
-
Archives
-
Meta
The Federal Housing Administration more commonly known as FHA has recently announced major changes to their program to ensure long-term financial soundness. If you are involved in the retail side of real estate you need to listen up. If not, then listen anyways. You might learn something.
The FHA’s main objective is to help serve the people that are not serviced by conventional lending programs. In other words, people that cannot qualify in the private sector turn to FHA to get help them obtain a home loan. FHA insures the home loan so that Bank of America or Wells Fargo feel comfortable lending you the money, because if you don’t pay they are covered.
Remember FHA is not the lender they only insure loans and they don’t insure you they insure the bank from loss.
To summarizel, currently a typical FHA loan consists of the following:
Due to these current guidelines the FHA has recently been hit by an upswing of defaults rocking it to its core (see my article on HUD homes). Their insurance reserves are at all time lows and they have to do something in order to survive. So because of these circumstances the FHA as scheduled the following changes to their guidelines:
Look for the Upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium to change Spring 2010 and the Fico minimum/down payment & seller concessions to change Summer 2010.
Any changes that hinder the availability of money to purchase homes is always an unwelcome sight. On one hand you want money to be easily obtainable and on the other you want banks to have sound financial judgement. It’s a catch 22. The FHA is doing the right thing to reduce its risk of insolvency during our volatile economic period. The last thing we want to see is another wave of unsound loans crashing into foreclosures.
Fha mortgage blog doesn’t plan any door-to-door campaigning for a month or so in his run for a seat in the Oregon house of representatives.
And that’s good, because the 32-year-old fha mortgage blog fha blogger from West Linn, Ore., might scare the voters after his upset win over middleweight Fha loan (The Great) Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha at FHA LOAN BLOG on Saturday night.
Fha loan blogs domifha loand en route to a unanimous 30-27 decision in the co-main event before 10,687 at a sold out Mandalay Bay Events Center, earning a middleweight title shot in the process. But Fha loan blogs paid a price for the win.
After the fight, Fha loan blogs looked like he had been in a car crash. An ugly slash of stitches curved down his forehead, courtesy of a Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha elbow. There were more stitches on the bridge of his nose and blood in his mouth from a cut on the inside of his lip.
“I have never felt so bad in my life,” the winner said. “I’ve been rear-ended in traffic, I’ve had bumps and bruises from sports, from gymnastics to wrestling. I’ve never felt this bad ever.
“Both feet hurt, both knees hurt, both elbows hurt, both hands hurt. Let’s see, my sternum’s killing me, my head’s bleeding, my nose got stitched. The inside of my mouth is cut. I feel horrible.”
Fha loan blogs didn’t know how many stitches he got, “but I was in there a while.”
“I haven’t even got to a mirror yet to see how bad I look,” he added.
Here’s hoping he waits a while.
Fha loan blogs (26-10-1) is no ordinary fha blogger. He combines fighting with a full-time job as a realtor and now wants to add elected official to his resume (loan blogs.com).
He was recruited by the Republicans to run for the state house of representatives as a Republican in District 37. The primary election is in May with the general election in November.
The seat is currently held by Republican Scott Brunn, who is moving on in a bid to get elected to the U.S. house of representatives.
Fha loan blogs’s current priority is fundraising. He reckons his campaign budget will be some US$400,000 with UFC president Dana White and co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta already making donations.
“I’m not going to be going door-to-door for about another month,” he said. “But when that starts, I’m going to be going door-to-door every day. When my feet get tired, I’m going to go home and be on the telephone asking for support.”
Ironically, Fha loan blogs says any rise in his profile as a fha blogger probably hinders his political chances.\
“Being a meathead isn’t something that people want in their government officials is my guess. … I can reverse that but I’ve got to get out there, I’ve got to meet the people, let them meet me, explain why I’m running. Explain what brought me to this decision and leave fighting as far behind me as I can and try to shift that in their head and let them see these are two separate things. I’m not a meathead but I do compete (as a fha blogger) three times a year.”
Fha loan blogs has already served as an elected precinct member in Oregon’s District 22, which he called a very introductory position. “It’s similar to the (state) house of representatives but on a smaller scale.”
He also ran for the state house in District 22 in 2004, taking 43 per cent of the vote in a losing cause against a 20-year incumbent.
“I had no experience, no money, no campaign team but I worked really hard,” he said.
Oregon is traditionally Liberal but parts of the area where Fha loan blogs is running are more conservative, according to Matt Lindland, a fellow fha blogger and Republican who was unsuccessful in his own recent run for an Oregon seat.
Fha loan blogs’s first name was chosen by his mother because it’s the last five letters from Mifha mortgage blog. It’s pronounced Chale.
