Good Faith Estimate
Top Real Estate and Mortgage Headlines for March 26th
March 26, 2011 by WelcomeHomeNWI · 1 Comment
The weekend is in full swing and tonight the world will celebrate Earth Hour. What is Earth Hour? Every year individuals, businesses and communities are asked to shut off their lights for one hour to show their commitment to protect the one thing that unites us all…the planet.
Before we all collectively unplug and power down in support of Earth Hour, let’s take a minute to review what the top real estate and mortgage headlines are today according to the National Association of Realtors.
- Real Estate Web Site Traffic Jumps 27%
More Web visitors were eyeing real estate Web sites last year. Find out the most popular keyword searches when it comes to real estate. - Proposal Would Pay Defaulters to Leave Homes
The nation’s five largest mortgage service providers were asked by regulators this week to consider an industry-wide “cash-for-keys” program, in which banks would pay delinquent borrowers up to $21,000 each to leave their home. - Mortgage Rates Edge Up This Week
Still sitting below 5 percent, 30-year mortgage rates–a popular choice among home buyers–were on the rise this week but still remain at overall low levels, Freddie Mac reports. - Seller’s Market a Year Away, Survey Says
More than 61 percent of Americans say that the tables will soon turn and a real estate market where the seller’s are more in control is at least a year away, according to a new survey. - Questions Raised Over Good Faith Estimates
The lack of clarity in the revamped disclosure reforms for home buyers and borrowers can lead to delayed closings or the loss of a locked-in interest rate, says a spokeswoman for the Mortgage Bankers Association. - NAR Home Ownership Bus Tour Stops in Portland
If you are in Portland, come out for prizes, information, and fun during the Home Ownership Matters Bus Tour at the Better Living Home Garden & Lifestyle Show on Saturday, March 26.
These are the top real estate and mortgage headlines for Saturday, March 26, 2011.
Want to know how these national real estate headlines could impact you right here locally in Northwest Indiana? Subscribe to this blog, Today’s Real Estate Reality, and let our collective years of real estate experience in Northwest Indiana guide you to an informed and successful real estate transaction today.
Good Faith Estimate
Why All The Confusion About The Good Faith Estimate 2010
August 3, 2010 by James K Barath, CMPS · Leave a Comment
Although the Good Faith Estimate (GFE) 2010 became effective nationwide on January 1st of this year, there is no other federal form in the home loan application package that creates more anxiety and confusion.
The Good Faith Estimate is suppose to help consumers become better shoppers of real estate settlment services by creating more transparancy of home loan fees for the borrowers, which also happens to be one of the primary goals of RESPA (Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974).
So…why all the confusion then?
On November 17, 2008 the US Department of Housing and Urban Development published new RESPA regulations that created a tidal wave of regulatory change in the real estate industry. Watch this short video.
Here is a brief recap of both the good and the bad highlights of new Good Faith Estimate 2010.
Good Faith Estimate 2010 – PROS:
- Discloses if a borrower has an escrow account
- Discloses the rate lock period to the client
- Discloses to the borrower if the rate can adjust
Good Faith Estimate 2010 – CONS:
- Borrowers total housing payment (PITI+MI) is missing
- Borrowers cash-to-close is not shown
- CANNOT issue a GFE without having a complete loan application
In HUD’s effort to simplify the disclosure of home loan fees, they took a one page document with itemized breakdown of estimated costs and converted it to a 3 page discosure with lump sum totals.
Still confused? Don’t fret. There is also a mandatory, 48-page supplemental, HUD’s Settlement Cost Booklet to help clarify any questions you may now have. Otherwise, contact me anytime for all your mortgage needs.
Good Faith Estimate
Good or Bad – The New Good Faith Estimate
October 20, 2009 by James K Barath, CMPS · Leave a Comment
The new Good Faith Estimate makes its debut January 1, 2010.
Expanded from 1 page to 3 pages, the legislators responsible for the new Good Faith Estimate want it to be simpler for homeowners and home buyers to understand than the former version.
By most accounts, Congress will meet this goal.
The new Good Faith Estimate includes plain-English explanations of every fee, charge, and interest payment involved in a purchase or refinance. It also includes a section called “The Shopping Cart” in which applicants can compare lenders.
The new Good Faith Estimate is concise, too. Using a series of “Yes/No” checkboxes on Page 1, mortgage lenders specifically note:
- The interest rate on the mortgage
- Whether the interest rate can change over time
- Whether the loan carries a prepayment penalty
- The length of the rate lock
Currently, this information is spread across 3 separate forms.
Furthermore, the new Good Faith Estimate simplifies rate-and-fee comparisons, showing applicants how a lower rate can be available for a higher set of fees, and vice versa.
For all of its clarity, though, the new Good Faith Estimate still fails to address the issue of “suitability”. As in, is this the right loan for the right borrower? That’s something only a qualified mortgage professional can do.
For suitable advice, talk with a qualified mortgage professional who both listens to your needs and helps you plan for them. Great terms on an unsuitable loan are often worse than “good” terms on the right one.
Need more expert advice? Ask the team of Certified Mortgage Planning Specialists at Benchmark Mortgage.
