Sheila's Mortgage News

Housing News 2011 Trends

2012-02-07T10:14:00.000-08:00

Housing trend for 2011 highlights Housing News

Positive Outlook for Housing

2012-02-07T09:37:00.000-08:00

The consumer outlook for U.S. home prices improved again in January, extending a recent upward trend in housing market sentiment, according to mortgage market firm Fannie Mae.
For its monthly reading, Fannie Mae said respondents in its January survey predicted home prices will rise by 1% over the next year, up from the 0.8% gain forecast in December. To read full article http://blogs.wsj.com/developments/2012/02/07/fannie-mae-outlook-for-home-prices-rises-again/#

Underwater Mortgages

2012-02-01T14:49:00.000-08:00

Will we be able to refinance out of high interest rate mortgages, and secure a lower payment? This is the latest and greatest.

President Obama on Wednesday announced a string of proposals aimed at helping to rejuvenate the sagging housing market, including one plan that would allow responsible homeowners to take advantage of historically low interest rates. Click to read full article

Obama pushes plan to help homeowners with underwater mortgages - TheHill.com

Retiring in 2012

2012-01-31T14:48:00.000-08:00

Planning to retire in 2012? You could be starting off at a disadvantage – financially, at least – if you live in one of these 10 states.

TopRetirements.com, a guide to retirement destinations and communities, recently published its list of the 10 worst states for retirement, looking primarily at financial considerations. In specific, the site evaluated each state in terms of its fiscal health, property taxes, state income taxes and cost of living. (The survey also included climate as a yardstick, under the assumption that most retirees “have a bias toward places with warmer winters.”)

Mortgage Rates Higher

2012-01-27T15:16:00.000-08:00

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.98% for the week ended Thursday, up from 3.88% the previous week, though below 4.8% a year ago. Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 3.24%, up from 3.17% last week and below 4.09% a year earlier. Click to read full article-

http://blogs.wsj.com/developments/2012/01/26/mortgage-rates-rise-on-stronger-housing-reports/#

Housing Inventory Ends Year Down 22%.

2012-01-25T10:25:00.000-08:00

Per WSJ dated 1/19/2011--There were fewer homes listed for sale at the end of 2011 than in any of the previous four years, a positive sign for the housing sector.......Still, some real-estate agents aren’t celebrating because there’s a large backlog of potential foreclosures that haven’t yet been taken back and listed by banks. The inventory declines are particularly pronounced in certain states where banks have sharply slowed down foreclosures to correct document-handling abuses.
Read Full article http://blogs.wsj.com/developments/2012/01/19/housing-inventory-ends-year-down-22/#

Mortgage Principal Reduction

2012-01-24T14:50:00.000-08:00

Congressional Democrats are expected to continue pushing a federal housing regulator to write down mortgage principal for government-backed loans if a settlement with banks doesn't help out enough homeowners.
The federal government is "very close" to an agreement with mortgage servicers that could help about a million homeowners, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan said this week.
The deal, which also includes states' attorneys general, would require the nation's five largest banks — Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Wells Fargo and Ally Financial — to spend upward of $25 billion to help borrowers caught up in so-called robo-signing practices where servicers signed-off on foreclosure paperwork without properly reviewing documents. ... to read more click link below

Dems push Fannie, Freddie regulator on mortgage write-downs - The Hill's On The Money

Lock SOON!

2012-01-17T11:43:00.000-08:00

Starting soon, nearly all home buyers and refinancing households throughout the nation will pay higher mortgage loan fees. Congress has made it law.
13 months ago, as part of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, Congress enacted a one-year cut to FICA payroll taxes.
FICA stands for Federal Insurance Contributions Act. Taxes collected under FICA fund such programs as Social Security and Medicare.
The stimulus plan temporarily lowered tax rates for salaried workers from 6.2% to 4.2%; and for self-employed persons from 12.4% to 10.4%. Effective January 1, 2012, “regular” tax rates were to return.
That is, until late-December 2011. In one of its last moves of the year, Congress passed a temporary, two-month extension to the payroll tax cut, extending it through February 29, 2012. The expected cost to the U.S. Treasury is $33 billion.
To recoup those costs, Congress has turned to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the FHA.
Each entity has been ordered to collect news fees on each new mortgage is backs, and has been told to forward said fees to U.S. Treasury directly. There’s no “workaround” allowed or forgiveness applied — each new loan is subject to the payment.
The rules are listed on page 17 of the law’s final draft, in a section unambiguously titled “Title IV — Mortgage Fees and Premiums”.
According to the law :
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac must collect an average fee of no less than 10 basis points (0.1%) per new loan
The FHA must raise its monthly mortgage insurance premiums 10 basis points for all new loans
The expected cost to consumers is no less than $10 monthly per $100,000 borrowed. Some analysts, however, expect Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to collect more than is minimally required. This could add an additional $30-50 to your monthly mortgage payment per $100,000 borrowed.
Therefore, if you’ve been shopping for a home or for mortgage rates, take advantage. Within days, lenders are expected to start collecting Payroll Tax Extension fees from mortgage applicants — a move that will cost you money.
Lock today to avoid the big fees. Save yourself money.

