White House compromise offers help for troubled Homeowners

Today, The White House announced that President Bush would lift his opposition to a Housing bill being voted on today in the House of Representatives. He concluded, with input from Treasury Secretary Paulson, that the Greater good was more important than the provision he opposed.



This bill includes several upgrades for homeowners accross America. It provides tax credits for first time homebuyers of up to $7500. Property Tax credits for other qualifying homeowners. Authorizes Government investment to shore up Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac, the two largest guarantors of home mortgages. It will allow permanent upgrades to the maximum loan amounts for Fannie, Freddie & FHA (details to come in the following weeks).



Here is the part that really inspired me to write a post. It will allow upside down homeowners to negotiate with their current lender to allow a "Short Refi".



What is a "Short Refi"? This process allows you to negotiate a payoff of your current mortgage that is lower than the current balance, so that you can refinance into a safe, secure & affordable FHA Fixed Rate Mortgage. Previously, Lenders had little motivation to do this, as the tax laws on how they must account for the write down in debt made it undesirable for their financials. Now, the new legislation, combined with the burden of the growing foreclosure lists, have made lenders more likely to work out a solution.


Part of the key to success with this strategy is to work with an experienced FHA direct lender such as VanDyk Mortgage. We have over two decades of FHA experience to offer you. We can even help with the negotiation of the short payoff to assist you into a better, more secure financial situation. Call us today at 866-900-2342, ask for Brian Skaar. Or apply online at http://www.vandykfunding.com/.




We serve the following areas for FHA and Conventional loans: California, San Diego, San Marcos, Carlsbad, Oceanside, Vista, Escondido, Fallbrook, Bonsall, Riverside, Los Angeles, Orange County, Irvine, Corona, Anaheim, Santa Ana, Seattle, Washington, Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Lynnwood, Olympia, Tacoma, Puyallup, Buckley, Auburn, Kent, Federal Way, Seatac, San Francisco, San Jose, Carson, Gardena, Hawthorne, Lawndale, Inglewood, Ladera Heights, View Park, Windsor Hills, Baldwin Hills, Fox Hills, Culver City, Beverly Hills, Malibu, Santa Monica, Brentwood, Calabasas, Encino, Bel Air Estates, Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, Torrance, San Marcos, San Diego, Rancho Bernardo, Carlsbad, Escondido, Poway, Oceanside, Vista, Encinitas, Carmel Valley, Scripps, Tierra Santa, El Cajon, La Jolla, Chula Vista, National City, San Ysidro, Santee, Eastlake, Ramona, Long Beach, Artesia, La Palma, Cerritos, Compton, Lynwood, Bellflower, Temecula, Murrieta, Southern California, Washington, Everett, Lynnwood, Tacoma, Kent, Federal Way, Auburn, Renton, Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Whittier, Santa Fe Springs, Downey, Irvine, Newport Beach, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside and Orange County.

HUD changes ease purchasing distressed homes using FHA Financing

HUD has recently made changes allowing homeowners to qualify for FHA loans when buying homes that have been foreclosed, returned to lender (deed in lieu of foreclosure), AKA REO properties. REO stands for Real Estate Owned, which is essentially Bank Owned Repos.

Outdated regulations from HUD to prohibit property flipping and false price appreciation made it difficult for banks to sell recently foreclosed properties due to a HUD rule which prohibited the use of a FHA loan to purchase a home that had not been owned by the seller for atleast 90 days.

This has now been lifted until June 2009. This will allow homeowners to qualify for FHA loans to purchase the numerous bargain priced REO or Bank Owned properties coming to market.

We can help you get the home of your dreams with a Safe, Secure, Affordable FHA loan. Call us at 866-900-2342 toll free to get details and achieve your dream of owning a beautiful new home.

VanDyk Mortgage is a Full Eagle Direct Endorsement FHA Direct Lender. We have over 20 years in business Lending FHA loans direct to consumers. Call the experts.


We serve the following areas for FHA and Conventional loans: California, San Diego, San Marcos, Carlsbad, Oceanside, Vista, Escondido, Fallbrook, Bonsall, Riverside, Los Angeles, Orange County, Irvine, Corona, Anaheim, Santa Ana, Seattle, Washington, Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Lynnwood, Olympia, Tacoma, Puyallup, Buckley, Auburn, Kent, Federal Way, Seatac, San Francisco, San Jose, Carson, Gardena, Hawthorne, Lawndale, Inglewood, Ladera Heights, View Park, Windsor Hills, Baldwin Hills, Fox Hills, Culver City, Beverly Hills, Malibu, Santa Monica, Brentwood, Calabasas, Encino, Bel Air Estates, Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, Torrance, San Marcos, San Diego, Rancho Bernardo, Carlsbad, Escondido, Poway, Oceanside, Vista, Encinitas, Carmel Valley, Scripps, Tierra Santa, El Cajon, La Jolla, Chula Vista, National City, San Ysidro, Santee, Eastlake, Ramona, Long Beach, Artesia, La Palma, Cerritos, Compton, Lynwood, Bellflower, Temecula, Murrieta, Southern California, Washington, Everett, Lynnwood, Tacoma, Kent, Federal Way, Auburn, Renton, Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Whittier, Santa Fe Springs, Downey, Irvine, Newport Beach, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside and Orange County.

