The foreclosure crisis continues to ravage our economy with more lost jobs, reduced home equity from plummeting home sales and delinquent mortgage payments. Unfortunately, many people have the ability to make their home loan payment on time but they jumped on the loan modification train with their neighbors and stopped paying their mortgage in hopes of reducing their monthly payments through renegotiations with the loss and mitigation department of their mortgage servicing company.
Clearly, there is nothing wrong with renegotiating your mortgage for a lower payment. Essentially that is what mortgage refinancing is all about. Loan modifications are different, because the terms are not fair for the bank because they take a loss. Banks who hold the mortgage note loose income from pre-payment penalties, loss of interest and in some cases loss of principal. The argument could be made that each time a bank agrees to a loan modification jobs are lost, because revenue is lost and expenses must be cut. However the reality is that we are in a serious financial crisis and if the mortgage lenders did not restructure their customers mortgage loans, then the banks would crash quickly as the liquidity problems would worsen.
Millions of homeowners are seeking mortgage refinancing or loan modifications in an effort to save their house or make their monthly payments more affordable. Unfortunately for mortgage brokers and lenders, mortgage refinance closings have slowed to very uncomfortable rate.
According to CFB Branch loan officer, Jeff Moran, most refinance loans are taking seven to eight weeks. Imagine owning a mortgage company that had to fund four staff payrolls to fund a loan. Imagine paying underwriters, processors and loan officers to work on home loans that likely would not actually close. The mortgage business has seen brighter days. Credit restrictions have tightened lending guidelines to the level that very few borrowers qualify for a mortgage. Moran continued, “FHA mortgage loans have been the only lending product we can count on and fortunately the government loans will consider the borrower’s compensating factors for approvals.”
On the other hand loan modification companies have never has more business. With millions of have homeowners on the brink of foreclosure, people are lining up to help people modify their loan terms. With the recent $850 billion dollars from the Financial Bail-Out package, you can bet that loan modifications will only increase in 2009. Once we get past the foreclosure crisis most financial critics agree that home refinancing will resume back on its normal course.
Mortgage lenders have started to negotiate with borrowers who are not delinquent with their mortgage. In most cases, you don’t have to be 60 days late to get a loan modification any more. The Chinese define crisis as danger and opportunity. Hopefully Americans will utilize this foreclosure crisis and seize the opportunity to move forward as a stronger more pragmatic country.
By: Bryan Dornan
Posts Tagged ‘Mortgage Business’
Loan Modifications, Mortgage Refinance Loans and the Foreclosure Crisis
April 21st, 2010Refinance Home Loan Mortgage Rates Fall Sharply
November 15th, 2009
The mortgage industry has experienced slow application activity over the past several months, but that jogging pace may turn into a sprint as mortgage rates fell to historical lows recently. On November 25, the government announced some major credit stimulation initiatives in a bold move to bolster the depressed housing and mortgage markets. On the news, home loan rates tumbled by one-half percent, a move seldom encountered in the mortgage business. Three major components came together to create the sharp drop. First, the Treasury announced that they would now guarantee Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac debt and purchase up to $100 billion of that debt, thereby bolstering investor attraction to the safety of their issued bonds. Secondly, the Treasury announced that it would purchase up to $500 Billion of Fannie, Freddie, and Ginnie securities, creating much needed liquidity in the mortgage markets. Finally, Treasury yields dropped in a major one-day move, almost one-quarter percent on the 10-Year Treasury bond.
The result of this perfect storm of financial news was a one-half percentage point drop in mortgage rates and a potential beginning for stabilization in housing. Historically low mortgage rates may be just the stimulus needed to drive potential homebuyers off the fence to begin the offering process. After the government announcement, many lenders were offering par rates in the 5.5 percent range for 30-year fixed rate mortgages. Home loans at this price may be a hard deal to pass up for those refinancing loans and purchasing homes, especially in light of the roller coaster ride that mortgage rates have taken so far this year.
On the refinancing front, although interest rates are low, home prices continue to deteriorate across the country. The National Association of Realtors recently announced that sales of existing homes fell by 3.1 percent in October, and the median home sales price plunged 11.3 percent from a year ago to $183,000. On this news, it’s important to keep in mind that a homeowner’s qualified refinance home loan interest rate may not be as low as advertised offer rates, if their loan-to-value (LTV) ratio exceeds 80 percent. So, it’s a good idea for those considering a mortgage refinance to get a handle on the value of their home, before they start shopping rates. The spread appears to be tightening for higher LTV home loan scenarios, but those refinancing over 90 percent of their home’s value will most likely get the best deal with an FHA refinance.
As for the rate outlook ahead, many feel that the current low mortgage rates will continue for a while. Whether they decline even further is anyone’s guess, but a leveling in home prices could be just the medicine needed for further rate dips.
By: Jim Bisnett