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By Dennis Norman, on December 30th, 2011
Ah the beauty and splendor of Hawaii! Living in paradise comes at a price though as Hawaii, by far, leads the nation in average loan amount on a home, coming at $677,299 according to a report just released by LendingTree.com. Coming in a rather distant second is Washington D.C. at $393,453, followed by
Continue reading… Hawaii homeowners have highest mortgage amounts in U.S.
By Robert Fishel, on December 22nd, 2011
An extraordinary 18 percent of Realtors have experienced contract failures in the last few months according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). This is double the levels of a year earlier. One of the top reasons that cause these contract cancellations is credit issues. In many cases, understanding
Continue reading… Credit Score FAQ’s
By Dennis Norman, on December 15th, 2011
This morning Freddie Mac released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) which showed average 30-year fixed-rate mortgages matched an all time record low of 3.94 percent, and there was an all-time record low rate for 15-year fixed rate mortgages.
By Robert Fishel, on December 7th, 2011
Even though over the past few years, ARM’s (adjustable rate mortgages) have received somewhat of a “bad name”, there are truly benefits to them including:
By Robert Fishel, on November 23rd, 2011
In this tighter credit environment, FHA remains to be a great alternative for buyers with limited resources for a down payment and closing costs or past credit problems. Underwriting guidelines are more lenient than conventional guidelines.
By Dennis Norman, on November 8th, 2011
This morning, Trans Union released a report showing the national mortgage delinquency rate (the rate of borrowers 60 or more days past due) increased to 5.88 percent (from 5.82 percent in the 2nd quarter) during the third quarter of 2011, after falling in the previous quarter by the largest rate in two years.
Continue reading… Mortgage delinquency rate increases for first time since 2009
By Dennis Norman, on October 24th, 2011
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced it eased the requirements as well as extended the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) to December 31, 2013 from the current expiration date for the program of June 30, 2012. According to FHFA, as of August 31, 2011, nearly 894,000 borrowers have been refinanced through HARP
Continue reading… Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) Guidelines Eased and Deadline Extended
By Dennis Norman, on October 22nd, 2011
The “first-look” report from Lender Processing Services, one of the countries largest loan servicers and aggregators of loan performance data, shows mortgage delinquencies decreased 0.5 percent in September from the month before and decreased 12.7 percent from the year before. On the other hand, and perhaps part of the reason for the decline in the
Continue reading… Mortgage deqlinquencies decline in September; Foreclosures on the rise
By Dennis Norman, on October 19th, 2011
Mortgage delinquencies in September increased to 2.10 percent of all mortgages, a 2.9 percent increase from the month before when delinquencies were at 2.04 percent but a decrease of over 33 percent from a year ago when the rate was 3.14 percent. The mortgage delinquency rate is something I pay close attention to because
Continue reading… Mortgage delinquencies on the rise but down significantly from a year ago
By Dennis Norman, on October 18th, 2011
Mortgage interest rates hit an all time low in the past month with 30 year fixed rate mortgages dropping below 4 percent for the first time ever! Over the past couple of weeks, rates have ticked up slightly but are still dirt cheap! So what can you do to make sure you are getting the lowest mortgage rates possible? According to Doug Lebda, Chariman and CEO of LendingTree.com, if borrowers follow the guidelines listed below they can increase their chances of being approved for a mortgage loan at the most desirable interest rate:
By Dennis Norman, on October 6th, 2011
This morning, Freddie Mac released the results of it’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey revealing that the interest rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 3.94 percent, dropping below 4.0 percent for the first time in history! All I can say is WOW!
By Dennis Norman, on September 29th, 2011
This morning, Freddie Mac released the results of it’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey revealing that the interest rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 4.01 percent, which is an all-time record low and the interest rate on a 15-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 3.28 percent, also an all-time record low!
By Dennis Norman, on September 28th, 2011
A report released today by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) shows that financial institutions filed 29,558 reports suspecting mortgage loan fraud activity during the 2nd quarter, an increase of 88 percent from the 2nd quarter of 2010 when there were 15,727 reports.