FHA moves to the forefront in lending again

The past couple weeks have seen significant news for Mortgage holders, lenders, and banks. Loan amount increases are official (for details click here) for FHA, FNMA, & Freddie Mac loans. This will help hundreds of thousands of US homeowners get lower rates for the purchase, refinance, or construction of their home. The benefits aren't just for people in Los Angeles ( now $729,750), Seattle, (now $569,500), San Diego (now $697,500) and other high cost areas though. Prior to the new limits, the minimum FHA loan amount in much of America was $200,160, which has now been increased to $271,050. This will help many families refinance out of Adjustable Rate Mortgages, ARM's, 80/20 combo mortgages, Option ARM's, and other risky mortgages into safe, secure, affordable FHA & FHA secure mortgages to up 97% of their homes appraised value.

Meanwhile FNMA (Fannie Mae) & FHLMC (Freddie Mac) loans became more affordable and less obtainable during the same week. While the loan limits increased for these loans, which should help many homeowners, it is now much harder to qualify for a Fannie or Freddie loan over 80% Loan to value. The reason for this is the recent changes (which start 3-17) for Mortgage insurance on these loans. The Mortgage Insurers have seen losses mount in the Billions, and have put limits on minimum ficos (anything less than 680 will be effected).

Fannie & Freddie have also limited the maximum Loan to Value (LTV) in "declining markets" such as specific counties in California, Florida, Arizona, and many more by 5-10% from prior levels. This also makes it more difficult for borrowers (even the best credit risk borrowers) to get Low Down Payment or High LTV financing in many markets.

There is the good news amidst all this doom & gloom!
FHA loans are not affected by either of these issues, the Mortgage Insurance limits on LTV or the Declining markets adjustments.

Good old FHA to the rescue.
FHA mortgage insurance premiums are self-funding. They all go into a fund that guarantees the mortgage banks in the case of default by the borrower. This program is self-funding, it is not subsidized by tax payer money, contrary to public opinion.

VanDyk Mortgage is a direct lender of FHA loans, and we have been making FHA loans for over 20 years. We are proud to have achieved the "Full Eagle Direct Endorsement" underwriter designation from HUD. This is the highest level of approval from HUD (US Department of Housing & Urban Development).

1. FHA loans require just 3% down payment (up to 97% LTV)
2. FHA loans are not limited by "declining markets" for Maximum LTV
3. FHA loans are safe, secure & affordable
4. FHA loans can work with lower credit scores than conventional loans

VanDyk Mortgage can work with tarnished credit histories to get you approved for FHA financing. Bankruptcy is OK (must over 24 months discharged for chapter 7, preferably 24 months from filing for chapter 13, although you can remain in Chapter 13 and refinance with trustee approval). FHA does prefer to see 12 months of on-time mortgage payments, 24 is even better. The FHA Secure program does allow for some late payments in certain circumstances.

Please call us at 866-900-2342 to see if you might benefit from FHA or FHA Secure financing. Brian Skaar and VanDyk Mortgage are your source for FHA financing.

www.vandykfunding.com for news, market updates, and secure loan application.

New Loan Limits released for FHA loans

HUD has finalized the new 2008 loan limits for FHA Government backed loans. The new limits increase the max loans for FHA from just over $368K up to $729,750.

Although the highest amounts are for high cost metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles, New York, & San Francisco, Every county in America benefits from an increase in the FHA loan limit from $200K to a new minimum limit of $271,050. This helps to increase the number of US households that can qualify to purchase and refinance their homes.

You can find the new limits for your area here: 2008 Loan Limits .

FNMA & FHLMC, AKA Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac, are both GSE's or Government Sponsored Enterprises that purchase loans made by Mortgage Banks that meet their criteria. The new loan limits for Fannie & Freddie rose from $417K up to $729,750 as well in many areas, depending on Geographic area based on housing prices. Many areas did experience a significant increase in this amount, even if it didn't go to the max ceiling. For instance, Seattle homes can now qualify up to $569,500, and San Diego homes now qualify up to $697,500.

Please do not hesitate to call us to find out if the new loan limits can help your financial plans.

Our toll free number is 866-900-2342, ask for Brian Skaar.

You may also apply online to get your home loan quote at http://www.vandykfunding.com/ , simply click on the Loan Application button at the top of the page.