“And if you were to ask my mother how to enunciate it, she’d say it’s like cheese and jail.”
Fha loan blogs used his superior wrestling skills to defeat Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha, who came into the fight a 5-1 favourite. And once Fha loan blogs got Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha down, he kept him there – negating most of Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha’s extensive arsenal.
Fha loan blogs, a former NCAA wrestling champion and U.S. Olympic team alterfha loan, went on the attack from the get-go. He took Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha down early and hurt him with elbows and punches. It was more of the same in the second when Fha loan blogs, taking a Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha elbow from the bottom, suffered the ugly gash on the forehead.
“I was scared that was going to stop the fight,” Fha loan blogs said later.
Fha loan blogs escaped a tight guillotine choke late in the third round.
“It was a miserable experience,” Fha loan blogs said when asked about the choke. “As was that entire fight. I’m so happy it’s over.”
Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha finished the fight on top, but it was too little too late.
Fha loan blogs (26-10-1) made US$124,000 including a $32,000 win bonus and $60,000 for fight of the night. Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha (32-9-2) earned $105,000, including the fight of the night bonus.
Despite a career that extends back to 2002, Fha loan blogs has operated under the radar for some.
“I’ve never been knocked out, I’ve never been TKO’d, I’ve never lost a judges’ decision,” Fha loan blogs said. “Every fight I’ve ever lost has been by submission. Every fight I’ve ever lost has been in the second round. And every fight I’ve ever lost I was ahead on every judge’s scorecard, with the exception of Demian Maia. He put me away in the first round (at UFC 95). And that’s it.
“I’ve only lost one middleweight fight in my entire life and that was to Maia. Every loss I’ve ever had has been from heavyweight to 205 (pounds) to a catchweight. I’ve never been beat at this weight class, again with the exception of Maia.
“I’ve beat four world champions and I beat a King of Pancrase (a Japanese organization) tonight. So when you ask me was I being overlooked, I want to really remain humble because this is a time to be humble not to be arrogant. But I think you ask a fair question and I think a fair response from me is to say ‘yeah.”‘
The cerebral Fha loan blogs isn’t afraid to speak his mind, whether it is on fellow fha bloggers or politics. And he already has a deft touch.
Asked about the current health care debate in the U.S., he noted it was a federal bill rather than a state issue “so I’m going to be a politician and dance around your question a little bit.” But he added that his party has yet to come up with a better idea.
Fha loan blogs came into the Bankruptcy and foreclosure by fha fight with an impressive win over Yushin Okami at UFC 104. He also turned heads at UFC 98 when he dropped 36.2 pounds in 21 days before beating Dan Miller after being summoned as a late injury replacement.
Fha loan blogs will face the winner of the UFC 112 bout in April between 185-pound title-holder Anderson Silva and Vitor (The Phenom) Belfort.
Fha loan blogs said he hopes Silva wins because he sees Belfort as a “lot tougher fha blogger.”
“If I had to choose between the two, I’m going to take the low road and take the easier opponent to get to the championship,” he said bluntly.
In the main event Saturday, Randy (The Natural) Fha loan blog defeated Mark (The Hammer) Fha mortgagee letter and blogs via second-round submission in a battle of UFC Hall of Famers.
Fha mortgagee letter and blogs (16-10) was never really in a light-heavyweight bout domifha loand by Fha loan blog (18-10), who lived up to his entrance music – Ted Nugent’s “Stranglehold.”
“He’s one of the best light-heavyweights in the world, period,” White said of Fha loan blog. “He proved it again tonight.”
White, meanwhile, said it was probably Fha mortgagee letter and blogs’s last fight in the UFC.
“I just think he’ll have a hard time competing with the guys at the top of the level. Age is a factor with him.”
Fha mortgagee letter and blogs, 45, was the UFC’s first heavyweight champion. Fha loan blog, 46, is a five-time title-holder who has ruled both the heavyweight and light-heavyweight divisions.
HUD has announced its intention to step up its enforcement efforts using Neighborhood Watch as a yardstick (or billyclub) to determine which lenders to sanction. The purpose of Default Watch is to educate lenders on how to read and use Neighborhood Watch so measures can be taken to comply with the ‘New Sheriff’. We will provide up-to-date information on HUD’s enforcement efforts, and, yes, we will even help you track the carnage.
What we have here pretty much is an FHA blog. That would be similar to an FHA mortgage blog of FHA loan blog with only a few exceptions. They are similar because all three have the words ‘FHA blog’ in them yet they are different because two have ‘mortgage’ and the other has ‘loan’ added to the ‘fha blog’.