By Dennis Norman, on September 22nd, 2011
Robo-signing is one of those terms I never heard until the news of improper foreclosure practices by some of the nation’s largest lenders started hitting the news in the past year and now the word has become synonymous with bad foreclosure practices. As a result, in April of this year the Office of the
Continue reading… Restitution for victims of improper foreclosure practices
By Dennis Norman, on September 21st, 2011
I keep saying that, until the foreclosure rate gets back down closer to a “normal” rate and the REO inventory is absorbed to the point where they are no longer putting such immense downward pressure on home prices, we are not going to see any sort of sustainable recovery in the housing market. It all
Continue reading… Mortgage delinquencies decline in August; down almost 12 percent from year ago
By Dennis Norman, on September 19th, 2011
Fannie Mae’s Economics & Mortgage Market Analysis Group says that we are not out of the woods yet and that the economy is “flirting with another economic downturn” now after more than two years since the worst recession since the World War II era. Fannie Mae Chief Economist, Doug Duncan, said “the weakening economic
Continue reading… Double-dip recession concern by consumers is putting a damper on the housing market
By Dennis Norman, on September 13th, 2011
A report released today by CoreLogic shows that 22.5 percent (10.9 million) of all homeowners in the U.S. with a mortgage were in a negative equity position in the second quarter of 2011, down slightly from 22.7 percent the prior quarter. Negative equity is also referred to as being “underwater” or “upside down” and
Continue reading… Homeowners in negative equity position declines in 2nd quarter; majority have above market interest rates
By Dennis Norman, on September 12th, 2011
Minnesota has emerged as the state with the highest amount of mortgage fraud (in total dollar amount) according to the second-quarter 2011 Mortgage Fraud Index from MortgageDaily.com. With $184,715,000 of mortgage fraud activity in the 2nd quarter Minnesota inched out the first place spot from Florida which had $184,009,434 in loans with mortgage fraud
Continue reading… Minnesota Emerges as Mortgage Fraud Hot Spot
By Dennis Norman, on September 9th, 2011
Mortgage interest rates have hit a new low for the year, dipping to an average of 4.29% (4.54% APR) for 30-year fixed mortgages, 3.53% (3.90% APR) for 15-year fixed mortgages and 3.38% (3.63% APR) for 5/1 adjustable rate mortgages (ARM) earlier this week according to the LendingTree Weekly Mortgage Rate
Continue reading… Mortgage interest rates dip to lowest rate this year
By News Desk, on August 22nd, 2011
Four Florida men were arrested on charges that they defrauded homeowners in Massachusetts and elsewhere in connection with a home loan modification scam. Earlier this month, a 20-count indictment was unsealed in federal court in Boston, charging Christopher S. Godfrey, 42, of Delray Beach, Fla.; Dennis Fischer, 40, of Highland Beach, Fla.; Vernell Burris Jr,
Continue reading… Four Florida Men Charged in Boston with Defrauding Homeowners in Home Loan Modification Scam
By News Desk, on August 22nd, 2011
HOUSTON—Two Houston businessmen, a mortgage company loan officer, and a title company attorney and escrow officer have been indicted for their alleged involvement in a scheme to defraud residential mortgage lenders of more than $22 million in loans.
By Dennis Norman, on August 22nd, 2011
HomeSteps, the home-sale division of Freddie Mac, announced “Condo Cash”, a special limited-time offer to pay up to $1,500 in future condo fees for eligible buyers purchasing a condominium being sold through the Freddie Mac HomeSteps program.
By Dennis Norman, on August 19th, 2011
After all the bad press mortgage companies have received lately, this probably won’t come as a surprise, but according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2011 U.S. Primary Mortgage Servicer Satisfaction Study, homeowners satisfaction with their mortgage servicers has “declined notably from 2010.“
By Dennis Norman, on August 16th, 2011
A report released this morning by Standard & Poor’s and Experian show a decrease in monthly default rates on first mortgages from 2.02 percent to 1.93 percent and a decrease in default rates on second mortgages from 1.40 percent to 1.25 percent in July. A continuing decline in mortgage delinquencies is one of the things
Continue reading… Mortgage delinquency rate continues to fall in July
By Dennis Norman, on August 16th, 2011
The FBI released it’s Mortgage Fraud Report for 2010 showing that mortgage fraud continued at elevated levels in 2010 and was consistent with levels seen in 2009. The top states for mortgage fraud activity in 2010 were Florida, California, Arizona, Nevada, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Georgia, New Jersey, and Maryland.
By Dennis Norman, on August 15th, 2011
Last week, The Washington Post published an article by Kenneth Harney which said “if you take mortgage interest tax deductions, the next 100 days could have significant financial implications for you, thanks to Congress’s new federal debt ceiling plan……the compromise legislation created an unusual mechanism — an evenly split, 12-member bipartisan supercommittee — that could
Continue reading… Does the Mortgage Interest Deduction Help The Real Estate Market?
By News Desk, on August 13th, 2011
WASHINGTON – Four Florida men were arrested this past week on charges that they defrauded homeowners in Massachusetts and elsewhere in connection with a home loan modification scam, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz for the District of Massachusetts and Christy Romero, Acting
Continue reading… Four Florida Men Charged in Boston with Defrauding Homeowners in Home Loan Modification Scam
By Dennis Norman, on August 10th, 2011
This morning, Trans Union released a report showing the national mortgage delinquency rate (the rate of borrowers 60 or more days past due) decreased for the sixth consecutive quarter, dropping to 5.82% at the end of the second quarter in 2011 which is a 5.98 percent from the prior quarter, the largest quarterly decrease in
Continue reading… Mortgage delinquency rate declines by largest rate in two years
By Dennis Norman, on August 8th, 2011
A report by MortgageDaily.com shows that 20 percent fewer borrowers obtained a home loan in the second quarter of 2011 than in the first quarter. The report also shows that Wells Fargo again this quarter originated more home loans than any other lender in the U.S.
Originations
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Q2 2011
Q1 2011
Continue reading… Mortgage Lending Tumbles In 2nd Quarter
By News Desk, on July 27th, 2011
MINNEAPOLIS—This past Friday in federal court, an Edina mortgage broker was charged for his role in a $20 million mortgage fraud scheme that involved 57 properties. Derrick Ivan Lance, age 40, of Edina, was charged via an information with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
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