FHA Announces Important Guideline Changes.
Mortgagee Letter 2012-3 announces several key guideline changes on topics of self-employment, disputed credit, outstanding collections and identity of interest definitions. These changes are good from the perspective that they offer much clearer underwriting requirements on several key topics so not as much is left to interpretation or opinion. All of these changes are effective for cases assigned on and after April 1st.
Topic: Self-Employment
New Requirement for AUS Approve/Accept & Manual Underwriting: A P&L and Balance Sheet is required if more than a calendar quarter has elapsed since date of most recent calendar or fiscal-year end tax return was filed by the borrower – with no exceptions. Additionally, if income used to qualify the borrower exceeds the two year average of tax returns, an audited P&L or signed quarterly tax returns obtained from IRS are required.
Topic: Disputed Credit Accounts
New Requirement: AUS Accept/Approve does not need to be downgraded to a Refer and manually underwritten as long as
• the total outstanding balance of all disputed credit accounts or collections are less than $1,000, and
• Disputed credit accounts or collections are aged two years from date of last activity as indicated on the most recent credit report.
If the borrower has individual or multiple disputed credit accounts or collections with singular or cumulative balances equal to or greater than $1,000, the accounts must be resolved (e.g. payment arrangements with a minimum three months of verified payments made as agreed) or paid in full, prior to, or at the time of closing. The payments arranged for the accounts must be included in the calculation of the borrower’s debt-to-income ratios.
Disputed credit accounts or collections resulting from identity theft, credit card theft, or of unauthorized use, etc., will be excluded from the $1,000 limit under the terms shown below. The mortgagee must provide a credit report or letter from the creditor, or other appropriate documentation, to support that the borrower filed an identity theft or police report to dispute the fraudulent charges. Mortgagees must provide documentation in the case binder to show all disputed or collection accounts are resolved, verified as not a debt to the borrower, arrangements made for payment, or paid in full.
Topic: Outstanding Collection Accounts & Court-Ordered Judgments
New Requirement: If the total outstanding balance of all collection accounts is equal to or greater than $1,000 the borrower must resolve the accounts (e.g. entered into payment arrangements with minimum three months verified payments- paid as agreed) or paid in full at the time of, or prior to closing. If the total outstanding balance of all collection accounts is less than $1,000, the borrower is not required to pay off the collection accounts as a condition of mortgage approval.
Note: Paying “down” of balances on disputed accounts and collections to reduce the singular or cumulative balance to below $1,000, is not an acceptable resolution of accounts.
An exception to the payoff of a court-ordered judgment may be made if the borrower has an agreement with the creditor to make regular and timely payments, and provides documentation indicating that a minimum of three months payments have been made according to the agreement. The monthly payment must be included in the borrower’s debt-to-income ratio.
Topic: Identity of Interest Transaction
New Requirement: The definition of a family member for establishing “identity of interest” purposes has been expanded to include a child, parent, grandparent, spouse, legally adopted son or daughter, including a child who is placed with the borrower by an authorized agency for legal adoption, foster child, brother, stepbrother, sister, stepsister, uncle, and aunt.
Please be sure to read the Mortgagee Letter in its entirety.
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Realty Times – Get a HUD Home for $100 Down.
Call it the U.S. Department of $100 Down Housing.
HUD like other federal agencies, are anxious to unload properties they hold, because they can be a financial drain.The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is offering its foreclosed homes for a mere $100 down from now until October 2012.
Of course you’ll have to qualify for a mortgage, you may have to pays some closing costs, the deal isn’t available everywhere and the condition of the homes is strictly “as-is.”
If you can handle those qualifiers, here’s the deal:
• You can only buy HUD homes. Go to the HUD Homes For Sale web page.
• You must use a HUD-registered real estate broker or agent.
• You must qualify for and use Federal Housing Administration (FHA) financing.
• You must plan to be an “owner-occupant,” buying the property to live in and not as an investment.
• The home’s purchase price must be no more than the appraised value of the property. If you bid a higher price you can pay the difference in cash, minus $100.
