Articles Published in: October 2021

October 29, 2021

How To Get An FHA Mortgage Loan As A First-Time Home Buyer

How can a first-time home buyer qualify for an FHA mortgage loan? To use an FHA mortgage you do NOT have to be a first-time buyer, but if you ARE one you may qualify for state or local down payment assistance programs in your area and it’s a good idea to explore those options if they are open to you. If you are looking for a starter home, a home to grow into, or you want to have a home built especially for you (using an FHA One-Time Close construction mortgage loan), your FHA loan options are impressive. How To Qualify For An FHA loan As A First-Time Home Buyer Plan ahead and start early for your home ownership journey. Start at least a year in advance…that’s the best advice | more...

October 28, 2021

FHA Loan Limits For 2022

By Bruce Reichstein

What do you need to know about FHA home loan limits in 2022? It may sound a bit early to be discussing FHA loan limits by county, but at the beginning of 2021, potential FHA borrowers were treated to the news that FHA limits would be higher for the new year, giving many a chance to get more home loan for their efforts. What do you need to know about FHA home loan limits for the coming new year? We’re just over 60 days away at press time, 2022 will be here sooner than you realize! FHA home loans feature loan guaranty limits established every year, set by county. These are annual limits and are revised or considered for revision over the year before. There are no guarantees that the | more...

October 27, 2021

How You Can Use An FHA Home Loan

By Joe Wallace

Do you need to know what you are allowed (or NOT allowed) to do with an FHA mortgage? If you want to purchase a home with an FHA loan, you can buy a fixer-upper, a typical suburban home ready to move into, or even build your home from the ground up on your own lot using an FHA One-Time Close construction mortgage. But there are some things you are not allowed to do with an FHA home loan. Let’s look at the “can” and “cannot” angles to see what’s possible with an FHA mortgage. You CAN Purchase A Multi-Unit Property With An FHA Mortgage FHA home loans are for properties with one to four units. FHA home loan limits are larger for homes bigger than a single unit. Some borrowers | more...

October 26, 2021

What You Need To Know About FHA Loans And Your FICO Score

By Joe Wallace

FHA home loan approval depends on a number of things–your payment history on your financial obligations, your employment, and your FICO scores. Credit scores are a big worry for some home loan applicants. Do you have thin credit? Have you had poor credit habits in the past that you are trying to fix? Remember, more consumers than you realize have had similar issues in the past–there is no shame in trying to correct your past mistakes and get back on track with your credit. Too many people feel a sense of shame about their past credit issues–and that shame can prevent people from taking constructive steps to help themselves. Did you know that you can begin repairing your own credit by making consistent on-time payments and lowering your balances on | more...

October 25, 2021

Can I Apply For A New Mortgage After Bankruptcy?

By Bruce Reichstein

Is a home loan in the wake of bankruptcy an impossible dream? In many cases, no, it’s not. But a potential borrower looking to start house hunting again after a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy has been discharged should know about some rules that will apply in such cases. Do you know what they are? Some borrowers, including first-time home buyers, assume that after a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy filing it is all but impossible to get a participating FHA lender to consider a loan application. It’s a mistake to count yourself out of the running to apply for a new home loan. Some people wrongly assume you must wait seven years or longer to apply for a new mortgage after bankruptcy. FHA home loan rules indicate | more...

October 21, 2021

Can I Refinance My FHA Mortgage Without A Credit Check?

By Joe Wallace

Some borrowers need to get a lower interest rate. Some borrowers want out of an adjustable-rate mortgage. Others are interested in pulling the equity built up in their home. The way to get these things done with an existing mortgage is to refinance the loan. FHA home loans include refinance options for all of the needs mentioned above, plus there is an option to apply for a rehab refinance loan (the FHA 203(k) Rehabilitation Refinance) to simultaneously refinance the home and get loan money for approved repairs, improvements, and upgrades to the home. You can also apply for FHA cash-out refinancing to cash in on the equity in your home. In most cases, a refinance loan will require a new credit check and an appraisal–especially if you’re looking for cash | more...

October 20, 2021

Who May Contribute To My FHA Home Loan? Interested Party Contributions

By Bruce Reichstein

Who my contribute to my FHA home loan? That is a question many want to know, and the answers don’t always point to the most obvious type of contribution the borrower may seek-the FHA mortgage loan required down payment. How much and to which areas can an interested party contribute to for the borrower’s FHA mortgage? FHA loan rules governing this topic are found in HUD 4000.1, the FHA Loan Handbook for single-family mortgage loan transactions. To begin, it should be noted that down payment source funds are strictly regulated and must come from a verifiable source the lender can investigate to make sure FHA loan rules have been followed. In general, down payment contributions cannot come from interested parties to include “sellers, real estate agents, builders, developers or other | more...

Five FHA Home Loan Questions To Ask Your Lender

October 19, 2021

What Goes Into Your Mortgage Payment

By Joe Wallace

Are you new to the house-hunting process? Do you need to know what goes into a monthly mortgage payment? It’s a lot more than just dividing up your loan amount by the number of years you want to pay on the mortgage. With a home loan, it is true that your main numbers will include the amount you pay on the loan principal and the interest, divided by the number of months you are obligated to on the mortgage note. HUD 4000.1 is the FHA single-family home loan rule book. It has all the guidelines your participating FHA lender needs to process and approve or deny your loan application. And when your lender accepts your application for review, she will not simply run the numbers on the principal and interest. | more...

October 18, 2021

HUD Announces Settlement In Alabama Fair Housing Case

By Joe Wallace

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced an agreement with the owners of the HUD-supported Hollyhand Companies, Inc., and The Village at Meadowview in Fairhope, Alabama. This announcement settles a Fair Housing discrimination case involving a policy barring visitors of a certain age due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. The details of this Fair Housing Act complaint involve a resident filed a complaint with the Department of Housing and Urban Development alleging the tenant could no longer care for her grandchildren in the home because doing so allegedly violated the “no visitors under 12” policy. The HUD official site states that as a result of the resident’s complaint, the agency “…engaged in a compliance review to assess whether the owners had adopted an impermissible age distinction in their | more...

October 15, 2021

Credit Scores For An FHA Home Loan: When Low Credit Is Not Bad Credit

By Bruce Reichstein

Are you worried about your credit scores for an FHA home loan? When is a low credit score a reflection of bad credit behavior? FHA home loan rules specify that the lender must ensure a borrower as a 500 FICO score at the very minimum in order to qualify for an FHA mortgage, but your credit score numbers don’t tell the whole story. It’s true that FHA loan rule minimums for FICO scores do not always reflect the participating lender’s credit score requirements; borrowers are technically eligible for an FHA mortgage with the lowest possible down payment if they are applying with FICO scores at 580 or higher. The lender may require a credit score of 620 or higher for the same applicants. But your FICO scores only make up | more...