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Resources for FHA Approval Process for San Jose Condominiums

FHA recently announced additional resources for condominium approval process for San Jose and rest of the country condos. All condominium inquiries, telephone and email, must be submitted to the FHA Resource Center at:(800) 225-5342 or by email at: [email protected] The FHA Resource Center will provide responses to general inquiries received from consumers and industry partners. Before contacting the FHA Resource Center, it is recommended that you use the following resources to search for answer(s) to your question(s). 1.Check to see if your question is already included in the Condo FAQs currently posted on…
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FHA 203K Rehab loans for San Jose Homes

Have you found that almost perfect San Jose home in the right location that is selling at a reduced price because it needs a little rehab work? Unfortunately, most mortgage loan programs require homes "in need of work" to be complete before the financing can be secured for the purchase transaction. Whether the property needs a little or a lot of work, most First-Time Home Buyers simply don't have the up-front cash to invest in a property prior to actually securing the financing. However, the FHA 203(k) Rehab Loan may be your answer…
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What’s keeping San Jose Mortgage Rates REALLY low?

Last week mortgage rates for San Jose homes eased back to the lowest level of the year. According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.84 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending May 20, 2010, down from last week when it averaged 4.93 percent. The 5-year adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) for San Jose home loans averaged 3.91 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 3.95 percent. This breaks last week's record and, again, the 5-year ARM has…
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San Jose Mortgage Rate and Market Commentary

San Jose Mortgage Rate (30 Year Fixed and 5 Year ARM) and Market Commentary for the week of May 3rd, 2010. The week that was: Freddie Mac in its Primary Mortgage Market Survey reported that 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.06 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending April 29, 2010, down slightly from last week when it averaged 5.07 percent. The 5-year adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 4.00 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.03 percent. "Mortgage rates on 30-year fixed loans…
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Who pays for what in a Santa Clara County Home Purchase

Whether you are buying or selling a home in Santa Clara County, you should be aware of what fees is paid by which party. Note that the fees I have listed below vary by county to county and is negotiable by contract. These are not an all inclusive list, but I have tried to include the most common items. Fees generally paid by seller: Real estate commission Document transfer tax ($1.10 per $1000.00 of sales price) Any city transfer or conveyance tax Owner's title insurance premium Escrow Fee Tax proration (for any unpaid…
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San Jose Mortgage Rate & Market Commentary

San Jose Mortgage Rate & Market commentary. Check out how the 30 year fixed mortgage rate and 5 year ARM rates did last week and how they are expected to fare this week. The week that was: Last week Freddie Mac in its Primary Mortgage Market Survey reported the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.07 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending April 15, 2010, down from last week when it averaged 5.21 percent. The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) averaged 4.08 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point,…
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Everything you wanted to know about FHA condominium approval

In this blog post I will try to answer all FAQs related to FHA condominium project approval. Beginning this year, FHA made some major changes to the Condominium process. I have done a lot of speaking on this topic and have written several blog posts. In this post, I am trying to get the most frequently asked questions and answers to those questions in one post: Where can I go to find if the FHA project is already approved? Go to FHA Condominium page to check if a project is approved with FHA.…
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California approves tax break for people in Foreclosure, Short Sales

As reported by LA Times the measure, which is expected to be signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, would waive California state taxes on mortgage debt that has been forgiven in a foreclosure or short sale. So far, the amount waived has been considered taxable income under California law. The measure passed Thursday would eliminate that tax when a bank agrees to accept less than what is owed on a home. Schwarzenegger said "I will sign the measure when it reaches my desk. I want to give homeowners and businesses the relief they need.…
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What happens to mortgage rates; now that FED stopped buying it?

Mortgage rates were hammered last week after Fed officially stopped buying mortgage backed securities. Fannie Mae 30 year (4.5%) mortgage bond opened the week at 100.44, was down 97 bps for the week as it closed at 99.47 (see chart below). The mortgage rates for most of the programs had jumped up by .25%. These are ominous signs. If last week was any indication this is not going to be a slow rise in interest rates as a lot of experts had predicted. From what we have seen so far we are definitely…
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Government announces principal reduction plans for underwater borrowers

The Government said last week it would offer principal reductions for borrowers who are underwater (owe more than their homes are worth.) The FHA plan is targeted at investors who currently own these underwater mortgages (see Negative Equity Share Chart below - source American Core Logic). Under the plan, the 1st mortgage holders would write down the principal of a first mortgage at least 10%. The loans would then be refinanced into FHA-insured mortgages as long as the loan to property value ratio is 97.75%. For borrowers with second mortgages, total mortgage debt…
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