Treasury to Cut Foreclosure Relief Paperwork
The Treasury Department is announcing a plan Thursday to reduce the burdensome paperwork surrounding the foreclosure relief plan.
Two changes expected to make a big difference are: Lenders will be required to collect two pay stubs at the start of the process, and borrowers will be required to give the Internal Revenue Service permission to provide their most recent tax returns.
Participating mortgage service companies will be required to acknowledge that they have received a borrower’s application within 10 days and approve or deny the application within 30 days. Borrowers will still be required to make three months of trial payments before the modification is made permanent.
Treasury officials are also reportedly devising a plan to give unemployed borrowers a break on payments – probably for six months – but because the details aren’t decided, the announcement won’t be made this week.
Source: The Associated Press, Alan Zibel (01/27/2010)
Hipotecas Prestamos 02:04 PM
Banks Seek Payback from Mortgage Walkaways
Increasingly aggressive mortgage lenders are seeking to collect deficiencies from former home owners who walked away from their properties or sold them in short sales.
Many states, including Florida, give mortgage holders as long as five years to seek a deficiency judgment. If granted, the bank gets up to 20 years to collect and the option to renew for another 20 years if the debt isn’t paid.
About one-third of U.S. states, including California and Arizona, prohibit collection efforts after foreclosure, but home owners usually waive that protection in a refinance.
Most states allow collection on unpaid home-equity loans.
Banks are most likely to try to collect from people who walk away from a property on which they are still making payments.
“The bank is going to pull your credit report, and if you’re current on your other bills they are going to come after you and potentially ruin you,” said Larry Tolchinsky, a Florida real estate attorney.
Source: Bloomberg, Kathleen M. Howley (01/28/2010)
Hipotecas Prestamos 02:03 PM
New Home Sales Continue to Decline
New home sales fell 7.6 percent in December, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Wednesday. This was the second straight month that new home sales declined.
The Commerce Department also reported that new home sales in 2009 were down 22.9 percent compared with 2008, hitting a record low of 374,000 units. The Federal Reserve responded on Wednesday by leaving short-term lending rates at near zero and pledged to keep them low.
"This report does not totally ruin the notion that housing is recovering, but it does underscore the fragility of that recovery. It's not good news for broader economic growth," said Dana Saporta, an economist at Stone & McCarthy Research in Princeton, New Jersey.
Source: Reuters News, Lucia Mutikani (01/27/2010)
Hipotecas Prestamos 02:03 PM
Refinancing Mortgage Rates December 2009
Demand for U.S. home loans rose last week to the highest level in about two months, mainly from borrowers locking in low mortgage rates by refinancing, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday.
"Refinancing Mortgage Rates December 2009"
Hipotecas Prestamos 11:49 AM
About U.S. Foreclosure Programs
About U.S. Foreclosure Programs - The number of homeowners getting help from the government's massive foreclosure program is growing, according to data released Tuesday, but it is unclear how many of these borrowers might still lose their homes.
"About U.S. Foreclosure Programs"
Hipotecas Prestamos 10:37 AM
Foreclosure Rates October Homes Housing Market
The number of homeowners on the brink of losing their homes dipped in October, the third straight monthly decline, as foreclosure prevention programs helped more borrowers.
"Foreclosure Rates October Homes Housing Market"
Hipotecas Prestamos 10:33 AM
Mortgage rates remain below 5 percent
Freddie Mac: Rates on 30-year fixed mortgages stay below 5 percent for 2nd-straight week
McLEAN, Va. (AP) -- Average rates for 30-year home loans stayed below 5 percent for the second-straight week, kick-starting refinancing activity, Freddie Mac said Thursday.
"Mortgage rates remain below 5 percent"
Hipotecas Prestamos 02:02 PM
Mortgage Applications September 2 2009
September 2, 2009 Mortgage Applications Slide - Mortgage application volume declined 2.2 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising for four straight weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
On an unadjusted basis, the index decreased 3.1 percent compared with the previous week, but it was up 22.7 percent compared with the same week a year ago. Both refinances and purchases were down slightly from the previous week. The only application segment to rise was government-backed loans, which rose 0.5 percent.
Mortgage interest rates actually decreased for the week:
* 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 5.15 percent from 5.24 percent;
* 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.57 percent from 4.58 percent;
* 1-year ARMs decreased to 6.71 percent from 6.74 percent.
Hipotecas Prestamos 01:12 PM
Home Refinancing Loans 2009
U.S. mortgage applications rose last week, largely reflecting a jump in demand for home refinancing loans as interest rates slid to a five-week low, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.
