If you are stretching your funds to purchase a home with a minimal down payment, you are probably familiar with private mortgage insurance (PMI). It is generally required in any home purchase in which the down payment is less than 20%. PMI is insurance for the lender, not for you — it covers the lender
Home Purchase Loan
Student loan debt has made it difficult for many young Americans to enter the housing market. A recent survey from the National Association of Realtors found that 71% of student loan borrowers cited their student loan burden as a reason to delay buying a home.
The student loan plight may be a major factor in
Treasury Report Targets Dodd-Frank In February of 2017, President Trump issued Executive Order 13772, which gave the Secretary of the Treasury 120 days to create a report reviewing financial laws and regulations with respect to seven “Core Principles”. Those principles are generally related to streamlining the financial markets and, in the President’s opinion, reducing constraints
America Breaks the Debt Record According to the New York Fed’s recent Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit, America has more debt than ever before. Do you? Should you be concerned in either case?
The report shows that American household debt reached $12.73 trillion in the first quarter of 2017. That tops the previous
If you are a first-time homebuyer, you may be aware of mortgage insurance but you may not know that there are two different types. Mortgage Insurance Premiums (MIP) and Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) both have the same general purpose: to offset the default risk to lenders when borrowers have purchased homes with low down payments
April is National Financial Literacy Month. Why do we dedicate this calendar page to highlighting financial skills and education? The tax deadline? Sound financial decisions are important all year long, but most Americans never learned how to manage money or save for goals, so financial security is a bigger challenge than it needs to be.
The housing market has shown signs of strength recently, but momentum remains elusive. Will this be the year that housing breaks out? Expert opinions vary, but most see a moderating market that will continue to pose a challenge for new homebuyers.
Mortgage rates – Most estimates for mortgage rates suggest the post-election trend of sharply
You have agreed to terms with the seller for your new home, and are now preparing to enter the closing phase. Unfortunately, closing on a house is considerably more complicated than buying a new appliance, or even a car.
The closing process typically takes 30-45 days and requires several preliminary steps before the actual closing
With U.S. mortgage rates increasing, homeowners with variable loans will be the most affected at first. The rises will have a ripple effect across the sector, however, because experts expect more increases from the Federal Reserve.
News from the mortgage sector is that average rates for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage have now reached 4.38 percent
Recent research shows that as banks step back from offering risky loans, non-banking lenders have stepped in to fill the breach. Though banks once ruled the mortgage sector in the U.S, they now have less than a 50 percent share.
According to the latest figures, the amount of mortgage dollars offered by traditional banking institutions
Buying property is one of the largest purchases and biggest financial commitment that most Americans will make. With real estate values rising beyond inflation rates, this has become truer since the late 1990s. For borrowers, it’s important to take control of homeownership, including the costs involved. One of the most important factors lenders look at
According to a statement made on Monday, by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), a large number of mortgage lenders are now following the new regulations implemented last year by the Dodd-Frank Act. These new regulations govern mortgage originations and the dispersal of information to borrowers, among other things. Other rules apply to a borrower’s
While many couples choose to buy a home after getting married, some do not want to wait. They view buying a home as a way of moving forward in a relationship, but doing so may not be the best financial move. Experts warn those who want to buy a home before marrying that if they
Americans who have a down payment of around 20 percent or less may have to get mortgage insurance to qualify for the loan. However, some lenders do not explain what this is, and some borrowers walk away because they don’t believe they should buy mortgage insurance.
Mortgage insurance provides lenders with a guarantee if the
Jumbo mortgages made at the six largest U.S. banks accounted for 24 percent of all mortgages in 2015. That’s an increase from 21 percent in 2014. All of these jumbo mortgages were larger than $417,000. Since 2008, they have become more popular with the larger banks, including Bank of America, J.P. Morgan Chase, Citigroup, PNC
On Tuesday, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that they will soon be releasing a new set of guidelines for the sale of all mortgages that were once guaranteed by the US government. These new regulations come in response to a number of legislators criticizing the loan sales, saying that they allowed
When a borrower applies for a mortgage, the lender looks at both secured and unsecured lines of credit. With secured credit, they are taking less of a gamble – they can seize the asset associated with the credit. Mortgages and auto loans are both secured, while debt such as credit card loans and student loans
Making a down payment on a house could be your biggest investment you make. Now there is a way to protect that investment.
Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) is a method of protecting lenders from risk if you put down a lower down payment on a home (typically less than 20%). The PMI principle assumes that
Homeowners who have retired or who are close to retiring and still have a mortgage may have concerns about their finances. While many do pay off their mortgage before retiring, those who purchased a home later in life with a 30-year mortgage or who have had to refinance their home for some reason may find
For many homeowners, paying off a mortgage occurs only once in their lifetime. Taking on a large debt, especially one that lasts for thirty years, is a substantial commitment that deserves to be celebrated once it’s over. However, once the celebration is done, it’s important that homeowners take the time to make certain that they
Homeowners rarely think about dying when they apply for a mortgage, but legal experts urge buyers, especially older buyers, to learn about what happens to their loan and their property if they die before the balance is paid in full. Bernard A. Krooks, an elder law expert, stresses that seniors need to be informed so
Doctors, dentists, and many others who go into the medical field often graduate with high amounts of student loan debt that they have to begin paying back after six months of graduation. While they may not be making a large amount of money immediately following graduation and have a large amount of debt, they are
When most homebuyers sit down to calculate whether they can afford a particular home, they often assume their monthly mortgage payment will include only the principal and the interest. Many forget to factor in property taxes and their monthly homeowner’s insurance premium. This often leads borrowers to experience sticker shock when they see what a
APR and APY – are they new texting acronyms? IDK, you say – or rather, you text? (For the benefit of the textually-challenged, IDK means “I don’t know.”) If you think they are texting acronyms, or just “DK” what they are, it’s time to learn.
APR and APY are financial acronyms, short for Annual Percentage