Highlights of HomePath® No Appraisal Required No Mortgage Insurance Required All occupancy types are eligible Primary Residence, Second Home, and Investment Eligible for High Balance Loan Amounts Unique Attributes to HomePath® The sales price is used as the property...

For the first time this year, Fannie Mae announced significant updates to its mortgage underwriting guidelines. The changes include newer, harsher ARM qualification standards, the elimination of a once-popular loan product, and tighter rules for interest only mortgages. Fannie Mae made its official...

Mortgage markets improved last week for the second week in a row.  And, also for the second week in a row, rates were down on “safe haven” buying — just not for the same safe haven reasons as before. If you’ll remember, safe haven buying is when investors sense market risk,...

Today’s Auction results reiterated yesterdays bleak results.  All this just days ahead of the end of the FED MBS Purchase Program.  In the last 24 Hours we have witnessed Mortgage Rates increase over .25% with repricing for the worse still trickling in. If the Auctions are producing this type...

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has extended the government’s Home Affordable Refinance Program by 12 months. HARP’s new end date is June 30, 2011. Originally known as Making Home Affordable, HARP aims to help homeowners refinance their mortgage who may otherwise be ineligible because...

A “Short Sale” is when a home seller sells his home for a lesser amount than what is owed on his mortgage, and the mortgage lender agrees to accept the lesser amount in lieu of a full payoff. By way of example, a Short Sale may be appropriate for a home seller whose mortgage balance is...

FHA home loans are federal assistance mortgages made by lenders, and backed by the government. The FHA doesn’t make loans to homeowners — it insures loans made to homeowners by federally-qualified lenders. By all accounts, FHA home loans are surging in popularity. 2006, FHA insured 3.3%...

Fannie Mae raised the bar for mortgage applicants this past weekend.  Getting approved for a home loan just got harder. In its official announcement, Fannie Mae says the updates minimize long-term lending risks.  If that’s the case, this won’t be the last guideline change Fannie Mae...

Despite the economy’s improvement and prodding from Congress, banks don’t seem ready to open their purse strings just yet. Nationally, mortgage approval standards are tightening. The data comes from a quarterly survey the Federal Reserve sends to its member banks.  The Fed asks senior...

According to the government, home values edged lower last month. The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Home Price Index report shows values down by 0.3 percent from the month prior – the index’s first down month since April. The Home Price Index is based on the value of homes financed...