Industry News - 2.3.11 Are you federally regulated? The National Mortgage Licensing Registry (NMLS) began accepting registration from federally regulated originators January 31st. The 180-day initial registration ends July 29, 2011.
Industry News - 1.27.11
More Lenders are moving to 97% LTV in California: Pinnacle Capital, Plaza Home Mortgage, Stearns Lending, Sierra Pacific, Reunion Mortgage, and Icon Residential (applicable to their portfolio product only at this time). The high-LTV option requires a 720 minimum credit score and is available for purchase and rate/term transactions. All but Sierra Pacific will allow condos up to 97% LTV. Radian is the MI company that is insuring the high LTV’s.
Industry News – 11.05.10 Big News! Pinnacle Capital announced today the return of the 97% LTV Fannie Flex program in California. Their MI partners are insuring higher LTV’s without income or geographic limitations – standard Flex requirements apply: 720 minimum credit score, borrowers must have 3% of their own funds, max debt ratios of 41%, etc.
Industry News – 10.28.10
Plaza Home Loans is now offering a High-Balance option to their Conforming Portfolio product line – Plaza refers to their portfolio product line as ‘Island Prime’.
Flagstar Bank lowered their adjustment to High-Balance products effective today: FNMA Agency Jumbo program’s new adjustment is 1.125 down from 1.500, and Freddie’s Super Conforming program’s new adjustment is 2.125, down from 2.500.
IT’S AMERICA’S TIME TO SHINE
If you’ve been noticing the headlines recently, you’ve seen that some European countries are going through extremely difficult economics problems. The headlines you’ve probably seen the most have been about Greece. Their government spending was way out of whack, and their economy is paying the price.
BELIEVE by Rick Soukoulis
If there’s one thing I’ve seen over and over again, it’s the cycle where housing soars, corrects, and then soars again.
At its low periods, like today, many, many people think real estate values will never come back. And certainly they’ll never go up again like they did in the past.
I don’t know about other parts of the country, but this is California where the American Dream thrives. I am eternally optimistic about California housing values, and most optimistic about values in the Bay Area.
A MORTGAGE IS NOT A COMMODITY by Rick Soukoulis
From time to time I hear people saying that the mortgage loan officer is a dinosaur. The reasoning is that a mortgage is commodity, that every mortgage has the same criteria, and that they are, therefore, mere commodities.
Happy New Year from the US Government by Rick Soukoulis
When I first got in the Business in 1981 I met someone wearing a little button on his lapel with these letters, EGBAR. He told me it stood for “Everything’s Going to Be All Right”. At the time interest rates were 18.5 % and 4 points... That’s how I feel about the government’s latest policy pronouncements about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.