Posts Tagged ‘loan’

Mortgage Questions

Some of the most commonly asked mortgage questions.

When it comes to buying a house you want to ensure you follow all the rules and do your homework. Buying a car may be a big financial decision however, for the average person, signing your name on a mortgage will probably be the biggest financial decision you will ever make. Below are a list of the most common questions you should know the answer to before you sign the mountain of paperwork. I am going to start this series of posts and over the next several months answer each of these mortgage questions.

• Can I afford to buy a home?
• How much money should I spend on a home mortgage?
• What are the differences between mortgage pre-qualification, pre-approval and final loan approval?
• What first-time buyer programs are available?

• What types of mortgages are available and which should I choose?
• Can I use my IRA retirement funds as a down payment on a home?
• Should I pay points on my mortgage?
• I have poor credit are there still options for a mortgage?
• What are front and back ratios?
• Is it still possible to get a loan with no money down?
• What is PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance? Why do I have to pay it?
• I know it used to be simple to get a mortgage? Is it still that easy?
• Can I take out a second mortgage and use that as a down payment for the first?
• Should I pay extra on my mortgage each month?
• Does it matter how long I have been employed? Will this effect my chances of getting a mortgage?

Once I have answered all these mortgage questions I will open the post up for comments. You can ask your own mortgage related questions and I or members of the blog will give the best answer we can. Please note I am not a professional or have any qualifications in this field, everything you read here is my personal opinion.

Be smart when you refinance your home

It may sound tempting to refinance your home loan now that rates are low, but is it really the smart thing to do? Before you make the final decision to refinance your home be sure to do all the calculations carefully. You could actually end up losing money on a home refinance.

When you refinance your home there are many fees involved that must be considered along with the lower rate. There are many fees that are mandatory before you can close the refinance loan and these little fees can add up to a large chunk of money at the end. Typical refinance fees include: application fee, title search and title insurance, appraisal fee, survey costs, hazard insurance, attorney’s fees, home inspection fees, loan origination fees, mortgage insurance, prepayment fees, flood certification, interim interest, and discount points.

An application fee is charged by the lender which covers their cost to process the loan. Usually this fee is paid up front and ranges from $75 to $300. Most lenders apply this cost to the final loan. Usually this fee is non refundable even if you are not approved for the loan.

A title search is required even though one has already been performed on the home. A title search is a review of the historical record associated with the property. This includes items such as property and name indexes, deeds, court records, etc. The lender does a title search to ensure that the buyer is purchasing a house from a legal owner and there are no liens against the home. In the case of a refinance loan they want to make sure you own the home and they are aware of any outstanding liens or loans on the home. 

The lender needs to perform an appraisal fee to make sure the value of the home will stand good for the loan amount. Today many lenders will only loan an amount equal to 80% and 90% of the home value. About a year ago many lenders would loan over 100% of the home value, but times have changed. For example if your home is appraised for $200,000 then a lender who lends 90% of the value would only loan $180,000 toward the home. This means if you owe more than $180,000 then you could not refinance the home. Typical appraisal fees range from $150 to $400 and vary based on the value of the home.

Sometimes lenders require a survey on the property before you can refinance a loan. This is to make sure you have not crossed any boundaries of the property while you have lived there. This cost can range from $200 to $400 depending on the size of the property.

Hazard insurance costs are included in closing costs. It’s mandatory to have hazard insurance on the property before a loan can be acquired. Most lenders requrie these to be prepaid thus they are included in closing costs.

Attorney’s fees must be paid at closing to cover any work the attorney does for the loan. Usually these fees range from $50 – $200.

Sometimes lenders a new home inspection before you can refinance the loan. This is to make sure the home is still in good shape in case you were to default on the loan. Home inspection fees usually range from $150 to $400.

A loan origination fee is a fee charged by the lender for preparing, evaluating and submitting a proposed mortgage loan. Most of the time these fees are expressed as a percentage of the loan amount.  A typical loan origination fee is about 1% of the loan amount.

Mortgage insurance or PMI is usually required by lenders if you need a loan for more than 80% of the homes value. This can be charged on a monthly basis or as a lump sum at closing. If it’s paid in closing it’s typically 1/2% to 1% of the loan amount.

A tricky fee that is often overlooked is a prepayment fee. If you pay off the loan before the end of the term you will be charged a fee. This fee can vary by states but should always be presented to you at closing.

A flood certification fee is a small fee, usually less than $50. It’s required by most insurance companies to ensure the home is not in a flood plain.

