June 2008

FHA Financing For Bank Owned Real Estate

Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 at 12:04pm. 851 Views, 0 Comments.

FHA financing has made it's comeback, and it's currently the prevalent form of financing in todays market, with over half of all transactions closing using FHA backed financing. The guidelines for FHA financing are somewhat strict, in an effort to only qualify people who can truly afford to take on the mortgage they are applying for.

One of the biggest differences with FHA financing is the appraisal review. Appraisals for FHA loans are scrutinized much more, often resulting in the underwriter requiring additional comparables to justify the value of the property. If the appraiser has difficulty finding the additional comparables, they may not accept the appraisal. With so much Bank Owned real estate on the market, prices are softening which can make it…

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Volatile Times Mean Volatile Interest Rates

Friday, June 20th, 2008 at 3:59pm. 721 Views, 0 Comments.

Mortgage interest rates have been going up and down daily, and in some cases the swing is significant. With the volatility of the stock market, each day brings new news, some good and some bad. It's this good and bad "news" which drives interest rates up or down, so on any given day the rate could be anywhere from 1/8th to 1/4 of a point more up or down from the previous day.

This is something that must be considered when shopping for your loan, because you may be comparing a quote that you got a week ago to one that you get today, but if rates aren't the same then you can't make the comparison.

In general interest rates are very good, still near historical lows, but each day and week brings new developments which can swing rates either…

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My Television Debut....

Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008 at 2:17pm. 822 Views, 0 Comments.

Last week I got a call from a reporter with NBC11 News who said they were doing a story on the reported 2% gain in home sales in the last month. It turned out to be my first television appearance! I met them at a property in Oakland, showed it to them while talking about the current market and where it's going from here.  The story aired that same night on the 11 o'clock news, and it was the second story into the program.

It only took about 15-20 mins, and it was actually fun. Best of all, I recorded it on my DVR so I can brag to anyone who comes over :)

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