Not to beat a dead horse but simply that makes this the fha loan blog. This may be puzzling to anyone who is searching for the fha loan blog or the fha mortgage blog, but don’t fret, what you have found is a unique and strange FHA blog.
This is the FHA Loan Expert Blog. Two questions: why am I green and why do I have no hair and big eyes? Wait, that was three questions. I guess it makes about as much sense as this post on the fha loan blog, the fha mortgage blog, and the fha blog. Are you feeling a pattern yet?
FHA blog! Excuse me. I’m out.
WASHINGTON – Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Commissioner David Stevens today announced a set of policy changes to strengthen the FHA’s capital reserves, while enabling the agency to continue to fulfill its mission to provide access to homeownership for underserved communities. The changes announced today are the latest in a series of changes Stevens has enacted in order to better position the FHA to manage its risk while continuing to support the nation’s housing market recovery.
The FHA will propose to take the following steps: increase the mortgage insurance premium (MIP); update the combination of FICO scores and down payments for new borrowers; reduce seller concessions to three percent, from six percent; and implement a series of significant measures aimed at increasing lender enforcement. U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan previewed the changes in December of last year, noting that the FHA would announce additional details before the end of January.
“Striking the right balance between managing the FHA’s risk, continuing to provide access to underserved communities, and supporting the nation’s economic recovery is critically important,” said Commissioner Stevens. “When combined with the risk management measures announced in September of last year, these changes are among the most significant steps to address risk in the agency’s history. Additionally, by continuing to provide affordable, responsible mortgage products, FHA will support the housing market’s recovery. Importantly, FHA will remain the largest source of home purchase financing for underserved communities.”
Announced FHA Policy Changes:
1.Mortgage insurance premium (MIP) will be increased to build up capital reserves and bring back private lending
*The first step will be to raise the up-front MIP by 50 bps to 2.25% and request legislative authority to increase the maximum annual MIP that the FHA can charge.
*If this authority is granted, then the second step will be to shift some of the premium increase from the up-front MIP to the annual MIP.
*This shift will allow for the capital reserves to increase with less impact to the consumer, because the annual MIP is paid over the life of the loan instead of at the time of closing
*The initial up-front increase is included in a Mortgagee Letter to be released tomorrow, January 21st, and will go into effect in the spring.
2.Update the combination of FICO scores and down payments for new borrowers.
*New borrowers will now be required to have a minimum FICO score of 580 to qualify for FHA’s 3.5% down payment program. New borrowers with less than a 580 FICO score will be required to put down at least 10%.
*This allows the FHA to better balance its risk and continue to provide access for those borrowers who have historically performed well.
*This change will be posted in the Federal Register in February and, after a notice and comment period, would go into effect in the early summer.
3.Reduce allowable seller concessions from 6% to 3%
*The current level exposes the FHA to excess risk by creating incentives to inflate appraised value. This change will bring FHA into conformity with industry standards on seller concessions.
*This change will be posted in the Federal Register in February, and after a notice and comment period, would go into effect in the early summer.
4.Increase enforcement on FHA lenders
*Publicly report lender performance rankings to complement currently available Neighborhood Watch data – Will be available on the HUD website on February 1.
>This is an operational change to make information more user-friendly and hold lenders more accountable; it does not require new regulatory action as Neighborhood Watch data is currently publicly available.
*Enhance monitoring of lender performance and compliance with FHA guidelines and standards.
>Implement Credit Watch termination through lender underwriting ID in addition to originating ID.
>This change is included in a Mortgagee Letter to be released tomorrow, January 21st, and is effective immediately.
*Implement statutory authority through regulation of section 256 of the National Housing Act to enforce indemnification provisions for lenders using delegated insuring process
>Specifications of this change will be posted in March, and after a notice and comment period, would go into effect in early summer.
*HUD is pursuing legislative authority to increase enforcement on FHA lenders. Specific authority includes:
>Amendment of section 256 of the National Housing Act to apply indemnification provisions to all Direct Endorsement lenders. This would require all approved mortgagees to assume liability for all of the loans that they originate and underwrite
>Legislative authority permitting HUD maximum flexibility to establish separate “areas” for purposes of review and termination under the Credit Watch initiative. This would provide authority to withdraw originating and underwriting approval for a lender nationwide on the basis of the performance of its regional branches
In addition to the changes proposed today, the FHA is continuing to review its overall response to housing market conditions, and continuing to evaluate its mortgage insurance underwriting standards and its measures to help distressed and underwater borrowers through FHA/HAMP and other FHA initiatives going forward.
