Since the slowdown in the housing market years ago, options for 100% home financing have pretty much disappeared. In fact, today only a few home loan options in Georgia remain that allow NO down payment home financing – USDA and VA. USDA loans require the property to be located in a rural defined eligible area, […]
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VA Mortgage Eligibility South Carolina
VA Mortgages are one of the best loan programs available today for eligible Veterans in South Carolina. Here are some of the great features of this fantastic program: NO Down Payment, 100% financing No monthly mortgage insurance 100% financing loan limits up to $2,000,000 in South Carolina Easier credit qualifying compared to other types of mortgage […]
Which Type of FHA Loan is Best?
Did you know there was a choice? Did you know that an FHA loan is not just a single loan program but actually several? Sometimes thinking about which loan program is best for you, it can get a little complicated. Mortgage programs aren’t designed to be complicated, but new programs can come about to address […]
Can You Take Equity Out With a VA Loan?
Refinancing a VA loan is much like refinancing any other mortgage. However, VA loans do have a refinance option that conventional loans do not have. This option is referred to as a VA “streamline” and is a VA-to-VA refinance that requires very little documentation. No income or employment check, no appraisal required, and no need […]
Private Mortgage Insurance Isn’t Forever: When You Can Remove PMI
Private mortgage insurance, or PMI, sometimes gets a bad rap. And that’s unfortunate because PMI plays a very important part in the mortgage industry. Years ago, banks would require down payments of as much as 30 or 40 percent of the sales price. Back then, banks assumed all the risk on the loan and if […]
First Time Homebuyers: 5 Things You Must Know
If you’re getting ready to purchase your first home and started a bit of research already, you might be a slight victim of information overload. You will soon discover there are many moving parts to purchasing a home. There are various services needed in order to get your home loan approved to keep the loan […]
North Carolina Teacher Programs
Below, we have listed some tips to help North Carolina teachers breeze through the mortgage pre-approval process. Regardless if you are looking for NO money down payment USDA loan, FHA or conventional mortgage, the tips below will apply. One of the first things a lender will want to see is evidence of full-time employment. This is usually […]
Should You Roll Closing Costs Into Your Loan When Refinancing?
Spoiler alert: all mortgage loans have closing costs. But what about the so-called “no closing cost” loans? They also have closing costs, it’s just a matter of who pays for them and how. Closing costs must be paid by someone. In different parts of the country, it may be customary for the seller to pay […]
First Time Buyer – Low Down Payment Loans Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi, the seat of Nueces County, is located along the Gulf Coast border in Texas. The population of Corpus Christi today is around 330,000 with the larger Corpus Christi MSA home to about 450,000. Corpus Christi’s city limits encompass more than 500 square miles, 175 being land and almost twice that area in water. […]
USDA Closing Costs Texas
We have received many questions lately regarding USDA financing and closing costs. Generally speaking, for a new home purchase in Texas, the buyer can expect to pay around 4.5% (of the purchase price) for closing costs and prepaid escrow requirements. Escrow requirements include prepaid taxes and home insurance. The home seller will have “customary” closing […]
What is the USDA Loan Guarantee?
The term “guarantee” is fairly straightforward. There is an inherent pledge from one party to another to ensure the performance of an agreement. In the mortgage world, it also has a meaning and specifically with the USDA home loan program. But for those that aren’t familiar with loan guarantees, the first notion is any applicant […]
Using an FHA Loan in Orlando
When you think of Orlando, the first thing that likely comes to mind is all the theme parks located there. Of course, the flagship is Disney World which is home to the Magic Kingdom and Epcot Center. Universal Orlando hosts Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure and the popular World of Harry Potter. Located in Central […]
First Time Home Buyers and IRA Accounts
There are several first-time buyer programs. Many are state or locally sponsored in the form of grants or no-interest loans. A grant is essentially free money. For someone who qualifies for a grant, the funds are issued and as long as the borrowers keep the property for a specific period of time, say for at […]
Mortgage Approval Tips – Georgia Teachers
Below, we have listed some tips to help teachers coast through the mortgage pre-approval process. Regardless if you are looking for a 100% USDA loan, FHA or Conventional mortgage, the tips below should help. USDA Rural Housing loans remain a popular program for Georgia teachers because the program does not require a down payment. The […]
What To Expect At Your Home Closing
All the prep work has been done, and your lender has told you your closing papers are being prepared and delivered to your escrow officer or settlement agent. A lot was said and done since the time you first spoke with a loan officer and began asking a series of questions on qualifying, applying for […]
Different Types of Adjustable Rate Mortgage Programs
There are many varieties of mortgage programs today, but all of them fall into one of two categories – fixed or adjustable. A fixed rate loan is pretty easy to figure out, it’s fixed for the life of the loan and will never change. A fixed rate loan is the more popular of the two, […]
FAQs For First Time Home Buyers
Anytime someone does something for the very first time, there will be many questions. This is especially true when buying a first home. There are so many different people involved when buying a home and lots of new terms will be thrown around many buyers may never have heard before. At the same time, there’s […]
Fixed, Adjustable and Loan Terms: The Pros and Cons of Each
If you’ve been out of the mortgage market for a while and thinking of jumping back in, you’re going to be surprised at how many financing options you have. So much so that just the number of choices can tend to be a bit overwhelming. Yet when lenders introduce a new mortgage program it’s typically […]
Paperwork Needed For FHA Loans
FHA loans are available to almost any buyer that qualifies. Unlike the other two government-guaranteed loans, the VA and USDA programs, there are no restrictions on who can apply or where the property must be located. As long as the home is going to be the borrower’s primary residence, either of the three can be […]
Why Lenders Like USDA Loans and Borrowers LOVE Them
It might seem a bit odd at first that that United States Department of Agriculture has a mortgage program. Yet the USDA loan is probably the “go to” source for certain types of properties located in rural and semi-rural areas. Lenders like the USDA program because it allows them to finance homes in areas where […]