Refi Plus

Jim Duffy — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 16:36:35 +0000

A lot of interest has been bubbling up about the $750 billion dollars that the Obama Administration has earmarked for loan modifications for borrowers who are under water on their home values. And, lots of homeowners around Atlanta are underwater, so it affects a lot of us.

The way it works is that it is a true loan modification, not a refinance. And those eligible are those who are current on their mortgages, but owe more of the home than the home is worth, AND the mortgage is owned by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

That’s where most people stop. ”How do I know if my mortgage is owned by Fannie or Freddie?” Well, now it has been made simple. You can look it up online or by a simple phone call.

Fannie Mae has set up this website to check if your mortgage is owned by Fannie.

And, to check with Freddie Mac, just call 1-800-Freddie, and press option 5, then option 4. Then ask.

If the answer is positive, then you can contact your current servicer to ask them to begin the process of modifying your mortgage.

Good luck!

The FHA Short Refinance – Banks are Discounting Mortgages

Jim Duffy — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 13:43:26 +0000

In Georgia we have been seeing record numbers of foreclosures, record numbers of bank repos and record numbers of short sales. There may be some in your neighborhood. Homeowners are faced with rising mortgage payments once their low adjustable rate mortgages begin to climb. The common answer up to this point to avoid foreclosure has been the short sale.

But what if the homeowner is in the right home; just in the wrong mortgage? The hassle and hearache of moving out and moving on can now be avoided. Enter, the Short Refinance FHA Loan. The short refinance works exactly the same as a short sale with the exception that the homeowner remains a homeowner.

With a short sale, once an offer comes in it is presented to the bank along with an application package from the seller asking the bank to take a discount on the current mortgage. Once the bank accepts the offer for less than what the seller owes the bank they have agreed to a short sale. A short refinance works in much the same way as a short sale only in the case of a short refinance the “offer” presented to the bank is actually a copy of the homeowner’s brand new short refinance FHA Secure approval. The short refinance approval, along with all the supporting documentation, is then submitted to the bank requesting a discount. Once the bank accepts the discount, they have accepted a short payoff and agreed to a discount on the loan allowing for the short refinance.

A major benefit of the short refinance is that it allows borrowers to keep their homes. The short refinance delights homeowners because they get a new start with a lower mortgage payment and a lower mortgage balance.

Why would the bank agree to a short refinance and not just foreclose on the property? Simply put foreclosing on a property requires large amounts of legal fees and then the home is typically sold at a substantial discount off of the fair market value. The short refinance allows the bank to avoid the majority of the legal fees and allows the new lender make its largest loan based on the fair market value.

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Refi Plus

The FHA Short Refinance – Banks are Discounting Mortgages