Investment Mortgage Guy » Mortgage Financing

Apartment Loans Made Easy

admin — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 16:07:43 +0000

Stan is a local apartment building owner with a nice 10 unit building in St Paul. His mortgage was on a 5 year balloon and was approaching it’s term so he figured it was time to get with the banker to renew the loan for another 5 years. He figured this process would be fairly easy, after all, he’s always made his payments on time and has a solid equity position on the building. Stan approaches his banker who says “sure we can help you” . After 2 months of getting the banker a ton of paperwork than was more painful this his annual doctor visit, Stan patiently waited for the committee to approve his loan for another 5 years. Much to Stan’s dismay however, his banker calls after two months to tell him the bank would simply like to be paid off and doesn’t want to “entertain” another 5 year extension. Apparently Stan’s bank has lost it’s appeitie for these types of loans. Stan scratches his head and says what type of loans do you guys want? I’ve made every payment on time. Now in a panic, he wonders what do to… Does he risk losing the building? Are banks not lending anymore even to good customers?

If you have found yourself in a situation similar to Stan, please look no further. We can help. My partner, Angela Christianson and myself have devoted countless hours to building relationships with Fannie, FHA, insurance companies and large and small banks to step in where your lender has fallen short. We have solid lending solutions for apartment buildings large and small. Our normal process is to get you a quote within 24 hours of submitting the operating statements to us and a full underwriting commitment can be done on most loans in 7 days. Through our relationships, we know who is lending and who isn’t. Many times banks goals and lending desires change. Angela and I stay on top of this market to see who is doing what so you don’t have to. If you have an apartment building large or small in the Twin Cities were urge you to give us a call. Please call Robert J Bonahom at 651-485-3710 or email at rbonahoom@houseloan.com.

Robert J Bonahoom

Senior Loan Officer Cornerstone Mortgage NMLS#209013

The Median Home Prices in the Twin Cities Increase

admin — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 04:38:13 +0000

According to the Star and Tribune, median homes prices for the Twin Cities increased from $150,000 in February of 2009 to $159,000 in February of 2010. In general, I agree with the article. I think we will see the median home prices continue to rise as the foreclosures move from inner city properties to the suburban communities. This doesn’t mean that homes in your neighborhood are going to increase anytime soon. The median is the average of all homes. As larger homes start to get resold through the foreclosure process, the median home prices will also increase. It’s a healthy sign that housing is recovering. As we see signs of recovery, interest rates will rise and lending guidelines will loosen.

Read Full Article Below:
Star Tribune Article on Housing

Wells Fargo Exits the Investment Property Loan Market

admin — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 22:47:47 +0000

I got into work on Monday and see an urgent email from our secondary marketing department (the department at our company that works with all of our lenders) that stated Wells Fargo was not going to purchase ANY more of our Non-Owner Occupied Loans. Even the ones we had already locked! Apparently with the new RESPA laws that went into place, they are concerned that they may improperly classify a loan as an investment property that might actually be a second home where tighter regulations are required. The new RESPA law states that if there is a change in the Truth in Lending document that is greater than .125%, you must re-disclose this change to the client. Income producing loans (or investment property loans) are excluded from having to re-disclose. Wells is nervous that they may have to classify a loan as an investment property for underwriting purposes but in reality it’s a second home to the borrower. If there is a change on the Truth in Lending of more than .125% in this case, the borrower may be in a strong position to state Wells violated the RESPA law. Wells has decided to take the conservative approach with some of it correspondent channels. All retail departments and some correspondent channels remain unchanged. (And are still writing investment property loans) So far, no other major lenders have gone similar policy.

This is just one more example of how Government intervention is changing the appetite for lending.

Construction Financing with 3.5% Down Payment

admin — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 03:23:29 +0000

Cornerstone Mortgage is proud to announce the new release of a construction financing package that requires only a 3.5% cash investment.

