Category: Mortgage (Page 36 of 60)

Mortgage Insurance – Mistakes to Avoid and How to Pay Less

March 16, 2019 / Tom Bonetto

Most loans with less than 20 percent down (for purchases) or home equity (for refinances) require some form of mortgage insurance. This can be pricey for some borrowers, so it’s important to have a strategy to deal with this type of insurance.

Everyone wants to pay less for mortgage insurance and with a little preparation and some shopping around that may be possible.

But before we look at lower costs, let’s first explain what mortgage insurance (MI or PMI for ‘private mortgage insurance’) really is.

I highly recommend that you read the entirety of Peter Miller’s post from The Mortgage Reports, although I’ve put together a few key pieces from his article below…and my article on Mortgage Insurance here…

For conventional (non-government) loans, it may be also be called PMI, or private mortgage insurance. FHA programs require mortgage insurance premiums (MIP) regardless of the size of down payment.

VA home loans call their insurance premium a funding fee. Some lenders may not require a separate insurance policy, but charge a higher interest rate to cover their risk.

Why 20 percent down?

Mortgage lenders really, really want you to buy a home with at least 20 percent down. That’s because it substantially reduces their losses if you don’t repay your loan and they have to foreclose.

However, most homebuyers, especially first-timers, don’t have 20 percent to purchase a property. The National Association of Realtors lists these figures for median down payments in 2018:

All buyers: 13 percent
First-time buyers: 7 percent
Repeat buyers: 16 percent

If you don’t have 20 percent down, most lenders force you to purchase mortgage insurance. The policy covers their losses if you default and they don’t fully recover their costs in a foreclosure sale.

How much does mortgage insurance cost?

What MI costs are you likely to face? For conventional mortgages, MI costs depend on your credit rating, down payment size, and type of loan you choose. For government loans, your credit score does not affect mortgage insurance premiums.

Here’s the advice that Peter Miller gives on how to pay less….

How to pay less for mortgage insurance

Mortgage insurance can be a big cost. For example, if you buy a home for $250,000 with 3.5 percent down, and get FHA financing, the up-front MIP will be $4,222. You’ll also pay annual MIP of $171 per month. After five years, you will have spent $14,482 ($171 x 60 plus $4,222).

Here are several strategies to reduce or eliminate mortgage insurance costs.

Go piggyback

Instead of getting one mortgage, get two. Try a first mortgage equal to 80 percent of the purchase price and a second mortgage for 5, 10 or 15 percent of the balance. You can then buy with no mortgage insurance. Here’s how that might work, assuming that you have a 700 FICO score, 5 percent down, and buy a traditional single-family home for $250,000:

First mortgage principal and interest, assuming a 4.5 percent interest rate: $1,013.
Second mortgage principal and interest, assuming a 7 percent interest rate: $249
Total payment: $1,263

A comparable 95 percent loan with 25 percent coverage looks like this:

First mortgage principal and interest at 4.5 percent: $1,203
Mortgage insurance: $108
Total payment: $1,311

In this case, the difference is about $50 a month.

Refinance

If the value of your property has grown, you may be able to refinance to a loan without MI, instead of without waiting until your balance is less than 80 percent. When refinancing, you want to try for a double MI whammy — a new loan with both a lower rate and no MI requirement. Speak with a loan officer for details; the monthly savings might be significant.

Look for refundable premiums

If you expect to be a short-term owner, look for mortgage insurance programs with refundable premiums. With the FHA, for example, you can get a partial refund if you pay off the loan within three years. And private mortgage insurers also offer refundable premiums. However, their upfront costs may be higher.

Reduce your risk profile

With conventional financing, you can significantly reduce what you pay for mortgage insurance by being a less-risky borrower.

