FHFA Confirming Home Loan Limits
Home Mortgage Loans
For 2015, the federal housing finance agency, recently announced that it will keep their maximum conforming loan limits for loans issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac at $417,000 on one unit properties in most areas and 625,500 in high-cost areas. San Diego is considered a high-cost area , and so has higher conforming loan limits.
While on the topic of home mortgage loans. A recent study by JD power showed that first-time home buyers reported challenges with understanding the mortgage process and the options that are available to them. Read more
San Diego Home Loans
Homebuyers spend twice as much time researching a new car purchase as they do investigating a home loan and they are soliciting fewer mortgage quotes than they did two years ago, according to a recent Zillow survey.
Borrowers who obtained a home loan in the past five years typically spent five hours researching their home financing options, which is unchanged from two years ago when Zillow first conducted this survey. Nearly one-third of borrowers say they spent less than two hours. However, consumers spent an average of 10 hours researching a new car purchase. Those who obtained a mortgage loan in the past five years solicited an average of three quotes, compared with four quotes reported in 2008. Read more
FHA Home Loans – The Next Bailout?
In San Diego, one major mortgage lender's new FHA loan originations went from approximately 2% to approximately 60% of new loans! The low down payment (apprx. 3%) and relative availability of FHA home loans are helping to drive hoards of borrowers to the FHA. Many new homeowners with the most risk and fewest dollars are going to the FHA for loans.
In 2007, they handled 3% of new loans. This year it's 26%. However, these additional higher-risk loans are stressing the FHA insurance system. So, now the FHA's own somewhat lax standards are coming back to create a huge hit to their loan insurance fund. It has dropped the FHA insurance fund 39% since last year, raising concerns for the FHA requiring its own bailout.
Related prior posts:
San Diego Housing Market … Hitting the Lottery (or not)
New Relief Program For Homeowners at Risk of Foreclosure
Hope For San Diego Homeowners
Real Estate – An Innovative Way of Not Filing Bankruptcy
Jumbo Financing and the Impact on The San Diego Real Estate Market
Certain programs have already gone away or are going away. Right now, it is VERY difficult to finance people who are self employed, who are buying certain condos, who are investors owning more than a certain # of units, etc…
Many thanks to our guest author, Mr.Greg Brooks Southwest area manager San Diego Mortgage Network for this enlightening post. A few our prior popular posts were:
More homeowners than ever are selling at a loss!
Another Look at the June Rise in Pending Home Sales
Home Value Loss … Homeowner Perception vs. Reality
San Diego Real Estate Market Bottom?
Reworked Subprime Loans … 40% End Up Defaulting
San Diego Real Estate … The Coming Next Wave of Foreclosures