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HR 3221, the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008

Monday, July 28, 2008
by Group One Realty Team - Real Estate One
Summary

(as of 7/24/08)

 

H.R. 3221, the “Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008,” passed the house on July 23rd by a vote of 272-152.  The Senate must now approve the language adopted by the House.  The Senate is expected to approve the bill on Friday, July 25th or Saturday, July 26th.   The President has said he will sign the bill.  It includes:

 

·         GSE Reform – including a strong independent regulator, and permanent conforming loan limits up to the greater of $417,000 or 115% local area median Home price, capped at $625,500.  The effective date for reforms is immediate upon enactment, but the loan limits will not go into effect until the expiration of the Economic Stimulus limits (December 31, 2008).

 

·         FHA Reform – including permanent FHA loan limits at the greater of $271,050 or 115% of local area median Home Price, capped at $625,500; streamlined processing for FHA condos; reforms to the HECM program, and reforms to the FHA manufactured housing program. The effective date for reforms is immediate upon enactment, but the loan limits will not go into effect until the expiration of the Economic Stimulus limits (December 31, 2008).

 

·         Homebuyer Tax Credit - a $7500 tax credit that would be would be available for any qualified purchase between April 8, 2008 and June 30, 2009.  The credit is repayable over 15 years (making it, in effect, an interest free loan).

 

·         FHA foreclosure rescue – development of a refinance program for homebuyers with problematic subprime loans.  Lenders would write down qualified mortgages to 85% of the current appraised value and qualified borrowers would get a new FHA 30-year fixed mortgage at 90% of appraised value.  Borrowers would have to share 50% of all future appreciation with FHA.  The loan limit for this program is $550,440 nationwide.  Program is effective on October 1, 2008.

 

·         Seller-funded downpayment assistance programs – codifies existing FHA proposal to prohibit the use of downpayment assistance programs funded by those who have a financial interest in the sale; does not prohibit other assistance programs provided by nonprofits funded by other sources, churches, employers, or family members.  This prohibition does not go into effect until October 1, 2008.

 

·         VA loan limits – temporarily increases the VA home loan guarantee loan limits to the same level as the Economic Stimulus limits through December 31, 2008.

 

·         Risk-based pricing – puts a moratorium on FHA using risk-based pricing for one year.  This provision does will be effective from October 1, 2008 through September 30, 2009.

 

·         GSE Stabilization – includes language proposed by the Treasury Department to authorize Treasury to make loans to and buy stock from the GSEs to make sure that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae could not fail.

 

·         Mortgage Revenue Bond Authority – authorizes $10 billion in mortgage revenue bonds for refinancing subprime mortgages.

 

·         National Affordable Housing Trust Fund – Develops a Trust Fund funded by a percentage of profits from the GSEs.  In its first years, the Trust Fund would cover costs of any defaulted loans in FHA foreclosure program.  In out years, the Trust Fund would be used for the development of affordable housing.

 

·         CDBG Funding – Provides $4 billion in neighborhood revitalization funds for communities to purchase foreclosed homes.

 

·         LIHTC – Modernizes the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program to make it more efficient.

·         Loan Originator Requirements – Strengthens the existing state-run nationwide mortgage originator licensing and registration system (and requires a parallel HUD system for states that fail to participate).  Federal bank regulators will establish a parallel registration system for FDIC-insured banks.  The purpose is to prevent fraud and require minimum licensing and education requirements.  The bill exempts those who only perform real estate brokerage activities and are licensed or registered by a state, unless they are compensated by a lender, mortgage broker, or other loan originator.


Click here for a copy of the bill lanuage.

Time to look for Property. Seller paid concessions run out on FHA loans Oct 1, 2008!.  Click here to get started with direct MLS Access for the Ann Arbor Michigan Area.

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Mortgage Payment Problems: Have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage Interest Rate Increase

Monday, March 3, 2008
by Group One Realty Team - Real Estate One
Many consumers with nontraditional and other new types of mortgages with lower initial payments are now facing significant increases in their monthly payments — called "payment shock."

The brochure download below explains the types of mortgages that are placing families at risk, provides suggestions for getting help by talking to a Tom Stachler with Real Estate One and reputable counseling persons or organizations, and urges borrowers to work with experts and their lender as soon as possible. The brochure lists some of the ways lenders may be willing to help borrowers avoid foreclosure.

Produced jointly by NAR, the Center for Responsible Lending, and NeighborWorks® America, this 5-panel brochure allows us to help consumers take early action to protect their homes whenever possible.

Need Help with determining your Property Value?  Click on this link to get a valuation report on your property emailed to you containing sold and active (comps) property pricing, marketing tips and more.

