank official before disbursement of the loan, and the customer has to submit latest Encumbrance Certificate (EC) recording all transactions of the property in original.

7. Customer (home loan seeker) has to sign all the legal documents and the Home Loan Agreements in regard to the disbursement of the loan, and the property will be hypothecated to the bank till he/she repays the entire loan amount subsequent to the registration of the property. Customers are advised to carefully read the agreement copy before signing it.

8. If the customer fails to repay the loan, banks may appoint agents to collect the easy monthly instalments (EMIs) from the customer, and he/she has to co-operate with them.

9. If the customer gets defaulted, bank can seize the property to recover the loan amount; and once this happens he/she will be added into the defaulters list of the CIBIL (Credit Information Bureau of India Ltd).

Finally, it is advisable to take as less loan amount as possible so as to save the interest paid on the loan. Also, be punctual in repaying the loans to maintain a good credit history.



Sell House Quick

Home Loan Eligibility: a Factor That Brings you Closer to the Home Loan


Everyone can go for a home loan. Yet, everyone does not have the same capacity. One may want to buy a home worth Crores while the other may be seeking a home worth Lakhs. So, there is a wide gulf differences. However there are obvious marks regarding the Home Loan Eligibility.

First comes here, the cost of the property albeit home on which your loan legibility depends a lot. You have to put a part of the cost of your home as the down payment or the margin money. The money you need to put here may serve as the stake in its continued maintenance. Or, otherwise, if the value of the house gets into a surge, this money is to ensure that the bank’s outstanding balance of the home loan remains lower than the market value of the property. So, if you are going to buy a property worth 5 Lakhs, you are to pay at least 50 thousand or 75 thousand as the down payment while the lender of the home loan will advance loan up to a whopping amount of 4, 25000.

Yet, your home loan eligibility depends very much on the income itself. The more you earn, the closer you are to the home loan eligibility or in clear terms, you can grab more from the home loan. However, given this is not the ultimate criterion for home loan eligibility, it depends a lot on other bars also. Suppose your income is worth home loan of 6 Lakhs and you are going to buy a home priced around 5 Lakhs, the bank will restrict your home loan amount at 4, 25,000.

Your home loan eligibility depends much on the down payment you are to make and the down payment itself depends on several other factors like the age of the home and other things. Age of the home is important because most of the banks put a cap on the age of the building which is to be bought. They won’t let you have the loan for a long period if the home is old enough. There are yet again, lenders who are reluctant to give home loan if you are going to have the ownership in the form of power of attorney. This kind of ownership sounds fishy in terms of home loan eligibility. So, to grab the home loan with enough eligibility, one should mind these few facts.



Passive Income

100% Home Loan Financing – Flex your Muscle


With the current “mortgage meltdown” we hear so much about these days, your average consumer thinks that the days of 100% financing have gone by the wayside. True, you are hard pressed these days to find a bank or lender that will want to carry a second mortgage that combined with a first mortgage adds up to 100% financing. That’s because if there is a default, sitting in second lien position is particularly dicey. Too much risk is involved. And since, in recent history, that scenario of the 80/20 combo was the most common 100% financing vehicle available to a certain group of consumers (non first time homebuyers), there’s a misconception out there that 100% options are all but dried up.

But, a-ha! There is hope for someone who has great credit but prefers to invest his/her assets elsewhere when rates are so low. It’s called the Flex 100. And it can apply to purchases and refinance transactions.

I heard an analyst mention on television the other day that mortgage money is so cheap right now it’s like a sale at Macy’s. That made me chuckle, but it’s true. In which case, why not invest your money elsewhere if you qualify for 100% financing. After all, the homes are still appreciating in most areas, but not at the stellar rate we saw in the past.

The Flex 100 requires you to invest $500 of your own cash towards the transaction, so I guess it’s technically not 100% financing, but it’s pretty darn close. And no, you don’t have to be buying your first home to get this deal. You can actually have owned a home in the past three years! However, it does apply to financing your primary residence only. You can’t get this deal for that nice cabin in Gatlinburg you want to use on the weekends or for that great rental down the street you think you can get a good deal on. You’ve got to live in the house to qualify for this financing.