Improve your credit score. Even a one-point increase can save you money if it puts you into a better tier
Make a larger down payment. Going from 3 percent to 5 percent can save you money, depending on the program
Choose a fixed loan over an ARM
Choose a loan with a term of 20 years or fewer

Cancellation

Conventional loan guidelines allow borrowers to request cancellation of their MI once their loan falls to 80 percent of the value of the home when you took out your mortgage. You must normally be in good standing with your lender to drop MI this way.

With FHA and USDA mortgage insurance, coverage continues for the life of the loan. For VA-backed financing, there is no monthly charge.

Automatic termination

Alternatively, mortgage insurance for conforming loans “must automatically terminate PMI on the date when your principal balance is scheduled to reach 78 percent of the original value of your home. For your PMI to be canceled on that date, you need to be current on your payments on the anticipated termination date. Otherwise, PMI will not be terminated until shortly after your payments are brought up to date.”

In Conclusion

Do reach out to me to discuss your down payment and mortgage insurance options, as it would be my pleasure to help you!

Before Making a 20% Mortgage Down Payment, Do Read This

March 2, 2019 / Tom Bonetto

“How much should I put down on a house?”

It’s a question that I hear all the time from would-be home buyers— especially first-timer purchasers.

And, the answer is: “it depends,” as it really will vary by buyer.

I’d highly recommend that you check out Dan Green’s article at The Mortgage Reports for more.

Per Mr. Green: “If you’re a home buyer with a good deal of cash saved up in the bank, for example, but you have relatively low annual income, making the biggest down payment possible can be sensible. This is because, with a large down payment, your loan size shrinks, reducing the size of your monthly payment.”

Or, perhaps your situation is reversed.

“Maybe you may have a good household income but very little saved in the bank. In this instance, it may be best to use a low- or no-down-payment loan, while planning to cancel your mortgage insurance at some point in the future.”

Dan continues: “One thing is true for everyone, though — you shouldn’t think it’s “conservative” to make a large down payment on a home. Similarly, you shouldn’t think it’s “risky” to make a small down payment. The opposite is actually true.”

“About the riskiest thing you can do when you’re buying a new home is to make the largest down payment you can. It’s conservative to borrow more, and we’ll talk about it below.”

For today’s most widely-used purchase mortgage programs, down payment minimum requirements are:

Remember, though, that these requirements are just the minimum. As a mortgage borrower, it’s your right to put down as much on a home as you like and, in some cases, it can make sense to put down more.

Larger Down Payments Actually Increase Risk

Green continues: “As a homeowner, it’s likely that your home will be the largest balance sheet asset. Your home may be worth more than all of your other investments combined, even.

In this way, your home is both a shelter and an investment and should be treated as such. And, once we view our home as an investment, it can guide the decisions we make about our money.

The riskiest decision we can make when purchasing a new home?

Making too big of a down payment.”

The Higher The Down Payment, The Lower Your Rate of Return

The first reason why conservative investors should monitor their down payment size is that the down payment will limit your home’s return on investment.

Consider a home which appreciates at the national average of near 5 percent.

Today, your home is worth $400,000. In a year, it’s worth $420,000. Regardless of your down payment, the home is worth twenty-thousand dollars more.

That down payment affected your rate of return.

With 20% down on the home — $80,000 –your rate of return is 25%
With 3% down on the home — $12,000 — your rate of return is 167%

That’s a huge difference. Please do reach out to me for more information so we can figure out the best down payment strategy for you!

New Investor Product – Fix and Flip

February 2, 2019 / Tom Bonetto

Researchers have found that house flippers renovated more than 200,000 homes in 2017, with an average profit of nearly $70,000 per property. That’s a lot of houses—and a lot of money.

Despite the popularity of house flipping, the biggest barrier to entry and success in this space is cash. Without enough money, you can’t purchase the home, pay for renovations, or find a buyer for the property when the time comes to sell.

Fix and flip loans are used by short-term real estate investors to purchase and renovate a property before flipping it for a profit or refinancing it after rehab. This type of financing for flipping houses offers investors fast closings for properties in any condition.

Finance of America has a fantastic set of offerings in this category…..