It Was Worth It

2011-12-16T11:55:00.001-08:00

No matter what life brings- we all need to remember one thing- no matter if you are buying a home, selling a house, or working as the professional in the transaction we must stay positive. Our market has the best price with historical interest rates, you can't ask for more then that. If you remember the cliche"Good things don't come Easy" then your outlook will change and at the end we can all agree IT WAS WORTH IT.

What Income is Happiness?

2011-12-07T11:12:00.001-08:00

I think we all tell ourselves once in our lives - "If only I could make a little more money , I would be happier" Professors from Princeton University have found an income that shows participants happier. In the study it was found that there is a number where people had an increase in day-to day happiness and less stress. That magic number appeared to be $75,000 a year in income. That income created a lower stress factor and making money was no longer a large issue in day-to- day life. So, would more money make one even more happier- NO- happiness did not increase at income levels more than $75,000. It shows that it leveled off, so more money does not equal more happiness. Instead of making your goals unachievable, why not obtain what is achievable and have happiness along the way?

YOU Magazine - December 2011

2011-12-02T12:31:00.000-08:00

Wrapping Up 2011 YOU Magazine - December 2011

Great News for Underwater Homeowners

2011-10-27T12:38:00.000-07:00

You may have heard that President Obama plans to open up refinancing to more homeowners who are underwater . If you are wondering what this means...and if you can benefit...here are some facts to consider. To read more click Great News for Underwater Homeowners

Job Hunting Dos and Don'ts

2011-09-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

Job Hunting Dos and Don'ts

We all job search in different manners. Here are a few tips to help you.

FHA Equivalent to Conventional

2011-09-28T14:03:00.001-07:00

FHA has decided to lower their loan limits. This is critical for those of us that are looking to buy a home with a lower down payment at a higher sales price. The new loan limit of Clark county, Nevada is $287,500. So, what? Well one of my clients wanted to utilize this great opportunity and purchase a home at $350,000, he told me today his dreams have been destroyed because now he can not buy in the neighborhood he desires. He tells me he only has two option: to save more money for the down payment to go Conventional financing or to lower his purchase price and look in a different neighborhood. I state no that is not true... everyone in the purchasing pool above the $287,500 needs to know this great secret. Conventional loan products NOW offered can be equivalently to the FHA loan product. I made this clients day and now he is back looking.

Four Assumptions

2011-07-25T14:08:00.000-07:00

Please take time to take a look at a life changing short video.
Four Assumptions. Click on my name now: Sheila

FHA Change

2011-05-27T10:58:00.000-07:00

FHA Loan Limits to change.....Success Stories

Stop Paying Your Landlord's Mortgage!

2011-05-17T11:22:00.000-07:00

Stop Paying Your Landlord's Mortgage!

Credit Scores: Why Should I Care?

2011-04-01T15:01:00.000-07:00

Credit Scores: Why Should I Care?

Las Vegas 100% Loans

2011-02-11T13:53:00.000-08:00

WOW... Financing Specials that show Las Vegas is coming back. Portfolio products to rave about.

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Products are available to those who qualify, so contact me for more information.

Las Vegas Value Recovery

2011-01-19T09:47:00.000-08:00

The Road to TOTAL Recovery along one. Total recovery meaning back to those unbelievable values that were unrealistic to begin with. According to CNN Money the homes in Vegas will not reach there pre-recession values til 2032. That does not mean the market will not recover, it means we will not see super quick inflation. A client bought his house in 2002 at $200,000 and in 2006 his appraisal was well over $700,000. That created false expectations that our home prices would continue to rise at unhistorical rates. Normal inflation is about 1-3% yearly. Vegas was lucky to see homes triple in value overnight and one can not expect that to happen for decades. Why would it or why should it? Who really knows what is in store for Vegas we are still the fast growing and most entertaining city there is.

Annual Percentage Rate

2010-11-22T16:13:00.000-08:00

What is the point of APR?
The point of calculating APR is to let the consumer know the actual cost of financing...read more... Annual Percentage Rate

Gift for Yourself

2010-10-27T11:41:00.000-07:00

Let me give you the gift of saving money.... please read more by clicking on Gift .

Stop Paying Your Landlord's Mortgage!

2010-10-19T14:04:00.000-07:00

An important link of information.... Why not own? Click link: Stop Paying Your Landlord's Mortgage!

Blank Direct Mail Flyer

2010-08-09T15:44:00.000-07:00

Hello- FHA mortgage insurance changing....please click on FHA CHANGES for more info...FHA CHANGES

Top 10 Credit Myths

2010-08-05T16:15:00.000-07:00

The economy has sure thrown us all for a loop this year, how many have had your credit impacted and want to know what can or can not be done. Credit is all we talk about these days, so look at the video and see the top 10 myths of what people say and do. Click on my name to see a short video- Sheila