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Tip of the Week: C.A.R. adds consumer fraud information to car.org

Helen Rivard — Fri, 04 May 2012 02:52:20 +0000

With the recent landmark National Mortgage Settlement between the nation’s five largest real estate loan servicers and state attorneys general over faulty foreclosure practices, troubled homeowners are at risk of falling victim to scam artists offering mortgage modification and other foreclosure prevention services.

C.A.R. wants to help consumers from being defrauded and has launched a special section on car.org with information about forclosure-prevention, short sale, and other types of mortgage-related fraud, along with information on where to get help and where to report suspected cases of fraud.

Aid for troubled mortgages has been revamped

Helen Rivard — Tue, 01 May 2012 06:20:03 +0000

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.
Read the full story
http://www.sacbee.com/2012/04/22/4430747/aid-for-troubled-mortgages-has.html

Why people walk away from home loans

Helen Rivard — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 02:14:39 +0000

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.
Read the full story
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/apr/14/why-people-walk-away-home-loans/

Locking in peace of mind

Helen Rivard — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 00:52:18 +0000

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.

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

Obama administration releases March housing scorecard

Helen Rivard — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 02:47:04 +0000

Mortgage delinquencies continued a downward trend and were substantially below year-ago levels, while sales of existing homes in January and February marked the strongest start to a year since 2007, according to the Obama administration’s March housing scorecard.

However, data on home prices changed little from the previous month – marking a fifth month of seasonal lows.

The March Housing Scorecard features key data on the health of the housing market and the impact of the Administration’s foreclosure prevention programs, including:
Mortgage delinquency rates continued a downward trend and are substantially below year ago levels. In addition, foreclosure completions ticked downward last month, although increased activity is expected in the coming months as firms lift processing delays following the landmark mortgage servicing settlement reached with the five largest banks in early February.
More than 5.8 million modification arrangements were started between April 2009 and the end of February 2012.
As of February, more than 970,000 homeowners received a permanent HAMP modification, saving more than $530 on their mortgage payments each month.

http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/press/press_releases_media_advisories/2012/HUDNo.12-068