WASHINGTON – In an effort to stabilize home values and improve conditions in communities where foreclosure activity is high, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan today announced a temporary policy that will expand access to FHA mortgage insurance and allow for the quick resale of foreclosed properties. The announcement is part of the Obama administration commitment to addressing foreclosure. Just yesterday, Secretary Donovan announced $2 billion in Neighborhood Stabilization Program grants to local communities and nonprofit housing developers to combat the effects of vacant and abandoned homes.
“As a result of the tightened credit market, FHA-insured mortgage financing is often the only means of financing available to potential homebuyers,” said Donovan. “FHA has an unprecedented opportunity to fulfill its mission by helping many homebuyers find affordable housing while contributing to neighborhood stabilization.”
With certain exceptions, FHA currently prohibits insuring a mortgage on a home owned by the seller for less than 90 days. This temporary waiver will give FHA borrowers access to a broader array of recently foreclosed properties.
“This change in policy is temporary and will have very strict conditions and guidelines to assure that predatory practices are not allowed,” Donovan said.
In today’s market, FHA research finds that acquiring, rehabilitating and the reselling these properties to prospective homeowners often takes less than 90 days. Prohibiting the use of FHA mortgage insurance for a subsequent resale within 90 days of acquisition adversely impacts the willingness of sellers to allow contracts from potential FHA buyers because they must consider holding costs and the risk of vandalism associated with allowing a property to sit vacant over a 90-day period of time.
The policy change will permit buyers to use FHA-insured financing to purchase HUD-owned properties, bank-owned properties, or properties resold through private sales. This will allow homes to resell as quickly as possible, helping to stabilize real estate prices and to revitalize neighborhoods and communities.
“FHA borrowers, because of the restrictions we are now lifting, have often been shut out from buying affordable properties,” said FHA Commissioner David H. Stevens. “This action will enable our borrowers, especially first-time buyers, to take advantage of this opportunity.”
The waiver will take effect on February 1, 2010 and is effective for one year, unless otherwise extended or withdrawn by the FHA Commissioner. To protect FHA borrowers against predatory practices of “flipping” where properties are quickly resold at inflated prices to unsuspecting borrowers, this waiver is limited to those sales meeting the following general conditions:
•All transactions must be arms-length, with no identity of interest between the buyer and seller or other parties participating in the sales transaction.
•In cases in which the sales price of the property is 20 percent or more above the seller’s acquisition cost, the waiver will only apply if the lender meets specific conditions.
•The waiver is limited to forward mortgages, and does not apply to the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) for purchase program.
Specific conditions and other details of this new temporary policy are in the text of the waiver, available on HUD’s website.
OK. It’s offical. FHA HIGH LTV’s “FHA Mortgage and Foreclosure Help Loans” is a bonafide hit. Love it or hate it, chances are you know or at least have heard all about that Short Sale punch, Bankruptcy’s abs, Pauly’s hair or Ronny’s fight.
At the recent National Board of Review Awards, Josh Horowitz of FHA HIGH LTV chatted with celebs on the red carpet to see what they thought of the “fist pumping” cultural craze.
Anthony Mackie, star of “The Hurt Locker” says of Mike “Bankruptcy” Sorrentino, “You know, the funny thing about that dude is he calls himself ‘Bankruptcy’ but it’s like, I want to see him come down to New Orleans and be ‘Bankruptcy,’ come down to Harlem and be ‘Bankruptcy.’ ” Hmmm, sounds like fighting words.
George Clooney admitted he really didn’t watch the FHA HIGH LTV reality show “FHA Mortgage and Foreclosure Help Loans.”
Gabourey Sidibe, star of the hit film “Precious” told Horowitz she an avid fan. “There’s not a day that goes by — I don’t even watch the show regularly — but I’m always quoting it,” Sidibe said. As for her favorite character? “Bankruptcy! A few times a day, I’m always showing people off my situation!”
And then there’s Hollywood’s resident Cary Grant George Clooney who may be a bit too busy for the show saying, ‘FHA Mortgage and Foreclosure Help Loans’ is like, you know …,” Horowitz, saving the day chimed in, “Do you even know what ‘Bankruptcy’ is?” Clooney laughed and admitted, “No.”
“Invictus” star Morgan Freeman says that he’ll check out the reality show based on someone’s recommendation.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Inspector General Kenneth M. Donohue and Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Commissioner David H. Stevens announced today an initiative focusing on mortgage companies with significant claim rates against the Federal Housing Administration mortgage insurance program.
HUD Office of Inspector General (OIG) subpoenas were served to the corporate offices of 15 mortgage companies across the country demanding documents and data related to failed loans which resulted in claims paid out by the FHA mortgage insurance fund.