But you can do a refinance, as long as it’s not a “cash-out,” meaning you’re not paying off debt or taking equity out of the property. It must be a rate term refinance only. However, you can pay off that second mortgage or home equity line of credit you hate, IF you obtained that 2nd lien mortgage when you got your first mortgage (a piggy back closing, we call it). Or to make it clearer, you originally had that 80/20 combo mentioned earlier. If you got that home equity mortgage a month or two after your initial closing to build a deck or payoff a credit card, than it that won’t work for a Flex 100 refinance.

What about your credit score? Well, it will affect the price you get, but there is no “minimum” credit score required for this program. You just have to get an approval through the automated underwriting system required. But be realistic – if you’ve got “iffy” credit, you probably won’t get an approval. A borrower with a credit score below a 620 would probably have to have a low loan to value or debt to income ratio for a chance of an approval.

A Flex 100 may or may not make sense for you. But hey, at least you know it’s an option. Your lender should be able to help you determine if this opportunity to flex your mortgage muscle makes sense for you.



Quick Property Sale

Why 30 Year Home Loans Are Being So Popular?


When my dad bought his home, he went for a 30 year home loan. As a matter of fact, most of the homeowners I know have acquired their home via that home finance offering. But why it has being so popular over the years?

A 30 year home mortgage used to be the first choice of most borrowers, because since the total payments are spread over a longer period of time with the interest rate set for the entire time of the mortgage’s life. 30 year home loan rates are an industry standard but is it the right choice for you?

As we mentioned, the plus side for a 30 year home loan is lower monthly payments. This attraction is somewhat dimmed by the fact that you pay thousands of extra dollars in interest. But, on the other hand, your interest is 100% tax deductible which does lower your after tax cost at the end of the equation. It also offers you some flexibility so that if your financial situation changes and you have more money you can pay it off in less than 30 years, this while keeping the low monthly payments. The fact that your payments might be smaller gives you the option to purchase a larger roomier home.

To show an example of the interest difference between 30 year home loan rates and one of the other rates. On a 30 year, 100,000 dollar loan using 7% interest rate your monthly payment of interest and principle would be $665.30 dollars. Over the next 30 years you will have paid $139,511.04 in interest alone. Now with a 15 year home loan rate on the same amount you will pay $871.11 per month and over the next 15 years, you would pay $56,799 in interest. This would save you $82,712 dollars.

If you have the will power to invest the savings from the monthly payments, it still could be a good choice to go with the 30 year mortgage. Especially if you can find an investment that the long term payoff matches or exceeds what you would save in a 15 year mortgage. Another factor to consider is how fast you want to accrue equity in your home or to own it out right. 30 year home loan rates take much longer to build equity.

30 year home loan rates are certainly attractive and the vast majority of home buyers get 30-year loans because that is the longest home loan available today. Experts agree if they could get a 35- or 40-year loan, they probably would. There are many other options to consider. Probably the biggest question you have to ask yourself when considering a loan is what are your financial goals? What loan plan will help you the most to reach that goal? It is clearly to your advantage to look into other loan options for the best loan available for you and your financial goals. It may surprise you that because of your personal situation there may be other plans more suitable for you, such as a 15 year mortgage, for example.

Before committing to a long term loan, have a clear idea of your financial goals, chop around for alternatives from different lenders and if possible, seek professional financial advice on what best for you. It will be time and resources well spend.



Rent Back Fast

Need Cash for a Home Closing? Consider a Gift


I saw a cartoon the other day that was pretty funny, but also pretty sad when you think about it.  It showed a couple sitting across from a mortgage lender, and the caption read, “We’re here to apply for a tank of gas.”  With increases in prices for just about everything, it gets more and more difficult to stash away a nest egg for a down payment.  And pretty much every loan requires some part of down payment, even if you get a 100% financing loan.  After all, you still are generally going to be required to put down some earnest money on your contract and in most cases, pay for an appraisal up front.  You may have been trying to save it up on your own, but it may be time to accept some help from your family.

