There is a new blog spot on the internet and it is called Neighborhood Expert Online (NEO). It is a place for people that like the place they live and have information about that area to share with others that may be interested in the local neighborhood. It is new and there aren’t a lot of members yet, but I expect it to grow substantially over the next few months as people find out about it and discover that it is a great place to share information and knowledge about local areas. I recently posted information to NEO about the Eugene/Springfield Real Estate Mortgage market to correct some misconceptions and announce some news about First Time Home Buyers. Here is that post:

Eugene/Springfield, Lane County Real Estate Mortgage News

Posted by: eugeneloanguy (Fred Chamberlin) | February 26, 2009 | 1 Comment | (edit)

Today, I would like to correct and educate regarding some things that we in the mortgage business just assume that everyone knows, since we are always telling people about it. This has to do with Real Estate Loans, mortgage limits and seller contribution. Also, I want to touch on the Stimulus Package, First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit and local lending practices.

I just returned from my first attendance at the Springfield Chamber of Commerce Greeters breakfast meeting. One thing I have to admit, those people are really fired up for so early in the morning. It appears to be a great place to network and pick up some good contacts. The presentation today was about the Lane County Real Estate market and had a lot of good information about sales trends and what has been going on in our local market place as far as days on the market and sales prices.

Near the end of the presentation, the Realtor® tried to answer some questions having to do with mortgages and I felt that maybe I hadn’t done a good enough job of getting the word out about changes that have and are taking place in our market.

The first one was an easy miss, since it just happened this week. FHA raised the Lane County loan limit from $272,050 to $343,750 for a single family home, the same limit we had at the end of 2008. This will be especially helpful with purchases of foreclosures and short sales. Next was seller contribution to closing costs. In an FHA loan, the maximum seller contribution is 6% of the sales price and can be used to pay for closing costs and prepaids (taxes, insurance and interest). In addition, the minimum down payment for FHA loans is 3.5%, not 3% as of January 1. Seller contributions on conventional loans vary from 3% to 9%, depending on the down payment. Conventional loans have a maximum loan amount in Lane County of $417,000 for a single family home.

The Stimulus Package has a provision in it changing the First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit from $7,500 to $8,000 and making it an actual credit if you stay in the home for three years or more. This Tax Credit is available for all loans, FHA, VA, USDA, and conventional. Additionally, it is now available for those using the Oregon Bond program where the original tax credit was not. The full tax credit is 10% of the purchase price up to $8,000 and for buyers making up to $150,000 (joint) or $75,000 (single). A reduced credit is available if the buyers make more than this amount.

Credit requirements are changing for nearly every loan program. Although FHA does not have a credit score requirement, the actual lender may. Income documentation is a firm requirement on all loans except for streamline FHA and VA refinances. In this increased activity that has resulted from lower rates, I know that a lot of the local lenders are taking anywhere from 45 to 60 days (or more) to close a loan. With our local underwriting and doc drawing, we are still able to close purchase transactions in 30 days or less. I know there is a lot here, but I believe that it is very important that people have the right information, not just a portion of the news.  So, give me a call at 541-342-7576 to discuss your particular circumstances. I am your Neighborhood Expert Online.

 Please drop by NEO, I think you will find it interesting.

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