• The $100 down incentive must be on the executed contract. That means you have to specifically request the incentive. Your real estate agent should be aware of this provision.
• In some cases, HUD will also cover up to 3 percent of the closing costs.
• The $100 down payment program is eligible for the FHA 203(k) loans. The loans allow borrowers to use a portion of their purchase loan to repair and renovate run-down homes.
That’s a good thing because HUD homes are sold in an “as-is” condition — what you see is pretty much what you get. You could find a diamond in the rough or fool’s gold. HUD homes often include a property condition report, but that is not a warranty.
The property report can resemble a home inspection report, but HUD home buyers are always encouraged to get a home inspection to determine just what “as is” is.
The deal is offered in states in two HUD regions:
Arkansas
Colorado
Iowa
Kansas
Louisiana
Missouri
Minnesota
Montana
Nebraska
New Mexico
North Dakota
Oklahoma
South Dakota
Texas
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Utah
Alabama
Florida
Georgia
Kentucky
Illinois
Indiana
Mississippi
North Carolina
South Carolina
Tennessee
Published: November 10, 2011
Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.
Kentucky FHA Mortgage Loans—updated�Guidelines
via Kentucky FHA Loan Louisville Kentucky Mortgage Guidelines.
via Kentucky FHA Loan Louisville Kentucky Mortgage Guidelines.
April 2012: The New (& Expensive) FHA Mortgage Insurance Premium (MIP) Schedule.
via April 2012: The New (& Expensive) FHA Mortgage Insurance Premium (MIP) Schedule.
The FHA will raise its mortgage insurance premiums April 1, 2012. All FHA mortgage applicants — first-time buyers, repeat buyers, and users of the FHA Streamline Refinance program — will be subject to the new fees.
New FHA Mortgage Insurance Premium Schedules
The new FHA mortgage insurance premium schedule raises FHA loan costs significantly.
FHA mortgage insurance is paid in two parts.
The first part is the “Upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium”. Sometimes abbreviated as UFMIP, upfront mortgage insurance premiums will rise from 1.000% of your FHA loan size to 1.750% of your FHA loan size.
For example, if you live in Chicago, Illinois and you borrow up to the FHA’s local loan limit of $417,000, your upfront mortgage insurance premium will rise 75% from $4,170 to $7,298. This amount is added to your loan size. FHA upfront MIP is not paid via cash. You’ll pay interest on this amount for the life of your loan.
The changes in the FHA’s annual mortgage insurance premiums (MIP) are less extreme, rising only 10 basis points.
The new schedule, for loans with case numbers assigned on or after April 1, 2012:
Furthermore, all FHA mortgages made for $625,500 or more will be subject to an additional 0.25 percent annual mortgage insurance fee.
Loans made prior to April 1, 2012 will use the old FHA mortgage insurance schedule:
Special Cases: FHA Streamline Refinance MIPs
As part of the FHA’s announcement, there was also reference to the FHA’s benchmark refinance program, the FHA Streamline Refinance.
The FHA suggested that a subset of households using the streamline refi program will get access to lower mortgage insurance premiums after refinancing — not higher.
No official announcement has been made, but it’s believed that mortgage insurance premiums — both upfront and annual — will be dramatically lowered for FHA Streamline Refinances used to replace an existing FHA mortgages originated prior to June 1, 2009. New FHA Streamline Refinances that replace loans originally originated after June 1, 2009 will still pay the new, standard FHA mortgage insurance rates listed above.
The June 1, 2009 deadline should sound familiar — it’s the same deadline for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s HARP 2.0 program.
The FHA is expected to confirm new FHA Streamline Refinance mortgage insurance premiums within a few weeks.
Lock Your FHA Rate Before The Price Hike
The FHA will make a formal announcement on its new FHA premiums in the coming days. Some of the exact numbers at top may change slightly. However, the FHA has confirmed the April 1, 2012 rollout date.
If you’re planning to use the FHA for your next home mortgage, get your loan application started today. If you wait, you’ll be subject to the FHA’s new premiums.