 

Most loan programs, be it Conventional, FHA, VA or Rural Housing, require the borrower to pay for something.  In particular, FHA and Conventional home purchases want a minimum of 3% to come out of the borrower’s pocket.  If you are doing a Conventional loan, you still can’t receive a gift for your 3% down payment, but you can use a gift to help with closing costs. However, FHA will allow your source of down payment to be a gift.  So, if you find yourself a bit short on cash, you may need to ask someone to gift you the down payment or closing costs (or if your really lucky, and it’s allowed – both!).

 

All lenders are particular about just who can give you a gift for your down payment or closing costs.  Pretty much across the board, the gift must be from a blood relative.  You may have to prove that the gifter is a relative thru birth certificates, christening records, etc.  Strange but true.  Conventional loans will also allow an employer to give you a gift.  But in any case, the most important factor is that whoever is giving the gift does not expect to be paid back.  A certification to that effect will be required to be signed by the donor.  Otherwise, it’s really a loan, now isn’t it?  And as a responsible lender, we’re going to include that payment in your debt to income ratio, and we’ll probably want a bunch of documentation to prove the terms, etc.  So, make sure it truly is a gift.

 

As of the date I’m writing this article, FHA will allow for down payment assistance programs, such as Nehemiah or Ameridream.  Lenders view these products as “gifts” in a sense. They are basically seller concessions funneled through the down payment assistance channels.   However, by the time this article is published, they may be null and void.   It’s currently being reviewed and could go away.  Or it may still be there, but just know it’s under review.

 

Lenders are very particular about how the gift funds reach the closing table.  If you deposit the gift before closing, you have to show it coming out of the donor’s account and depositing into your account.  It’s a lot of paper to collect.  The easiest method is for Grandpa or your Great Aunt to just send a cashier’s check payable to you and your title company to the closing table.  Smoother, quicker, simpler.

 

Gifts are a wonderful thing, and a gift of a down payment is a useful gift.  After all, I think it’s safe to say that homeownership is one gift that keeps on giving, wouldn’t you?



Quick Property Sale

Home Loans: How Long Do I Have to Pay Them Back?


When you want to buy a home you have to start looking into home loans as this is the only way that most people can afford to buy a home. When you are looking at a $200,000 home you may be looking around loving the home but wondering how long you will have to pay off the loan. If you have never dealt with this type of loan before you may be wondering how you can make affordable payments, but rest assured it can be done. Even those who are on a very tight budget can buy a home and have it be just as affordable, if not more so, than renting.

Paying Back Home Loans

How long you have to pay back home loans is truly dependent on the type of loan that you choose to apply for and accept. There are many different types of loans out there for you to choose from and one of the things that you may have some control over is the length of the loan.

You may be a bit worried about how you will pay off a $200,000 in five or six years, if you are thinking in terms of a car loan but rest assured home loans have longer terms to make them more affordable to you. The most common length of a mortgage is 30 years. During this time you will be paying on the purchase price of the house, which is also known as the principal and then you will be paying interest. Your interest amount will be set by your lender and will either be fixed or will be adjustable, depending on the type of loan that you qualify for and accept.

While the 30 year mortgage is the most common there are also home loans that have 10 and 15 year terms, too. The benefit to these terms is that you will own your home in substantially less time. The reason why many people do not choose these loan terms is that their monthly payment is significantly higher. For instance, if you have a $30 year loan and your payment is $1200 per month and you wanted to know what you would pay if you had a 15 year loan term, you could assume that you would be paying $2400 instead. If you could afford this increase this may be a good option for you, but many people cannot afford this much of a monthly payment and that is why they opt for the 30 year mortgage.

In addition to the 10, 15, and 30 year loans there is also the 40 year option. This is not an option that is offered with all loan programs and it definitely is not offered by all lenders. It has only been in recent years that the 40 year terms have been offered and many people have found that while it takes longer to pay off a home, this is a more affordable way to buy because it decreases the monthly payment significantly.

As you can see, you will have plenty of time to pay off your mortgage. You do not need to pay off your mortgage in five or six years the way you do with a vehicle, instead you could have as long as 40 years, which will give you the opportunity to own a home affordably.



