Articles Tagged With: FHA Mortgage Loans

August 22, 2017

Who Can Apply For An FHA Mortgage?

Who can apply for an FHA mortgage? The answers to this question-and yes, there are several parts-may surprise you. One aspect of the answer involves whether or not the applicant is of legal age, and another has to do with credit scores. Who is eligible to apply for an FHA mortgage? FHA Loans Are For Legal Adults According to HUD 4000.1, the FHA loan handbook, “The Borrower must be old enough to enter into a mortgage Note that can be legally enforced in the state, or other jurisdiction, where the Property is located (‘State Law’). There is no maximum age limit for a Borrower”. FHA Loans Are For Those With Social Security Numbers HUD 4000.1 requires all applicants to provide Social Security Numbers to the lender. However, there is no | more...

FHA Loan Rules: Using Rental Income to Qualify for a Mortgage Loan

August 17, 2017

What Kind Of Home Can I Buy With An FHA Mortgage?

By Joe Wallace

What kind of home can you buy with an FHA mortgage? The answer isn’t what some people expect, likely due to a misunderstanding of the FHA loan program, who it is intended for, and why it exists. A good example of this? The assumption that FHA mortgages are primarily for first-time home buyers or the economically disadvantaged. Such assumptions are not true. FHA loans are for any financially qualified applicant, which means you don’t have an income threshold to meet, there are no restrictions on those who have purchased homes before, and there is no income maximum. What kind of home can you purchase with an FHA mortgage? FHA loans permit the purchase of homes which are primarily residential, have no restrictions of resale, and which meet FHA minimum standards | more...

Get A Free Credit Report Before Applying For An FHA Loan

August 14, 2017

Where Can I Get An FHA Loan?

By Bruce Reichstein

Where can I get an FHA loan? There are plenty of options when you are ready to begin your journey to become a home owner-you can apply in person, or get pre-qualified or apply online. How does it all work? Who Offers FHA Home Loans? FHA mortgages are offered by participating lenders who have been approved by the FHA to offer FHA mortgages, refinance loans, FHA Reverse Mortgages, and rehab loans. The FHA itself does not loan the money for you to purchase your home. The FHA may require the lender, depending on circumstances, to work with the FHA to approve certain home loans, but many FHA lenders have earned the right to offer loans “unsupervised”, meaning they have met standards that permit them to make decisions on loan approval | more...

August 10, 2017

FHA 203(k) Fixer-Upper Loans: What About The Appraisal?

By Bruce Reichstein

When you buy a home with an FHA mortgage, it must be appraised to insure the property meets minimum FHA standards. A home to be purchased with an FHA mortgage must be code-compliant, it must not be too close to high voltage lines or high pressure gas pipelines, and there are specific requirements for property located near know natural disaster zones. All of these requirements protect buyers and lenders alike, but there are certain instances where a property would never pass the FHA appraisal, yet borrowers seek mortgage loans for these properties anyway. Consider the borrower who needs a home loan to do rehab or repair work on an existing structure that badly needs it. And what about the borrower who wants to purchase a fixer-upper home, or a property | more...

August 8, 2017

How Soon Can I Sell My Home? FHA Loan Rules Part Two

By Bruce Reichstein

How soon can I sell my home? In our previous blog post on this subject, we examined the FHA loan handbook, HUD 4000.1, and what it has to say about how quickly you can sell a property purchased with an FHA mortgage once the loan has closed. In general, FHA loan rules don’t have much to say about what the owner of record does with the property (with regard to selling it) once it has been purchased and occupied as per FHA loan requirements. The spirit of the FHA loan rules seems to be that the owner should be free to sell without restriction. But FHA loan rules do have something to say about buying a home shortly after it has been purchased from another. There are restrictions on “flipping”, | more...

Are You In Trouble On Your FHA Mortgage Loan?

August 7, 2017

What Are The Differences Between FHA Mortgages And Conventional Loans?

By Joe Wallace

What are the differences between FHA loans and conventional mortgages? That’s a very good question, and one that has a multi-faceted answer. Borrowers could find that with careful planning, the amount of mortgage debt with an FHA mortgage is lower than with some conventional equivalents. The most basic difference between FHA mortgages and conventional home loans is that conventional loans are not backed in any way by the United States government, while FHA loans are guaranteed with government funds. This makes FHA loans easier to get since there is less risk to the lender. FHA loans differ from conventional loans in a variety of other ways, as we’ll examine here. Lower Interest Rates Interest rates on FHA mortgage loans are lower than conventional mortgages. You can easily verify this by | more...

August 3, 2017

How Do FHA Loan Appraisals Work? Part Two

By Joe Wallace

FHA loan appraisals are a big part of the FHA loan approval process. Without the appraisal, your home loan application cannot move forward. The FHA appraiser compares the home you want to buy with an FHA loan to similar properties on the market and reviews the condition of the home to make sure it meets FHA minimum standards. Once the value of the home has been established, your lender can determine what your FHA loan amount should be, factoring in the amount your required down payment, plus the amount of any extras you choose to have financed into the loan (such as the Up Front Mortgage Insurance Premium). The FHA appraiser will visit the property-there is a requirement that the appraiser be physically present-to look at the home inside and | more...

August 2, 2017

Where Can I Apply For An FHA Loan?

By Bruce Reichstein

Where can I apply for an FHA loan? Borrowers who are at the start of their home loan journey might not realize that not all home loans are created equally, that not all types of mortgages are offered by lenders, or what it means to get pre-qualified for a mortgage. What you should know to start is that FHA mortgages are not the same as conventional home loans. That is why not all lenders offer FHA mortgages. The FHA home loan program has requirements which must be met in order to be an approved FHA lender. When you find a participating lender offering FHA mortgages, you should know that these lenders have taken steps to meet FHA requirements, standards, and have received plenty of guidance on what is acceptable under | more...

July 10, 2017

When Is An FHA Loan A Good Idea?

By Bruce Reichstein

When is an FHA loan a good idea? The answer depends on what you’re looking for from a home loan. Some borrowers are exactly right for an FHA mortgage, others may need another alternative. Is an FHA loan right for you? FHA Loan Occupancy Requirements Most FHA single family home loans require occupancy. The lender will ask you to certify in writing that you intend to occupy the property as your primary residence and not as a vacation home or other occasional occupancy type situation. Borrowers are free to purchase homes with up to four units and rent out the unused living units, but at least one borrower must occupy the home as her or his primary residence (usually within two months of loan closing). So if you are looking | more...

Refinancing a Second Home With An FHA Mortgage Loan

July 7, 2017

Who Qualifies For FHA Loans?

By Joe Wallace

Who qualifies for an FHA mortgage loan? There are lots of misconceptions about this-some people think FHA mortgage loans are only for first-time home buyers, others might wrongly think FHA loans are only for people who can’t afford a conventional mortgage. But the truth is much different-FHA loans require borrowers to financially qualify, but there are not restrictions on who can apply when it comes to past home ownership, “maximum income” or other factors. FHA Loans Are For First-Time Home Buyers AND Those Purchasing Homes Again That’s correct. FHA mortgage loans don’t, under the basic rules of the program itself, favor first time home buyers with different terms than those who are purchasing another home. Second, or even third-time home buyers can get the same benefits of an FHA mortgage | more...