Here are the highlights of the program:

* 3.5% minimum cash investment

* 680 Minimum credit score

* 40% Debt to income ratio

* Owner occupied loans only

* Properties located in MN only

* Loan amounts up to $350,000

This program is a great step in helping boost new construction sales right here in the Twin Cities. Lot prices are reasonable again and construction costs are very affordable. The biggest barrier for most buyers looking at new construction in 2010 has been financing. Many builders in this ecomony have elected to have the buyer finance the construction loan but until now, most banks required at least 20% down. This program should help bridge that gap.

This construction loan is designed to be taken out with permanent financing in 90 days. (We can facilitate that too). We will allow for up to 2 draws during the construction process. Funds will only be disbursed on finished work. Upfront costs will have to be funded by the builder or borrower.

If your a builder looking for a partner or a buyer looking to start the financing process, give me a call at 651-485-3710 or email me at rbonahoom@houseloan.com

Refinancing Your Investment Property with DU Refi Plus

admin — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 04:53:47 +0000

Many investors have contacted me with the drop in interest rates to see if I can help them refinance their investment property. Unfortunately for most, the equity position in their property is too negative for me too help. Fannie Mae however, has implemented a program called DU Refi Plus to try and help the real estate investor take advantage of these lower rates through refinancing. If your loan is currently backed by Fannie Mae, (to find out if your loan is backed by Fannie Mae Click Here) my firm will go up to a 95% Loan to current value and refinance your loan without any mortgage insurance.

Here are some of the stipulations and highlights:

* No Mortgage lates in the last 12 months.

* No limit on the number of financed properties you currently have – This is really nice!

* Your current mortgage cannot have mortgage insurance on it or you have to contact your current servicer for the refinance.

To get a quick estimate of your property’s current value, I like to go to www.zillow.com

This program will benefit only a small handful of the investors out there looking for low long-term rates, however, maybe your one of the lucky ones who will fit.

For an analysis of your property, please give me a call at 651-485-3710.

First Time Home Buyer Credit Likely To be Extended Until April of 2010

admin — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 04:41:30 +0000

I get asked this question at least five times a week. Do you think the tax credit will be extended for the first time home buyers? Well folks, it looks like it’s going to happen.

First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Extension Details

If the Democrats version of the Senate bill is passed when it comes to vote in the next few weeks (as it is expected to), the first-time home buyer credit extension would have the following details:

The credit would be available for homes that go under contract by April 30, 2010. However, you would still have 60 days afterward to close.
It would be attached to a bill to extend unemployment benefits that is expected to be voted on in the next few weeks.
First-time buyers (those who have not owned a home for three years) can claim an $8,000 credit, the same as before the extension.
Income limits would be expanded: $125,000 a year for individuals (up from $75,000) and $225,000 (up from $150,000) a year for married couples who are filing a joint return.
The proposal will include anti-fraud measures, including minimum age requirements and additional authorities for the IRS.

First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Expanded to Existing Home Owners

Existing homeowners who buy a new principal residence after living in their current home for at least the last five years can claim up to a $6,500 tax credit.

I am excited to see the credit continue and really excited to see it expand into the non-first time home buyer arena. This will help the upper bracket market which is suffering the worst right now. We will know for sure in the weeks ahead.

For now, happy investing!

Finding a Lender That Has Embraced Fannie’s 10 Financed Property Guidelines

admin — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 05:17:35 +0000

In February 2009, Fannie Mae reversed an earlier October 2008 ruling where they limited the number of properties an investor could have financed to 4. Fannie made it clear in the announcement that they were in support of helping the suffering housing market and that they were serious about financing loans for good risk borrowers who wanted to buy investment real estate. There was a loud cheer from investors around the country. Finally, a decision that made sense!

Now it’s late August 2009, six months after Fannie’s annoucement, and very few lenders have decided to take Fannie up on it’s generous offer. Call it fear or something else, at the end of the day, lenders like Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase who are actually making the loans to consumers decide which policies they want to adopt and thus far, lending on more than 4 financed properties is not one of them.

I work for Cornerstone Mortgage, a Houston based company that funds about $150 million in loans monthly. We have lending relationships with every major lender in the country and so far, none of them are allowing us to originate borrowers with more than 4 financed properties through our normal correspondent lending channels.