Sell House Quick

Secured Home Loans: a Haven for Yourself!


Everyone needs a roof above one’s head—it’s a basic necessity after all! Owning a property, is something I’ve always wanted, ever since I turned 20. But saving that big an amount is really not as easy as it seems—easier said than done, as they say! With the tiny pay checks that initially come our way, stacking up money to be able to afford a house some day is certainly challenging. For those of you who find solace in my tale, for the simple reason that you’re sailing in the same boat, let me tell you that I made a discovery—one that has helped me elevate my dream! Today, I am the proud owner of my very own home, thanks to Secured Home Loans.

Secured Home Loans are ordinary loans with benefits galore that help you fund the purchase of your very own home. They come to you at affordable rates and alluring options. They’ve simplified the entire matter of owning your very own home today!

Secured Home Loans are easily available these days at low and conducive interest rates. You can easily avail these loans at your regular banks and financial institutions. Lenders offer Secured Home Loans at varying rates and in a variety of packages. You can take Personal Home Loans, Secured and Unsecured Home Loans, Cheap Home Loans, Fast Home Loans and even Construction Loans if you’re building your home from scratch.

Being secured, Secured Home Loans require you to place collateral with the lender to assure him/her of your repaying the loan. Additionally, in case you default on your repayments and fail to repay the loan, the lender uses this collateral, that is under his temporary possession to reimburse himself for the money he lent you for the Secured Home Loan. Collateral is the most important feature of Secured Home Loans. It is the value or equity in your asset that decides the interest you will pay on your Secured Home Loans. It will also decide whether your credit history contributes to your loan approval process and how long you can stretch your repayment term (loan term—the period over which you can repay the loan). If your collateral has sufficient equity in it, then you’re sure to get yourself a great deal.

Choosing the right lender will also do you much good. Look around and search the market well before finalising a lender. Approaching a lender you’ve built a relationship with or one suggested by your friends and family is always a better idea.

Secured Home Loans are great if:

* you have the time to check out all options available and are not in a hurry to get a home for yourself.

* you are in regular employment

* you have a small financial reserve to make a down payment on the house.

* you have some assets that can be pledged as collateral with your Secured Home Loan.

* you are certain that you will be able to afford the repayment instalments (because if you cannot, your collateral is sure to be confiscated).

* you have researched the market well.

We all take loans today. It is better availing a Secured Home Loan than extracting such a significant amount from your savings. If you’re not sure, don’t jump into just as yet…..its about taking your time, making the right decision and buying yourself a home that you can really live in!



Real Estate Professionals

What’s the Low Down on Loan to Value?


It’s not very often that a borrower takes into heavy consideration what his loan to value is when shopping for a loan.  In fact, if the subject is brought up by the customer, it’s mostly in relation to avoiding paying monthly mortgage insurance.  But sometimes, a loan to value can affect even more aspects of your loan – like pricing and approval!

What is loan to value?  Well, it’s exactly what it says.  The loan amount compared to the value of the home you are buying or refinancing.  For example, if you are buying a $100,000 home, and your loan amount is only $50,000, your loan to value or “LTV” is 50%.  It’s also very common to refinance a home to obtain a lower LTV and drop mortgage insurance that was before required.

Different types of loans have different minimum requirements for LTV’s.   With primary residence purchases, for instance, an FHA loan can have as high as a 97.75% LTV (soon to change to 96.5% in 2009).  A conventional loan can have as high as a 97% LTV (but more common is 95% LTV).  VA and Rural Housing loans can have 100% LTV’s.  People who have cash to put down on the property they are buying and financing with a conventional loan oftentimes try to amass 20% of the purchase price in order to avoid mortgage insurance.  Mortgage insurance is required when your LTV for a primary residence is above 80% and is issued by independent mortgage insuring companies like Genworth Financial or PMI.  Fannie and Freddie, the big purchasers of conventional loans, will require one of these or other approved companies issue mortgage insurance unless the loan has an 80% LTV.  And if you’re refinancing the home you live in?  The whole grid of acceptable LTV’s changes for the most part, with a few exceptions.  And furthermore, if you’re talking about investment properties, it’s another can of worms.