Interim interest is the amount of interest that has accrued from closing date until the end of the month. This can be a large sum if you close at the first of the month.

Finally, discount points is a percentage amount that is typically 1/2% to 1% of the loan amount. This fee is used to reduce the interest rate of the loan. This varies by bank but an example would be paying 1 point (1% of the loan amount) to reduce the interest rate 1/4%.

As you can see there many fees associated with closing a loan. Be sure that these fees don’t add up to more than you will save over the time you expect to keep the loan. Just because you are getting a smaller monthly payment doesn’t mean you are actually saving money!

Should you pay points on a mortgage loan?

What is a point when referring to a mortgage loan? A point is simply a percentage point of the overall loan amount that is paid up front, usually included in closing costs. For example if you are financing $200,000 and paying 1.5 points, you will have to come up with $3,000.

Why pay points toward a mortgage loan? Usually paying points lowers the interest rate you get on the loan. Before paying points you should always calculate if it’s worth the extra cash to get the lower interest rate. A simplified, real world example would go something like this.

A local movie rental business is offering a special promotion on various memberships. Regular movies cost $3.50 to rent per night, but with these new memberships you get special discounted rates. A gold membership costs a one time payment of $100 and it allows you to rent unlimited movies forever for only $1. You could quickly do the math ($100 / $2.50) and find out that it would take you 40 movie rentals before you started seeing real savings but from that point on you would save $2.50 off every movie you rented.

There are many things to consider before taking the deal. What if you only rent 1 movie per month? It would take you over 3 years before you started seeing any savings. What if the movie rental place went out of business? You would wast the one time payment. What if you move far away from the movie rental place? You might have to spend more in gas to get to the movie rental place than you would save from the movie rental deal.

Just with the movie rentals you have to decide how long you expect to stay in your home. If you are only planning on staying a couple of years, it’s probably not worthing paying the extra points. On the other hand if you plan to stay in the home 10 or more years you will probably save money by buying the points and paying the extra up front money.

Here is a great mortgage point calculator that will help you decide if paying the points is worth it for your situation.

A Mortgage Buy Down Program Right For You?

A mortgage buy down program or reverse mortgage may be an acceptable option for someone living on a fixed income who has no other means to earn money to pay for their current expenses.

Many financial experts agree that mortgage buy down programs are a bad investment, but I believe for some it may be an acceptable option. Buy down programs allow you to take advantage of the equity you have built up in your home and provide yourself a steady monthly income. You get a monthly payment sent to you each month until you have no equity left in your home.

The MAJOR downside to this program is in the end the mortgage company will own your home. Typically you will not have to give up your home while you are still living, but when you die the home basically goes back to the mortgage company.

As stated above this type of program can be an acceptable option if you have no other means to generate income and you don’t care what happens to your home when you die. If you have put everything you own into your home over the years and it’s basically all you have then you can view this type of reverse mortgage as something similar to your retirement program.

Again, I tend to lean toward the side stating that mortgage buy down programs are a bad investment and you should never plan to use this type of program as a retirement plan especially if you are young and still working. Take full advantage of your working years and put away plenty of money for your retirement years. Use a mortgage buy down as a last resort option for getting cash!

Reverse Mortgage Loan Information

A reverse mortgage is a mortgage loan or lien against your home that you do not have to pay back for as long as you live there. It’s similar to a home equity loan in the fact that you are taking equity out of your home in the form of cash. You can get the cash out from a reverse mortgage in several different ways:

• a single lump sum of cash paid at closing;
• a regular monthly payment made to you in the form of a cash advance;
• A credit line somewhat like a HELOC;
• Or a combination of any or all of these;

Pros of a Reverse Mortgage

• No Credit Check;
• No income needed;
• Can’t lose your home because you miss payments;
• You never have to repay the loan;

Cons of a Reverse Mortgage

• Create debt against your home and decreased equity in your home;
• Additional fees on top of normal closing costs;
• You have to completely own your home;
• You have to be at least 62 years of age to do this;

When should you consider a reverse mortgage? If you are not facing a financial emergency now, then consider postponing a reverse mortgage. Reverse mortgages are a very expensive way to get cash. Most lenders tack on additional fees on top of normal closing costs. The fees can be as much as 4% of the loan on top of normal closing costs.

Before you decide to opt for a reverse mortgage make sure you understand all the details. Do your homework and make sure you understand exactly what you are doing.