I can however broker them, currently, I have two outlets on the broker side. The downfall of brokering loans is that I have no control over the appraisal or underwriting. The loan gets shipped and underwritten by people who don’t know me or my clients and sometimes even my market. I don’t like to do this, but right now. it’s the only option I have.

Hopefully soon, the lenders will follow Fannie’s guidance and start lending on these loans again.

Make is a great day!

Rob Bonahoom

Mortgage Coach

952-808-2820.

Fannie and Freddie Implement New Appraisal Requirements

admin — Mon, 04 May 2009 03:39:17 +0000

Starting May 1st, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be implementing a new Home Value Code of Conduct (HVCC) policy on all appraisals. Back on March 3rd, 2008 Fannie Mae announced that it had entered into an agreement with the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) and the New York Attorney General adopting the HVCC. The HVCC was adopted to help reinforce the independence of the appraisal process as well as to enhance the overall integrity and confidence in the national housing finance system. All mortgage lenders thoughout the United States will be required to abide by this new policy. Federally chartered banks already implemented this policy in 2008.

Basically this new policy means that loan orginators like myself will no longer be allowed to choose which appraiser we will use to complete an appraisal and the appraiser will no longer be given a “target value” that needs to be hit. This could mean that a borrower may have to spend up to $650 (for a duplex appraisal) only to find out that the value is too low for him to refinance. In the past, “comp checks” were used by loan officers to help a borrower get a fairly accurate idea of the value of their property before spending any money on a refinance. This new law will prohibit the abilty to do comp checks.

To view a full copy of this policy click below:

NEW HVCC CODE

The mortgage industry continues to tighten guidelines in order to give investors (on Wall Street) more confidence in the quaility of the loans being written. Have they gone too far this time or do you feel this is a good integrity check for appraised values?

Rob Bonahoom

Mortgage Coach

Fannie Mae Offers Real Estate Investors a New Program at 10% Down

admin — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 05:17:42 +0000

I continue to be impressed at Fannie Mae’s willingness to find creative ways to get more real estate investors into more investment properties in an effort to stimulate our suffering housing market.

Fannie Mae has created a new investment property financing program called Fannie Mae Home Path. This program allows the real estate investor to purchase properties owned and backed by Fannie Mae (properties that are bank owned by Fannie Mae due to a previous foreclosure) at a 10% down payment with no appraisals or mortgage insurance required.

Not all Fannie Mae bank owned properties will qualify. To find out if the property you are interested in purchasing is approved for the program, please go to 10% Down Fannie Mae List.

A similar program is likely to come out for Freddie Mac. I am excited to see the government continue open up more doors for the real estate investor. If you would like more information about this program, feel free to contact me at 952-808-2820.

Rob Bonahoom

Mortgage Coach

Do I Qualify for Obama’s New Loan Modification Program?

admin — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 05:04:09 +0000

On March 4, the Obama administration released an outline of what they are calling the “The Making Home Affordable Program.” There are two parts to this plan. First, if you are current on your mortgage and have good credit, stable income and your loan is currently back by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, you will be able refinance your mortgage (no cash out allowed) with a new mortgage at current mortgage rates without any equity in your home. (As high as 105% of the value of your home) Secondly, if your income has recently dropped, your interest rate recently increased or you have suffered a hardship that has increased your expenses (like medical bills), you may qualify for a loan modification. In this case, your loan servicer will review your income and can lower your interest rate as low as 2% and/or lower your pricinple balance to get your payment to 31% of your current gross income. All plans are designed to help owner occupied properties only.

I really like this new outline and I believe it will encourage banks to finally standardize their processes which should really help a lot of people save their home. Right now, participation by banks in this program is not mandatory but highly encouraged unless the lender received or is going to be receiving bailout funds from the government. (Then they have to participate)

To get a complete outline of the plan, you can view the website at: Obama’s New Mortgage Plan

If you have further questions about your personal situation, you can call us at 952-808-2820 and as we start to learn which lenders are offering what, we will be happy to let you know.

Rob Bonahoom

Mortgage Coach