Avoiding Foreclosure

When the stress of a possible foreclosure rises, it is important to remember that there are many resources out there to help avoid it. The programs and agencies below all specialize in helping people avoid foreclosure on their homes:

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
800-569-4287
http://www.hud.gov/local/ca/homeownership/foreclosure.cfm

HUD Avoidance Counseling
http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/fc/

Making Home Affordable Program
888-995-HOPE
http://www.makinghomeaffordable.org/

Housing California
916-447-0503
http://www.housingca.org/nr/resource/foreclosure_resources/

State of California – Consumer Home Mortgage Information
http://yourhome.ca.gov/

Fannie Mae Resource Center
800-732-6643
http://www.fanniemae.com/homeowners/index.html

Project Sentinel – Redwood City counseling agency
(HUD Approved Agency)
888.331.3332
http://www.housing.org/

Neighborhood Counseling Services – Silicon Valley
(HUD Approved Agency)
408-279-2600
http://www.nhssv.org/foreclosure-counseling.htm

Neighbor Works America
202-220-2300
http://www.nw.org/network/foreclosure/default.asp

National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling
202-220-6314
nfmc@nw.org

The important thing to remember is that foreclosure isn’t always inevitable, and there are many programs and agencies ready to help. Share these resources if someone you know is going through a possible foreclosure on their home.

vickimohnach@mortgagecalifornia.com

 

Ways to Reduce Stress When You’re Moving

Buying and selling a home and moving is one of the most stressful processes on the human psyche. It is important that while going through the real estate process, you find time to take care of yourself.

Just like on an airplane, you have to put an oxygen mask on yourself before helping anyone else. This means that in order to be able to take care of things and other people, it is important that you make sure you take care of yourself first.

Try setting aside relaxation time just for yourself each day, and do something you enjoy, despite the hectic and stressful nature of moving.

Reading a good book, spending time outside, taking a long bath, getting a massage – things like this will help you reduce your stress level immensely. With less real estate stress, handling the details will be easier.

Market Commentary for the Week of April 23rd

Monday’s bond market has opened in positive territory due to a weak opening in stocks. The major stock indexes are reacting negatively to renewed concerns about the European economy and debt issues.

This has the Dow down 131 points and the Nasdaq down 47 points. The bond market is currently up 13/32, which should improve this morning’s mortgage rates by approximately .125 of a discount point from Friday’s early pricing.

There is nothing of relevance scheduled for release today, leaving bonds to be driven by stock movement. This is good news at the moment with the stock markets posting sizable losses as it helps make bonds more appealing to investors. If the major stock indexes extend this morning’s losses, we may see improvements to mortgage rates during afternoon hours today.

The rest of the week is extremely active with six relevant economic reports in addition to another FOMC meeting and two fairly important Treasury auctions. The economic reports range from low importance to extremely high importance with the majority of them falling between. Therefore, it is likely that we will see a fair amount of movement in mortgage pricing over the next several days.

The Conference Board will kick off the week’s events by posting April’s Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) late tomorrow morning. This index is a key indicator of future spending by consumers. The group surveys 5000 consumers from across the country about their personal financial situations. If sentiment is strong or rising, it is believed that consumers are more apt to make large purchases in the near future. However, if they are concerned about issues such as job security and savings, they will probably delay making large purchases. The latter is better for the bond market and mortgage rates because the expected slowdown in spending would keep inflation and economic growth concerns to a minimum. But, a sizable increase could hurt the bond market, pushing mortgage rates higher tomorrow. It is expected to show a reading of 69.5, which would be a decline from March’s 70.2 reading. The lower the reading, the better the news for mortgage rates.

March’s New Home Sales will also be released late tomorrow morning. It gives us an indication of housing sector strength and mortgage credit demand, but is the week’s least important report. Unless it varies greatly from analysts’ forecasts, I am not expecting the data to cause much movement in mortgage rates. Analysts are currently forecasting an increase in sales of newly constructed homes.

Overall, look for plenty of movement in the financial markets and mortgage rates several days this week. Wednesday will likely be the most important day of the week with the FOMC meeting, press conference and fairly important Durable Goods data, but we may also see noticeable changes to rates Friday after the GDP is posted. If this week’s reports reveal weaker than expected economic conditions, the bond market could extend its rally and mortgage rates should fall for the week.

Bargain Prices and Low FHA Down Payments are Fueling Home Sales

Few ideas tug at the heart strings like the thought of having a home of your own. For many, the days of longing may be coming to a close. The goal is in sight.

Not only is the home you want now within your price range, but it will take less cash than ever before. Think FHA.

If demands for huge down payments have kept you from moving forward, a Federal Housing Administration loan will remove that obstacle. It requires only 3.5 percent down.

Interest rates are the lowest they’ve been in more than fifty years. Some FHA loans charge only 4 percent interest on a 30-year loan and 3.33 percent on a 15-year mortgage.

A $100,000 30-year loan at 4 percent would have payments of just $477 a month. For $150,000 the mortgage payment would be about $617 per month, and a $200,000 mortgage payment would be $954. The cost of mortgage insurance would be added when you make a low down payment.

If you have a dream home in mind, you’ll be pleased to know that the FHA can now guarantee mortgage loans as large as $729,750 from private lenders in the most expensive regions of the United States. That’s up from $625,500. For the limit in any city, visit http://www.fha.gov/ and click on “conforming loan limits” and “high cost areas.”

