Articles Tagged With: First-time Home Buyer

December 26, 2023

How Much Can You Borrow In 2024?

FHA loan limits increase in many housing markets in the United States in the new year. Higher FHA loan limits typically reflect the state of the housing market in the last year, and 2024 is no exception. We examine the finer points of FHA loan limits below. FHA Loan Limits Are Set Once Per Year Federal law dictates FHA loan limits be established annually using specific types of data to inform the new rates. The National Housing Act contains the guidelines FHA must use to establish loan limits in the new year. FHA and HUD typically announce these limits in the final weeks of the prior year, sometime between November and the end of December. FHA loan limits are set at 115 percent of the median house prices in a | more...

December 13, 2023

Contingency Clauses To Consider When Buying A Home

By Joe Wallace

Did you know there are ways to protect yourself from buying a home you ultimately decide you do not want? Or ways to make your purchase enforceable only if you sell your current home? You can do this using a contingency clause. These are add-on language to your sales contract specifying the buyer or seller will only proceed with the sale when certain conditions are met. At the FreddieMac official site, we learn, “Contingencies are an expected, normal part of the home buying process, providing both the buyer and the seller a legal way out of the contract if something goes awry.” Consider each of the following options below. One might be very important for your house-hunting journey. Home Sale Contingency Clause If you already own a home, consider using | more...

December 8, 2023

Is The Housing Market Entering A Recovery Phase?

By Joe Wallace

After briefly approaching the 8% home loan interest rate range, sources (including real estate company Redfin and NBC.com) report December 2023 conditions might be an indication of a housing market recovery or turnaround. Both NBC and Redfin report home loan interest rates falling to just over the 7% mark after hitting 8% in October 2023. Rates had formerly not reached those highs over two decades. According to NBC News, “The interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage is down to 7.03%”, with mortgage applications up by roughly 15%. That after reaching major lows in the previous month. Housing Market Recovery Signs Home loan applications may rise in 2024. Consumers may feel freer to apply, based on a perception that things are improving. Another factor that could be informing higher application rates? | more...

December 7, 2023

The 2024 Housing Market

By Joe Wallace

Real estate agencies and finance blogs get into the prediction business at the end of each year, with many publishing articles comparing their expectations for the new year with what happened in the current year. 2024 is no different. One such company, Redfin, predicts that the new year could be a great time to reconsider buying a home as the housing market enters into recovery mode. The End Of The Seller’s Market? Redfin makes a prediction for 2024 many really want to hear. “Home prices will fall because supply will rise more than demand.” The lack of supply caused the seller’s market of 2022, and more housing inventory will begin leveling the playing field, so to speak, between buyers and sellers. In a seller’s market, as the name implies, the | more...

November 30, 2023

Avoiding Foreclosure in 2024

By Bruce Reichstein

Do you want to buy or build a home with an FHA loan? When planning and saving, consider what happens after closing day once you accept the keys, schedule the movers, and take possession of your new house. What’s the big issue to remember here? Future borrowers in the budgeting and planning stages must choose how much cash to pay at closing time. And so far out from that first mortgage payment it may feel tempting to save a bit on your out-of-pocket expenses and finance certain closing costs like the FHA loan upfront mortgage premium. There is an issue called “cost creep” that some borrowers may experience. Financing one closing cost might not hurt your bottom line too much. And from there some justify adding even more to the | more...

November 29, 2023

FHA Loan Limits For 2024

By Joe Wallace

In the last week of November 2023, new FHA loan limits were issued for 2024. Those new limits (see below) are for forward mortgages approved under the FHA Single Family Home Loan program. Higher FHA Loan Limits In 2024 FHA loan limits increase for a large number of applicants in 2024. HUD.gov says the limits will increase for most of the country, and a HUD press release says that FHA loan limits are increasing at least in part due to increases in property values in 2023. That’s according to Assistant Secretary for Housing and Federal Housing Commissioner Julia Gordon. The changes to FHA loan limits are meant to help buyers to find affordable homes, “at a time when a lack of affordability threatens to shut well qualified borrowers out of | more...

November 27, 2023

Home Loan Interest Rates Back Away From 8%

By Joe Wallace

In November 2023, mortgage loan rates came uncomfortably close to the 8% range. Since then rates seem to have backed away, with incremental improvement. Is this the time for some house hunters to make their move? The short-term gains mentioned above may benefit anyone ready to make a deal. But what about those who need more time? In such cases, you should not read too much into these rate adjustments until there’s a longer history of consistently lower rates. FHA Home Loan Mortgage Rate Trends Day to day or week to week, home loan rates can alternate between trends moving suddenly higher or lower, but over the long term, such moves won’t mean indicate much until there is a consistency in the rates over a longer period of time. For | more...

November 22, 2023

Planning A Mortgage: Credit Resources You Need

By Bruce Reichstein

Are you planning a home loan? Are you in the budgeting and saving stages of your home loan journey? If so, there are some necessary resources you should explore before you apply for an FHA mortgage. It’s important to give yourself enough time to plan and save for your home loan and that includes paying more attention to and working on your credit. Credit resources can be a huge help in this regard–don’t pass on the chance to improve your FICO scores, get your payment history into good shape, and prevent identity theft or other problems from stopping your mortgage loan in its tracks. The first resource you should consider is the offer made by the FHA and HUD to give free referrals to a HUD-approved housing counselor. You can | more...

November 21, 2023

Before You Apply For Your Home Loan

By Joe Wallace

First-time homebuyers are often encouraged to start planning and saving for an FHA loan at least 12 months ahead. And it’s good advice. Within those 12 months, you’ll want to concentrate on a few important areas. There are moves to make and moves to avoid in the 12 months before your home loan application. 12 months is just a baseline. Some prefer to take 18 months or longer to prepare for a mortgage application. Take as much time as you need for best results. Don’t Make Big Career Changes Too Close To Application Time For the purposes of this article, pay raises, promotions, or other upwardly mobile moves within the company you currently work for are not the issue. Switching to a freelance career, transitioning from full-time to contract work, or | more...

November 20, 2023

Home Loan Interest Rates In 2024: Higher or Lower?

By Joe Wallace

Financial pundits are noting that home loan interest rates are unlikely to fall as low as in July of 2020 when the rates moved below 3%. Is it smart to wait to buy a home until well into the new year? Should we expect more of the same higher rates in the new year as we saw last year? FHA Mortgage Rate Predictions For 2024 Business Insider repeats the Fannie Mae prediction for 2024 that rates may reside between 6.4% and 7.1% for 30-year fixed-rate conventional mortgages. FHA and VA mortgage rates are likely to be at or slightly below these numbers. The National Association of Realtors takes a less conservative approach, predicting rates could fall as low as 6.1% in 2024. These are predictions only, and various factors, including | more...