Blog
Adjustable Rate Mortgages – The PROS & CONS
Now that you know what an ARM is and how it works, you may be wondering what the advantages and disadvantages are. So let’s explore that issue. Offering adjustable rates allows lenders to transfer part of the interest rate risk from themse...
Closing Costs When Buying or Refinancing a Home
This is a detailed summary of costs you may have to pay when you buy or refinance your home. They are listed in the order that they should appear on a Good Faith Estimate you obtain from a mortgage lender. There are two broad categories of clos...
Required Reporting to the I.R.S.
Sellers of real property will have certain information regarding the sale reported to the Internal Revenue Service. This required reporting is a consequence of the Tax Reform Act of 1986; it is intended to encourage taxpayer compliance and a...
Closing and Title Costs
It’s the big day. The day you go to the title or escrow company, sign your name on the dotted line, hand over a check and prepare to take ownership of your new home. It’s also the day that you and the seller will pay “closing” or ...
What is a Short Sale Anyway?
An increase in foreclosure rates will inevitably bring with it an increase in short sales. But what is a short sale? A short sale happens when you sell your house for less than your remaining mortgage balance, the proceeds of which go to the...
Documenting Your Assets – Verifying Your Down Payment
When buying a home, it is not enough to just come up with the money. With the exception of no asset verification loans, lenders want to verify where the money for your new home will be coming from. If you can document that the funds are coming ...
FICO® Score – a Brief Explanation
When you apply for a mortgage loan, you expect your lender to pull a credit report and look at whether you’ve made your payments on time. What you may not expect is that they seem to be more interested in your FICO® score. “What’s a F...
FICO® Scores and Your Mortgage
Years ago, credit scoring had little to do with mortgage lending. When reviewing the credit worthiness of a borrower, an underwriter would make a subjective decision based on past payment history. Then things changed. Lenders studied the ...