What's the Score?
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 11-10-2009
Q: I want to finance a home with an FHA loan. I understand that the FHA does not require a particular credit score, but my lender says I need a score of at least 620. How can a lender require that if the FHA does not?
A: The FHA is not actually a le... |
Should This Land Be My Land?
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 11-03-2009
Q: Real estate values in my town have fallen around 15 percent in the past couple of years, although in the past few months the market is starting to pick up a little. In the same period the value of vacant land in a new subdivision has gone down by as... |
FHA S.O.S?
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 10-27-2009
Q: I've heard stories that the Federal Housing Authority program is in trouble. Is this true?
A: There are very few success stories in real estate of late, but one that comes pretty close concerns the FHA.
The FHA is a government-sponsored mortga... |
Frustrated By Foreclosures
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 10-20-2009
Q: There were three foreclosures that recently sold in my area. All were HUD homes. The owed mortgage on each ran from $89,000 to $125,000. Two sold for $10,000 and one for $19,000. How is this helping the economy? Who is paying the remainder of the mo... |
Is Loan Assumption Viable?
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 10-13-2009
Q: Can we sell our home by allowing the buyers to assume our loan?
A: Not likely. Mortgages can be "freely" assumable, meaning you don't need the lender's permission for an assumption, or they can be non-assumable. However, few loans have been freel... |
Private Lender Problems
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 09-29-2009
Q: I have looked into getting a loan modification. I qualify, but since I have a private lender, I’ve been told by several companies that private mortgage owners do not have to modify my loan. Is this true, and if so, why are private lenders not ... |
Looking for an ‘Advance’
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 09-22-2009
Q: Because of financial problems we’re having trouble paying our mortgage. Someone said we might be able to get help with a “claim advance” from our lender. What’s a claim advance and how does it work?
A: A claim advance does... |
Are Programs Progressing?
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 09-15-2009
Q: You hear a lot about government programs, state plans and private efforts to stop foreclosures. Do any of these programs actually work?
A: The evidence to date is that such efforts either don’t work, don’t work very well or merely del... |
Title & Transfer
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 09-08-2009
Q: My sister and her husband are unemployed and face the possible foreclosure of their home. I want to help by assuming their mortgage but do not want to buy their house. Their bank won’t allow a refinance due to their unemployed status or permit... |
Acquiring the Appraisal
Author: Peter G. Miller Date: 08-25-2009
Q: The FDIC took over our bank. Our construction loan was with that bank and since then we have tried to get permanent financing. We have complied with all the requirements set up by the FDIC. However, the FDIC has an appraisal on our half-built home. ... |
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