Not sure whether you need the Fix & Flip Single Loan or the Fix & Flip Exposure Limit?

The Fix & Flip Single Loan is designed for investors who need funding to flip a single investment property.
The Fix & Flip Exposure Limit is a line of credit offered to experienced investors who plan to acquire and/or renovate multiple properties.
All Fix & Flip Exposure Limits allow investors to close quickly.
Both Fix & Flip Single Loan and Fix & Flip Exposure Limit offer the option of rehab funding, if needed.

Our commercial offerings are quite unique. These products are in-house from origination to funding. Controlling the financing from origination to funding allows our investors to reliably plan the timing for their projects. Timing is always important in the real estate market, especially in construction and rehab.

For experienced investors we establish an exposure limit and for new investors we start our first project together with a single mortgage. Contact me for more details.

2019 Interest Rate and Housing Forecast – Sales and Appreciation

January 19, 2019 / Tom Bonetto

Now that 2019 is here, let’s take a look at what we can expect regarding interest rates and the housing market.

Experts are predicting some interesting shifts moving into 2019, including continued home appreciation (although at a slower rate) and slight interest rate increases.

Let’s take a look at the key components that drive the real estate market….

2019 Geopolitical/Finance Dynamics

One important way to understand what lies ahead has to do with taking a look at world events and the other issues that drive the economy. Here are a few things that will impact the market in 2019:

Trade issues with China
Possible economic slowdown, although early 2019 results have been positive
Late 2018 Stock Market pullback – Early 2019 Rally
The Federal Reserve – 2 planned hikes in 2019
Rates set to rise in year ahead – How much and what will the impact be?
Keeping an eye on inflation…watch oil prices and wage pressures
Continued stock market volatility?

The Federal Reserve

The Federal Reserve raised borrowing costs four times in 2018, ignoring a stock-market selloff and defying pressure from President Trump, while dialing back projections for interest rates and economic growth in 2019.

By trimming the number of rate hikes they foresee in 2019, to two from three, policymakers signaled they may soon pause their monetary tightening campaign. Officials had a median projection of one move in 2020.

The Federal Open Market Committee “will continue to monitor global economic and financial developments and assess their implications for the economic outlook,” the statement said.

Here are some things to watch in 2019:

Every meeting will have a press conference, making every meeting a live meeting, increasing speculation and volatility.
Federal Reserve “Dot Plot” shows 2 hikes in 2019
Inflation could rise with higher oil prices and wage pressures
Fed scheduled to reduce their balance sheet of mortgage-backed securities and treasury bonds by $50B per month

Prediction: Fed will hike 1 time to get the Fed Funds Rate (FFR) to 2.75%, although they would love to get the federal funds rate to 3% – and they will stay course on balance sheet reduction.

The pause in Fed rate hikes acts as important catalyst to turn the tide in favor of Stocks.

Interest Rates

It’s not very often that major players across an industry agree, but on this point, almost everyone does. Nearly all industry experts predict the 30-year mortgage will average above 5% for 2019.

Five percent used to be considered an ultra-low rate. But after years of rates in the 3s and 4s, it seems pretty steep. Still, affordable home payments won’t be hard to find, even as we adjust to the new normal.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) predicts 30-year fixed interest mortgage rates to average around 5.3 percent in 2019.

“The potential buyer who’s thinking if now is the right time to buy needs to do the math and determine what the impact of potential rising rates would be on their payment,” said Paul Bishop, the NAR’s VP of Research.

Here are some of the key factors for 2019:

Inflation is main driver of rates, and inflation should tick higher with oil prices rebounding and wages increasing. Many states increasing minimum wages.
Fed will continue to allow $50B to roll off balance sheet and is no longer buying
US Government borrowing more in 2019, which will add supply to the market that will need to be absorbed
More supply and less demand = higher rates
Stock market increases will most likely hurt rates

Prediction: The 10-year Treasury Note will trade between 2.75% and 3.25% for most of the year. High point for 10-year is estimated at 3.5%. Mortgage rates will fluctuate in the low-mid 5% range

30-year Fixed Mortgage Rates in the 5% to 5.5% range for most of the year

Housing

Most experts predict the fevered bidding wars and snap home-buying decisions won’t be as big of a factor in most markets. Slower and steadier will characterize next year’s housing market.