Source – Dan Green
Author’s note : This information is subject to final review by the FHA. It’s based on an initial FHA announcement made February 27, 2012. It’s unofficial until the FHA releases its mortgagee letter on the matter.
Louisville Home Sales | All good news in August | Derby City Cents.
While it’s still far from a balanced market, today’s monthly sales report from the Greater Louisville Association of Realtors shows nearly all numbers moving in the right direction.
Sales were up 21 percent from a year earlier. Inventory is still high, but coming down. Sales are still off from last year’s pace, but the gap is closing. And the number of sales in the pipeline is up.
Keeping things in perspective, last month’s 1,133 sales is nowhere close to 1,521 in August 2007, before the recession hit, but it was the strongest August since that time, even surpassing the tax-credit infused market of 2009.
Here’s the Realtors full press release, including information specific to Jefferson, Oldham and Bullitt counties:
Overall Market Comment:
Members of the Greater Louisville Association of Realtors® replaced July as the year’s second most productive month by boosting sales 8% to end August 2011. August replaced July as the second most productive month of 2011 with 1,133 sold units, compared to 1,048 units in July. For the year, July was moved to 3rd place, behind August (1133 units) and June which recorded 1,137 closed units. The August sales figures also continued a trend noted in July, a trend of outpacing same month figures from 2010. The August 2011 sales were a whopping 21% stronger than August 2010, providing more evidence that Realtors® are steadily surviving in a post Home Buyer Tax Credit market. The average selling price for August 2011 slipped to $169,023, from $179,758 in July 2011, but was nearly even with August 2010’s average sales price of $172,949. Inventory, or the number of homes for sale, declined 2% in August to 9046 from 9,295 in July and 9,213 in June. Inventory remains near a 10 month supply; inventory levels near a 6 month supply are often associated with an in-balance market. Year-to-date sales remain nearly 10% behind last year’s pace, but the upward trend in July and August has closed the gap somewhat.
Overall, GLAR members are encouraged by the summer sales period (June-July-August) and continue to steadily move forward in a post- HBTC market. While economic factors remain weak, predictions are that a low interest rate climate will likely remain in the 4th quarter, a tool Realtors® welcome.
Jefferson County Market Comment:
Realtors® posted 782 closed sales in Jefferson County in August 2011, up nearly 23% from August 2010. The average selling price in the county fell to $168,859, from $173,186 for July 2011, and $171,154 for June 2011. Jefferson County inventory remains near a 9 month supply with 5,723 active units, down slightly from last month, but up 27% from August 2010. Year-to-date sales, in the county, stand at 5,108 units, down 11% from a similar period last year. In summary, the Jefferson County market followed the broader GLAR analysis by breaking the year-to-date trend of lagging behind 2010 and posting an increase in sales volume when matched against the same period last year.
Oldham County Market Comment:
The number of closed sales in August jumped 38% compared to Aug 2010 (when the buyer tax credits were ending), bringing the YTD total up 7% compared to the same time last year. The average and median prices in Aug 2011 vs 2010 were up 12% and 6% respectively, reflecting the sale of some higher priced homes that had not sold in the Spring market. The YTD average and median figures were up a more modest 9% and 4% respectively, and are less volatile than single month data points. The number of sales going under contract was up 5% and the inventory of unsold homes remained slightly higher than last year by 6%. However, this was a 5% decrease in inventory compared to last month. Continued low mortgage rates will be the key factor in the resumption of a balanced market in Oldham County, as it will be with the broader Louisville market.
Bullitt County Market Comment:
Realtors® posted 73 closed sales in Bullitt County in August 2011, down from 80 sales in July 2011, but up nearly 24% from August 2010. The average selling price in the county, for August, was $138,439, a decline of 9% from July 2011, but up 1% from August 2010. Year-to-date sales, in the county, stand at 495 units, down 11% from a similar period in 2010. Supply, or the number of homes on the market, has fallen to 584 units, down 32 units from July 2011, but up nearly 13% from a similar period in 2010.
Kentucky FHA Mortgage Lender 