Just being able to afford a home is the least-important reason for buying one. The freedom of it, added to the living space you need, the conveniences and beauty are the primary rewards.
The jurist and poet Oliver Wendell Holmes said, “Where we love is home, home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.”

Could that describe the home you have in mind, one that the hearts of your children will always return to?

Credit Bureaus, Privacy and You

Four Ways to Delay Paying Taxes

While the due date for taxes is April 17, if you are having trouble scraping up the money, there are ways to stall the taxman. According to a Yahoo article, you must file your tax return by the deadline in order to avoid penalties and interest. However, you can get an extension of up to six months from the IRS.

Four ways to stall payment:

1. Set up monthly installments

If you owe less that $25,000 in taxes, you can create a monthly payment plan. There are several ways to do this – you can fill out an Online Payment Agreement form, search “installment agreements” at IRS.gov or call 1-800-829-1040.

2. Pay by credit

The IRS accepts payment by credit card, which can be helpful if you don’t have the cash on hand and need more time. There are downsides to paying by credit card, however. You will be charged a transaction fee of 3% by the IRS, and if you can’t keep up with the monthly credit card payments, you will be charged interest.

3. Request an offer in compromise

If you are sure you cannot pay your taxes, you have the option to request an offer in compromise from the IRS. They may agree to settle your tax debt for less than the full amount.

4. Try a partial payment installment agreement

In this agreement, the debtor can pay monthly installments for a set period of time and once the collection period ends, the excess debt is forgiven. It is much more difficult to obtain than a offer in compromise, and for both, consult a tax attorney or professional in regards to your options.

Common Red Flags for Mortgage Loan Underwriters

Loan underwriters frequently see red flags that could prevent borrowers from getting a loan. John Ellis, our Senior Vice President, laid out some red flags he frequently sees:

• Borrowers buying properties separately when they are married
• Refinance where the appraised value is significantly higher than the recent acquisition cost
• Frequent employment changes / Recent increase in pay
• Recent undocumented deposits
• Lack of credit history
• Recently issued social security numbers
• Borrowers who have recently purchased other/multiple properties
• Parties in a transaction who share a last name (buyer, seller, Realtor, loan officer, appraiser, escrow officer)

A lot of these are avoidable, so be sure to keep this list in mind when applying for a home loan.

This Week’s Market Commentary

This week brings us the release of three monthly economic reports in addition to the minutes from the most recent FOMC meeting. While three reports is usually not much of a concern, two of the week’s three are considered to be highly important to the markets and mortgage rates. Thrown in the fact that this is a holiday-shortened trading week and we have the mix for a very interesting week.

The first report comes late tomorrow morning when the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) will release their manufacturing index. This index gives us an important measurement of manufacturer sentiment by surveying trade executives and is one of the more important of this week’s data. A reading above 50 means more surveyed executives felt business improved during the month than those who said it had worsened. This month’s report is expected to show a reading of 53.0, which would be a decline from February’s reading of 52.4. This means that analysts think business sentiment slipped from last month’s level. That would be fairly good news for the bond market and mortgage rates. A noticeable decline would be favorable for rates while an increase would be negative.

February’s Factory Orders will be released early Tuesday morning. This data is similar to last week’s Durable Goods Orders report, except it includes orders for both durable and non-durable goods, giving us a measurement of manufacturing sector strength. It is also the least important of this week’s reports. Unless it varies greatly from forecasts of a 1.4% increase, I suspect that it will be a non-factor in the mortgage market.

The next important event comes Tuesday afternoon when the Fed releases the minutes of their last FOMC meeting. Market participants will be looking at them closely. They give us insight to the Fed’s current thought process and individual Fed member opinions. Any surprises in the 2:00 PM ET release, particularly about inflation or the likelihood of a Fed move to boost economic activity, could cause afternoon volatility in the markets Tuesday and possible changes in mortgage pricing.

Wednesday doesn’t have any economic data scheduled for release from a government agency or reliable source. There are a couple of private sector employment-related reports being posted, but they are not considered highly important to the bond market or mortgage rates. These reports have not been accurate in predicting results of government reports, so they usually do not have much of an impact on bond trading or mortgage pricing. We do see some reaction to them if they reveal a surprisingly significant indication of employment strength or weakness. However, I don’t believe they deserve much concern or attention in regards to mortgage pricing.

The biggest news of the week will come early Friday morning when the Labor Department posts March’s Employment report, giving us the U.S. unemployment rate and the number of jobs added or lost during the month. This is an extremely important report to the financial and mortgage markets. It is expected to show that the unemployment rate remained at 8.3% and that approximately 200,000 payrolls were added during the month. A higher unemployment rate and a smaller than expected payroll number would be good news for bonds and would likely push mortgage rates lower Friday morning because it would indicate weakness in the employment sector of the economy.

Overall, I think it is going to be an active week for the mortgage market. The most important day is Friday, but not only because the almighty monthly Employment report is being posted. Friday is Good Friday, meaning the stock markets will be closed. However, due to the release of the Employment report, the bond market will be open until noon ET Friday. This means that bond trading will take place without the influence of stock gains or losses. Tomorrow is also going to be a big part of whether rates fall or rise for the week, so please maintain contact with your mortgage professional if still floating an interest rate.