Law Offices of C. Guy Bond, P.A. : News Blog

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP)

HARP debuted in March, 2009 with the hope it would help borrowers with little or no equity in their homes refinance their mortgages and avoid foreclosure. The hopes for the program started slowly as lenders dealt with loans that didn't require special handling. Hopefully, that will change by the end of the year.

Here's the highlights:

-Loan must be owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac;

-Borrower must owe between 80% and 125% of their home's value;

-Home must be owner occupied;

-Mortgage payments must be up to date.

Posted By C. Guy Bond At 2:32 PM •

Monday, September 14, 2009

Credit Scores-What you need to know

1. They don't reflect your financial picture, rather a snapshot of your debt in a point in time;

2. It doesn't matter if you carry a balance, rather whether you pay on time;

3. You don't need to apply for new credit for credit inquiries (which lower your score) to appear on your report;

4. The score you see when you purchase your credit report is not necessarily the score your lenders see.

Source: Wall Street Journal

Posted By C. Guy Bond At 11:25 AM •

Wednesday, September 09, 2009

A strategy for selling a house that's worth less than its current market value

When your house is worth less than the loan balance, is there any alternative to a short-sale which requires that you be unable to pay your mortgage and results in damage to your credit rating? We've had some success with buyers who, for various reasons, cannot qualify for a mortgage loan. They are sometimes willing to pay an amount equal to the mortgage balance if they can 'assume' the loan. Almost all mortgages have 'due on sale' clauses which prohibit buyers from assuming these loans. Depending on how your particular 'due on sale' clause is written, we might be able to craft a transaction which would facilitate this scenario. The downside to a seller is that they are not released from responsibility for the existing loan which might impact their ability to buy a new house or require them to cover any payments missed by the buyer. The upside is that a seller can pass a cash flow drain to a buyer who otherwise couldn't borrow to purchase the home.

Posted By C. Guy Bond At 2:48 PM •

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