That follows a 2018 that started off hot but softened into the fall as buyers – put off by high prices and few choices – sat out rather than paid up.

Affordability issues will remain a top concern going into 2019, exacerbated by rising mortgage rates. But some of 2018’s more intractable issues will begin to loosen up. The volume of for-sale homes is expected to rise and diversify, while the number of buyers is forecast to shrink.

Below are a few of the factors to watch in 2019:

Negative media
Rocky beginning of the year
Stocks begin to stabilize positively
Spring market rebound
Demographics still favorable – More demand than supply

Prediction: 3.5% – 4% year-over year. Appreciation still creates significant wealth – and the media will get this wrong.

Sales and appreciation moderate slightly, but housing remains healthy, especially after Q1 for much of the US

Finally, more homes to choose from

One of the biggest complaints among buyers in the last several years is that there weren’t enough homes for sale. In fact, the supply of houses hit historic lows in the winter of 2017 and has yet to rebound substantially. That fueled bidding wars, price increases and frustration.

The supply crunch is expected to ease some in 2019 with inventory rising 10 percent to 15 percent, according to many experts. But the increase will be skewed toward the mid-to-high end of the market – houses priced $250,000 and higher – especially when it comes to newly built houses, said Danielle Hale, chief economist of realtor.com.

That’s good news for move-up buyers, but not so much for the first-time millennial buyer. “There’s still a mismatch on the entry-level side,” she said.

If you have more questions about 2019 – and are thinking of purchasing, don’t hesitate to reach out to me, as it would be my pleasure to help!

Consumers Underestimate How Quickly Home Values Rise

January 19, 2019 / Tom Bonetto

You might find this hard to believe, but home prices are rising twice as fast as consumers think they are. Lack of awareness could be costing home buyers thousands each year they delay their purchase.

Source: Consumers Underestimate How Quickly Home Values Rise

According to Fannie Mae’s monthly National Housing Survey, 41% of surveyed consumers think it would be “difficult” to get a mortgage approved today with some believing that their credit is too poor. Others think they lack sufficient home equity. Interestingly, that data shows that these concerns are really unfounded!

Per The Mortgage Reports Newsletter, “today’s market gives the opportunity to buy homes — first-time home buyers, move-up buyers, and real estate investors, too.”

As an example, one year ago, consumers told Fannie Mae that home prices would rise 2.6% over the next twelve months. Values gained more than twice that, as it happened.

Rising home values are positive returns on investments

In a modest inflationary environment, increases in home prices can be a good thing. If the price of the home is rising, the homeowner is also increasing their purchasing power, as well as their return on investment.

Historically, if investments are rising and inflation is tempered, the economy is thought to be moving along at a productive and profitable pace. Everybody has heard the phrase “a rising tide lifts all boats” – and that data shows that’s where we are most likely headed. So while the existing homeowners are increasing their purchasing power, the buyers who want to enter the market are also gaining financial strength. It really is a double whammy for buyers and sellers!

Buyer Education of the Current Situation is Key

There is real opportunity for potential home buyers out there – and Realtors and lenders need to help folks understand the implications of underestimating the rise of housing prices. Effectively communicating the value of the market is crucial to supporting the needs of potential buyers and sellers.

If done well, there should be plenty of support for the owners looking to upgrade and the new buyers wanting to enter the market for the first time. Hence, a rising market like this can create opportunities for the entire real estate community, including the new owners.

Product Knowledge is Crucial

Since the election, rates have increased – but have started to moderate over the last few months. Make sure you have a solid relationship with a lender that has command of all the products to help figure out the best option for you!