But when else does LTV mean something?  Consider when a loan specialist prices your loan.  Oftentimes there are pricing differentials based upon the loan to value.  For instance, if you carry mortgage insurance and your LTV is 85.01% or higher, you might actually get a better interest rate than if you had an 85% LTV (but don’t get too excited because your monthly mortgage insurance will be higher).  Or if your LTV is 60% or lower, you might also get a better interest rate.  If you are close to tipping the scales on one of these ratios, it may be to your benefit to ask your loan specialist how close you are to a pricing break one way or another.  You’d be surprised to find out it might change your mind as to how much money you decide to put down on your loan. 

And guess what else?  A low loan to value may be the difference between loan approval and loan denial.  Why is that?  Because if you are investing enough of your own money into the equity of a property, chances are you won’t default on the loan.  And if you do, it’s probably a last recourse.  Not to mention, the lender who holds the note won’t lose money because there is enough equity in the property to cover foreclosure costs, re-sale costs and any value loss from an upside down market.  The lender is covered.  So, the lender will consider the loan less risky and a higher debt to income ratio is tolerated when reviewed with a high credit score. 



Sell and Rent Back

Home Loan Emi: Getting an Owned Home is not Difficult Any More


 

Most of us cannot afford to build our own homes. This may be due to scarce financial resources or unavailability of land or the absence of a desire to live in an owned home. Whatever the reason may be, there is no denying the fact that an owned home is always better than a rented accommodation since it saves valuable finances and is a valuable long-term investment by all standards.

In context of the Indian housing market, it can be clearly said that the home loan borrowers are happy customers these days, all thanks to the customer-friendly terms, conditions and plans. The reduced home loan EMIs due to intensified competition have opened the doors of personal prosperity and asset accumulation for many home loan aspirants these days.

Due to the emergence of new market players in the Indian housing loan market, the interests of home loan aspirants have blossomed to a considerable extent. There is a remarkable difference in the Indian loan market of yesteryears and today. The changing market trends and attitudes of the financial institutions as well as the other lenders have bolstered the overall growth and prosperity of the Indian housing loan market.

The industry and customer-friendly guidelines issued by the Reserve Bank Of India (RBI) have also strengthened the market norms and attitude. If we have a close look at the home loan EMIs rates for the last few years, we can easily conclude that the reformative measures introduced by many financial institutions and the Indian government in all these years have contributed significantly in an attempt to grab the attention of home loan aspirants. The home loan EMIs have helped the middle and low-class income earners to start thinking about their own homes. This is evident from the fact that in the last two years, the majority of customers asking and/or availing the home loans belonged to these economic classes. The option of making an equated monthly instalment rather than making a lump-sum payment obviously encourage more home loan aspirants.

Some of the most eminent Indian financial institutions such as State Bank of India, HDFC, ICICI, Standard Chartered and Punjab National Bank etc. have opened their hands to greet the home loan aspirants. The plans and policies of these banks have motivated the working class of the country to strive for an owned home rather than living the life of misery in rented or PG accommodation.

A prospective home loan borrower must consider certain things before starting the search for a lender. He must be ready to spend some of his valuable time in understanding the present home loan market trends as that will help him to get effective bargains without losing his focus. The advice of a financial expert, who is dealing in the arena of home loans, is highly recommended since he can offer a complete insight into the complexities of the housing loan segment.

Home loan in India can be taken by any individual who is of the age of 18 years and holds the citizenship of India. Some of the banks are also offering the home loans to NRIs, subject to fulfilment of certain pre-defined conditions. The loan applicant must have a regular source of income and preferably must be enjoying a good credit rating. He must have a valid identity and residence proof such as Government ID card, PAN card, passport, voter ID card and bank statement with address etc. The loan formalities are quite easy, making it pretty easy for the loan aspirants to obtain such loans.

Thus, it can be easily said that the reducing home loan EMIs have surely helped the Indian masses to think beyond the self-defined limits.



Sell and Rent Back