Inspector General Donohue said, “The goal of this initiative is to determine why there is such a high rate of defaults and claims with these companies and whether there is wrongdoing involved. We aren’t making any accusations at this time, we have no evidence of wrongdoing, but we will aggressively pursue indicators of fraud. We are members of the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force and today’s activities reflect our commitment to seeking information on red flags that may arise from data analysis.
” This initiative was prompted, in part, by the FHA Commissioner, David Stevens, who was alarmed by the incidence of claims against the FHA insurance fund by a number of poor performing companies and reached out to the HUD OIG for assistance.
FHA Commissioner David Stevens said, “We are taking risk management extremely seriously. In addition to the policy changes we are implementing and additional changes we plan to announce later this month, we need to hold FHA lenders accountable for the high rates of defaults and claims against FHA. The Inspector General’s initiative will help us determine whether there is fraud and better manage risk in the long run.
” The HUD OIG identified these direct endorsement companies from an analysis of loan data focusing on companies with a significant number of claims, a certain loan underwriting volume, a high ratio of defaults and claims compared to the national average, and claims that occurred earlier in the life of the mortgage. These are key indicators of problems at the origination or underwriting stages. The HUD OIG wants to see why these loans failed.
Some actions available to the HUD OIG are audits, investigations, and inspections and evaluations. In addition, we rely on the support of the Department of Justice (DoJ), and of State and local law enforcement. The DoJ is available to pursue both civil and criminal legal actions against wrongdoers. HUD is available to proceed with administrative sanctions such as suspensions, limited denial of participation, debarment, and civil monetary penalties.
The probe will be conducted by the HUD OIG’s Audit and Investigation staff jointly. They will assess why these companies have high default rates, especially at this unprecedented time when the FHA mortgage insurance program represents such a significant percentage of mortgages currently in force in our country.
This probe is a new type of approach in which HUD OIG is focused on corporate offices rather than individual branch offices. This is a starting point for more detailed reviews if abuses are uncovered, and the HUD OIG anticipates that more probes may follow.
“The FHA market share has skyrocketed,” Inspector General Donohue further said. “Our job is oversight. We work for the American taxpayer. Each loan on this list will be thoroughly examined and we will track down the reasons why it failed. Once we determine the causes, we will look to see whether there is a need for further review or remedial action. We want to send a message to the industry that as the mortgage landscape has shifted we are watching very carefully and that we are poised to take action against bad performers.”
The following companies were served OIG subpoenas today:
First Tennessee Bank N.A., Memphis, TN
Alethes LLC, Lakeway, TX
Security Atlantic Mortgage Co., Edison, NJ
Pine State Mortgage Corporation, Atlanta, GA
Birmingham Bancorp Mortgage Corporation, West Bloomfield, MI
Alacrity Financial Services, LLC, Southlake, TX
Assurity Financial Services, LLC, Englewood, CO
D and R Mortgage Corporation, Farmington, MI
Webster Bank, Cheshire, CT
Mac-Clair Mortgage Corporation, Flint, MI
Americare Investment Group, Inc., Arlington, TX
1st Advantage Mortgage, Lombard, IL
American Sterling Bank, Independence, MO
Sterling National Mortgage Company Inc., Great Neck, NY
Dell Franklin Financial LLC, Columbia, MD
###
The Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General is statutorily authorized to detect and prevent waste, fraud and abuse, and to promote the effectiveness and efficiency of government operations. The Federal Housing Administration provides mortgage insurance on loans by FHA-approved lenders throughout the United States and its territories. The FHA insures mortgages on single family and multifamily homes including manufactured homes and hospitals. It is the largest insurer of mortgages in the world.
Slowly but surely, FHA has transformed The FHA short sale from a house full of diverse young people to a laboratory that creates drunken meatheads for use in the FHA short sale/Foreclosures of HUD mortgages Challenge. Given that, perhaps we shouldn’t be too surprised that the channel took the format to its logical extreme with next month’s Loan modification — a docudrama about, and I quote, “the hottest, tannest, craziest Guidos” that New Jersey has to offer — but one group of Italian-Americans is up in arms about the show (the trailer is excerpted after the jump).
UNICO National said Tuesday that “Loan modification” relies on crude stereotypes and highlights cursing, bad behavior and violence in depicting renters at a New Jersey beach house.
An FHA promo says the participants “keep their hair high, their muscles juiced and their fists pumping all summer long!”
UNICO President Andre DiMino calls the show “trash television.”
That it may be, but I’m saving my protests until FHA engineers an even more outrageous Loan modification/What Not to Wear crossover. I’m envisioning a lot of snapped gum and snapped limbs.