Articles Tagged With: FHA Loan Rules

April 21, 2022

HUD Announces Fair Housing Conciliation Agreement With Bank Of America

Housing discrimination comes in many forms. The Fair Housing Act makes it a crime to discriminate against people at any stage in the housing process. You cannot be denied a loan, services, or assistance due to your race, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other non-financial factor listed in the Fair Housing Act. Yet, discrimination persists, even among major corporate lenders and other industry players. The Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced a Conciliation Agreement with Bank of America, N.A., “to resolve allegations of familial status and sex discrimination under the Fair Housing Act.” Bank of America, and one of its loan officers, “allegedly refused” to approve a home loan for a couple, “until after one of the applicants returned to work from maternity leave.” | more...

April 20, 2022

Buying Your First Home: What To Remember

By Joe Wallace

There is a little checklist of things not to do when buying a home. The top of the list? Not shopping around for a lender. FHA home loans have multiple options including the type of loan (fixed-rate, adjustable-rate mortgage) and the loan term (15 years or 30 years). But there are also multiple options based on the property you want to buy; a suburban home, a townhouse, condo unit, or even a multi-unit home. That variety of options brings with it a need to know more specifics about the type of loan you seek, and there are definitely things NOT to do when you are considering these options. And not all the considerations are directly related to applying for and getting approved for an FHA mortgage. Some have a lot | more...

April 19, 2022

FHA Adds 40-Year Mortgage Relief Option

By Joe Wallace

The Federal Housing Administration has announced a 40-year mortgage modification option for borrowers who are struggling to save their homes due to COVID-19. The announcement will have lenders offer more options to those who are behind on FHA Title II loans, which are the mortgages most commonly used under the FHA loan program to buy primary residences with. The new 40-year option is meant for those who “cannot achieve a minimum targeted 25 percent reduction in the Principal and Interest portion of their mortgage payment through FHA’s existing 30-year mortgage modification with a partial claim” according to the press release. Over time, the FHA and HUD have made major changes to the COVID-19 homeowner relief choices offered to those with FHA mortgages. According to the FHA and HUD, adding the | more...

April 13, 2022

Paying Your FHA Loan Off Early

By Joe Wallace

Some of the big differences between an FHA mortgage and conventional loans involve more forgiving credit qualifying requirements, as well as a lower down payment. There is also an FHA loan rule that requires that the borrower have the ability to freely sell or transfer the property in any way he or she sees fit once the mortgage loan has closed and the borrower has started using the home as their primary residence. But there’s another important difference between some conventional mortgages and FHA loans. Did you know that under the FHA loan program you cannot be penalized or charged for early payoff of the loan? In years past, this guidance was found in HUD 4155.2 Chapter Three, which had a section describing what the FHA terms, “prepayment”. And while | more...

April 11, 2022

What Hurts Your Credit Ahead Of A Home Loan

By Joe Wallace

Do you know why your credit score could drop ahead of a home loan application? If you are worried about your ability to qualify for the lowest down payment for a home loan with your FICO scores, it’s smart to know what can hurt your credit while you are in the planning stages of your FHA mortgage. There are three basic things that could affect your credit scores before you apply for a home loan. These issues are not the only ones, but they are some of the most common. You should anticipate these problems while you are planning and saving for your FHA home loan and take steps to ensure they do not become an issue. The first area to watch that potentially affects your credit scores? Your payment | more...

April 8, 2022

Fair Housing Month: HUD Pledges More Funds To Fight COVID-19 Discrimination

By Joe Wallace

April is Fair Housing Month, and it’s likely no coincidence that April is also the month HUD announced added funds from the American Rescue Plan to fund HUD Fair Housing actions to fight discrimination related to COVID-19. In a press release issued by the HUD official site, the agency announced an additional $3,285,353 in funding meant for organizations that qualify and can accept funding through the FHIP’s Private Enforcement Initiative. These added funds can be used for enforcement, awareness-raising, education, and outreach projects. This is the third time American Rescue Plan funds have been used to fight housing discrimination related to the Coronavirus pandemic. According to HUD, some $16 million has been distributed to more than sixty agencies working to fight this particular type of housing discrimination. “The COVID-19 pandemic | more...

April 6, 2022

Your First Home: Buying With An FHA Mortgage

By Joe Wallace

Buying your first home with an FHA mortgage is a good option if you want to save money on down payment expenses up front, if you want a loan with no early payoff penalty, and you want one that allows you to purchase a brand new home, a fixer-upper, or build one from the ground up on your own lot. What do you need to know about FHA loans as a first-time homebuyer? Down Payments Are Low FHA mortgages have a minimum down payment requirement of 3.5%. You are also required to pay for mortgage insurance, but the Up-Front Mortgage Insurance Premium (UFMIP) can be financed into the loan amount if you need to save money up front on the loan. Think About Where Your Down Payment Might Come From | more...

April 1, 2022

HUD Celebrates Fair Housing Month

By Joe Wallace

The Department of Housing and Urban Development observes Fair Housing Month in April each year. Fair Housing Month always features a theme. In 2022 that theme is Fair Housing: More Than Just Words. It’s meant to raise awareness of the federal government’s commitment to ensuring fair housing opportunities are available to all who want them. In a press release discussing Fair Housing Month, HUD notes that equal opportunity for housing isn’t simply about finding a place to live without unnecessary barriers to entry. “(W)here we live impacts nearly every part of our lives,” according to HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge, who is quoted in the press release. She adds, “Fair Housing Month is a time to recommit to our mission to promote fairness, inclusion, and justice in housing. This month | more...

March 31, 2022

Mortgage Scams: Homeowner Beware!

By Joe Wallace

Have you been contacted by a third party offering to refinance your FHA home loan? During the worst of the COVID-19 outbreak, there were reports about home loan scammers trying to trick people into applying for refinance loans, mortgage relief, and foreclosure avoidance measures that weren’t what they were advertised to be. Some fell prey to these scams, while others relied on “best practices” to help them avoid being fooled into thinking they might be dealing with a legitimate third party offering help. What are these best practices and how can you save your home from loan default and/or foreclosure or simply refinance your existing home loan without getting swindled? The first key is the nature of the contact with you, the homeowner. Did you initiate it or did it | more...

FHA Loan Approval and Late or Missed Housing Payments

March 30, 2022

What Hurts Your Chances For FHA Loan Approval

By Joe Wallace

What can stop your FHA home loan from getting approved? Knowing what the lender will do when confronted with common home loan problems can be half the battle for some. If you can anticipate the lender’s expectations for things like credit, verifiable income, reliable credit history, and other factors you can get a lot closer to loan approval. What You Should Know About FHA Home Loan Minimum FICO Scores Borrowers with FICO scores below 500 are not eligible for an FHA mortgage loan. Borrowers with credit scores above 500 but below 580 may technically qualify but these applicants must put 10% down rather than the lowest down payment possible of 3.5%. But those numbers are the FHA’s requirements. A participating FHA lender may have additional guidelines or requirements. Expect to | more...