Was it the result of the recent rate hike, the reintroduction of the low LTV home loans by the GSEs, or maybe the FHA rate cut? Whatever it was, it appears many first time homebuyers are dipping their proverbial feet into homeownership waters. According to recent reports, FHA-insured lending dramatically increased over the past year. In many cases, these FHA…
LOQuicken Loans says, “Take off with its new Rocket Mortgage”, an easy online mortgage loan application and approval. Will this replace the traditional loan originator? Let’s examine that possibility. Most say the consumer of today and tomorrow wants ease of communication and process through online applications. I believe most of us agree. Does that mean they will make their mortgage…
Home Equity loans are becoming popular once again. Interest rates remain relatively low, home values have been appreciating in many parts of the country, college tuition costs continue to rise and credit card debt remains high for many homeowners. This is a “perfect storm” scenario for the resurgence in the origination of Home Equity loans as a source of needed…
With more and more emphasis being put on lenders for quality and compliance, more and more responsibility falls to the loan originator to meet these demands. Larger lenders can provide more support and technology to assist their LOs, but smaller lenders struggle with the increased costs of compliance. As a result, will the small independent mortgage broker become a thing…
Both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reported in December that they are considering offering lenders alternatives to repurchase requests for loans that have documented defects but are still considered to be of good quality. I enjoy a good oxymoron. These are some of my favorites: “jumbo shrimp”, “serious joke”, “virtual reality”, “small crowd”, “random order”, “student teacher” and “act naturally”.…
The allowable tolerance for a fee disclosed by a lender for their specific services, e.g. Application fee, Commitment fee, and for those for the services for which a borrower cannot shop, is pretty straightforward. Once disclosed, these fees may not change unless there is a bona fide (justified) circumstance change that directly affects the specific fee. Such a change is…
