Helen Rivard- Realtor Selling Homes in Placerville | El Dorado Hills | Pollock Pines | Call me (530) 409-2687

The Sacramento Bee
Nearly five years after the housing bust began, government programs to help those who are underwater on their mortgages, unemployed, or unable to make their payments are kicking into gear.
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http://www.sacbee.com/2012/04/22/4430747/aid-for-troubled-mortgages-has.html

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had declined slightly in March, was virtually unchanged in April. The Index now stands at 69.2 (1985=100), down slightly from 69.5 in March. The Expectations Index declined to 81.1 from 82.5, while the Present Situation Index improved to 51.4 from 49.9 last month.

Consumers’ assessment of current conditions improved in April, with those claiming business conditions are “good” increasing to 15.3 percent from 14.3 percent.  However, those claiming business conditions are “bad” edged up to 33.5 percent from 33.2 percent. Consumers’ appraisal of the job market remained mixed. Those stating jobs are “hard to get” declined to 37.5 percent from 40.7 percent, while those stating jobs are “plentiful” decreased to 8.4 percent from 9.0 percent.

http://www2.realtoractioncenter.com/site/R?i=P6nSEjfrh-oMmj9teJGwbg

San Diego Union Tribune
An estimated 35 percent of the U.S. home-loan defaults in late 2010 were considered strategic, increasing from 26 percent in March 2009, based on figures from the University of Chicago’s business school.
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http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/apr/14/why-people-walk-away-home-loans/

Late yesterday, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced it has directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to develop enhanced and aligned strategies for facilitating short sales, deeds-in-lieu, and deeds-for-lease in order to help more homeowners avoid foreclosure. The effort will come in stages with the first taking place this June. The new, aligned timelines include the requirement that mortgage servicers review and respond to requests for short sales within 30 calendar days from receipt of a short sale offer.

“C.A.R. applauds the FHFA for taking this important step to streamline the short sale process so that the housing market can begin a full recovery,” said C.A.R. President LeFrancis Arnold.  “We have long called for similar improvements to help ensure successful short sales and look forward to hearing about additional enhancements to further reform the process.”

The FHFA’s directive calls for servicers to:
Review and respond to requests for short sales within 30 calendar days from receipt of a short sale offer and a complete borrower response package;
Provide weekly status updates to the borrower if the short sale offer is still under review after 30 calendar days;
Make and communicate final decisions to the borrower within 60 calendar days of receipt of the offer and complete borrower response package

By the end of this year, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will announce additional enhancements that address borrower eligibility and evaluation, documentation simplification, property valuation, fraud mitigation, payments to subordinate lien holders, and mortgage insurance.

http://www.car.org/newsstand/newsreleases/2012releases/fhfastreamline

The New York Times
Mortgage rates are near historic lows, but they are rising, leading some borrowers to consider locking in their rate.  When borrowers lock in their interest rate, it freezes the terms of the loan while it is being processed, potentially saving borrowers thousands of dollars over the life of the mortgage.

Making sense of the story

• Locking in a rate may be especially important for those who are refinancing, where even a quarter of a percentage point could skew a borrower’s calculations and make a refinancing less financially desirable.
• Rate locks can provide buyers with some peace of mind, not to mention one less thing to think about in an otherwise onerous application process.
• Lenders typically will give loan rate guarantee agreements when a borrower has a purchase agreement, but a few will provide them to those who are preapproved for a mortgage.
• The cost of reserving an interest rate depends both on the duration of the lock and the amount of the loan.  The longer the lock, the more costly it is.  Most locks are for 30, 45, or 60 days, but some lenders will go as long as six months.
• Most lenders offer some version of a free lock, though it may be only for 30 days. Others charge points – or fractions thereof – based on the loan size, which could amount to several hundred dollars.  One point is equal to 1 percent of the loan amount.  Sometimes these charges are refundable at closing.
• Borrowers may want to skip a rate lock, or delay taking one, if they are unsure when their home purchase will close.
• Knowing how long to lock in a rate requires a clear picture of the mortgage process, and a good estimate from the lender on how long it will take to approve the loan and complete all the paperwork and other requirements. For some lenders handling refinancing, this can be 15 or 20 days; others take longer.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/08/realestate/mortgages-locking-in-peace-of-mind.html?_r=1&ref=realestate