Applications for loans to buy a home, an early indicator of sales, rose for a third consecutive week. The trend bodes well for the hard-hit U.S. housing market, which has been showing nascent signs of stabilization.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications, which includes both purchase and refinance loans, for the week ended August 14 increased 5.6 percent to 527.
Hipotecas Prestamos 08:09 AM
U.S. Housing Market Foreclosures August 2009
The biggest obstacle for the U.S. housing market is foreclosures. Moody's Economy.com is expecting 3.85 million defaults this year compared to 2.7 million last year, she said. First mortgage defaults are the first step in the foreclosure process; not all defaults turn into foreclosures.
Although the housing market has been showing signs of stabilization, with sales rising and home price declines moderating in many regions, Chen said prices likely will fall again.
"There are a large number of foreclosures in the pipeline and once they hit the housing market, they will pull house prices down again," she said. "I expect house prices to continue falling until mid-2010."
WEEKLY REFINANCING ACTIVITY REVERSES
The Mortgage Bankers seasonally adjusted index of refinancing applications decreased 7.2 percent to 1,853.8, following an increase of the same amount the previous week.
The refinance share of applications decreased to 52.3 percent from 54.2 percent the previous week, significantly lower than the peak of 85.3 percent in the week ended January 9. The adjustable-rate mortgage share of activity increased to 5.8 percent in the latest week, up from 5.4 percent the previous week.
Fixed 15-year mortgage rates averaged 4.71 percent, up from 4.60 percent the previous week. Rates on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages increased to 6.71 percent from 6.67 percent.
Hipotecas Prestamos 11:11 AM
Mortgage Applications August 7 2009
U.S. mortgage applications fell last week, reflecting a drop in demand for home refinancing loans as interest rates soared to their highest levels since June, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.
Applications for loans to buy homes, an early indicator of sales, rose slightly. Tepid interest in purchase loans does not bode well for the hard-hit U.S. housing market, which has been showing signs of stabilization.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications, which includes both purchase and refinance loans, for the week ended August 7 decreased 3.5 percent to 499.0.
"Mortgage Applications August 7 2009"
Hipotecas Prestamos 11:10 AM
2009 New Consumer Friendly Mortgage Proposals
Residential Mortgages Home Loans - Federal Reserve governors unanimously proposed tough new consumer-friendly disclosure rules for mortgages and home equity loans last week, tackling one of the less-appreciated causes of the nation’s deep financial crisis.
After 18 months of study and consumer testing, the Fed’s division of consumer affairs proposed, and governors accepted, a change to how finance charges and the annual percentage rate would be calculated. They also proposed restricting some bonus compensation from lenders to those who originate loans.
"2009 New Consumer Friendly Mortgage Proposals"
Hipotecas Prestamos 12:48 PM
First half 2009 Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo announced today that in the first half of 2009, through lower rates, refinances and modifications, it alone has helped nearly one million American homeowners lower their mortgage payments or restructure their mortgage. Specifically, Wells Fargo:
Hipotecas Prestamos 12:23 PM
Mortgage rates fall again Rates on 30-year fixed
Mortgage Home Loans - HOPE for Homeowners Program
McCLEAN, Va. (AP) -- Rates for 30-year home loans dropped for the third-straight week, inching toward a record low reached earlier this year, Freddie Mac said Thursday.
The average rate for 30-year fixed mortgages was 5.14 percent this week, down from 5.2 percent last week. Last year at this time, the average rate for a 30-year mortgage averaged 6.26 percent, Freddie Mac said.
Falling mortgage rates can spur refinance activity, which increased as rates on 30-year mortgages fell to a record low of 4.78 percent in April.
But rates then rose as high as 5.6 percent in June after yields on long-term government debt -- closely tied to mortgage rates -- climbed as investors worried that the huge surplus of government debt hitting the market could trigger inflation.
Since then, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note has fallen back from an eight-month high of 4.01 percent reached in June to 3.53 percent on Thursday.
Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist, said rate reductions over the past five weeks translate into monthly savings of $56 on a $200,000 mortgage.
Freddie Mac collects mortgage rates on Monday through Wednesday of each week from lenders around the country. Rates often fluctuate significantly, even within a given day.
This week, the average rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.63 percent, down from 4.69 percent last week, according to Freddie Mac.
Average rates on five-year, adjustable-rate mortgages were 4.83 percent, up just a bit from 4.82 percent a week earlier. Rates on one-year, adjustable-rate mortgages fell to 4.76 percent from 4.82 percent.
The rates do not include add-on fees known as points. The nationwide fee averaged 0.7 point for 30-year and 15-year fixed rate mortgages, and five year adjustable rate mortgages. The fee for one-year adjustable rate mortgages was 0.5 point.
Hipotecas Prestamos 12:15 PM