Download Learn How to Avoid Foreclosure and Keep Your Home (PDF: 1.7MB

Download brochure text (PDF: 71KB)

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Feds Announce Initiatve That Would Put Some Foreclosures on Hold for 30 Days

Wednesday, February 13, 2008
by Group One Realty Team - Real Estate One
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Homeowners threatened with foreclosure would in some instances get a 30-day reprieve under an initiative the Bush administration announced Tuesday.

Dubbed "Project Lifeline," the program will be available to people who have taken out all types of mortgages, not just the high-cost subprime loans that have been the focus of previous relief efforts.

The program was put together by six of the nation's largest financial institutions, which service almost 50 percent of the nation's mortgages.

These lenders say they will contact homeowners who are 90 or more days overdue on their monthly mortgage payments. The homeowners will be given the opportunity to put the foreclosure process on pause for 30 days while the lenders try to work out a way to make the mortgage more affordable to homeowners.

"Project Lifeline is a valuable response, literally a lifeline, for people on the brink of the final steps in foreclosure," Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson said at a joint news conference with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.

He said the goal was to provide a temporary pause in the foreclosure process "long enough to find a way out" by letting homeowners and lenders negotiate a more affordable mortgage.

Paulson said the new effort was just one of a number of approaches the administration was pursuing with the mortgage industry to deal with the country's worst housing slump in more than two decades.

In December, President Bush announced a deal brokered with the mortgage industry that will freeze certain subprime loans -- those offered to borrowers with weak credit histories -- for five years if the borrowers cannot afford the higher monthly payments as those mortgages reset after being at lower introductory rates.

"As our economy works through this difficult period, we will look for additional opportunities to try to avoid preventable foreclosures," Paulson said. "However, none of these efforts are a silver bullet that will undo the excesses of the past years, nor are they designed to bail out real estate speculators or those who committed fraud during the mortgage process."

In coming days, lenders will begin sending letters to homeowners who might qualify for the new program. Homeowners won't qualify if they have entered bankruptcy, if they already have a foreclosure date within 30 days, or if the Home loan was taken out to cover an investment property or a vacation home.

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that at least 1.3 million home mortgage loans were either seriously delinquent or in foreclosure at the end of the July-September quarter.

Private economists are forecasting that the number of foreclosures could soar to 1 million this year and next, about double the 2007 rate.

Officials did not have an estimate of how many people might be helped by the new "Project Lifeline" program.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said the finance industry and the administration were falling further and further behind in dealing with the growing crisis.

"This plan, while a step in the right direction, will not stem the tide of the millions of foreclosures we are facing in the coming months," Dodd said in a statement. His committee will hold a hearing on the housing crisis on Thursday with testimony from Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

The six participating banks are Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. Countrywide Financial Corp., J.P. Morgan Chase and Co., Washington Mutual Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co.

They are all members of the Hope Now Alliance, an industry group that is trying to coordinate a response to the mortgage crisis. Officials urged homeowners to call the group's toll free hot line number at 1-888-995-HOPE for assistance.

AP Business Writer Marcy Gordon contributed to this report.
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Take Advantage of Huge Incentives when you Purchase a HUD home with FHA Financing!

Tuesday, February 12, 2008
by Group One Realty Team - Real Estate One

The Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announce new sales incentives on HUD Homes being bought as primary residences in Michigan.

 

     1.) $100 Down Payment!

            Purchase a HUD Home with FHA-insured financing and put ONLY $100 down!

     2.) Sales Allowance!

            Purchasers using FHA financing will receive $2,500 at closing to use on repairs, closing costs, or to lower their mortgage amount.  Not using FHA financing? You will still receive $1,000 to assist in paying closing costs!

     3.) Available Statewide!

            This offer does not have restricted areas!  All homes, in Michigan, being purchased as Owner Occupied homes are eligible for these special incentives!

 

**Benefits of FHA Financing**

            Flexible Underwriting.

            No minimum credit scores.

            Competitive, often lower, interest rates.

            Government Insured.

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MORTGAGE DEBT CANCELLATION RELIEF/ HOME SALE ESTATE ISSUES

Monday, January 14, 2008
by Group One Realty Team - Real Estate One

H.R. 3648 – Public Law 110-142  Signed December 20, 2007

 

Summary:  There have been some changes affecting Home tax credits for persons either involved in a short sale or foreclosure and also for persons who have lost a spouse.  Generally, individuals who are relieved of their obligation to pay some portion of a mortgage debt on a principal residence between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2009 will not be required to pay income tax on any amount that is forgiven.

 

Background:  A fundamental principle of the income tax is that a taxpayer must recognize income and pay tax any time a debt of the taxpayer is forgiven or discharged.  Exceptions are provided in several circumstances, including bankruptcy, insolvency (as defined by state law) and for some investment real estate.  Until this new rule was enacted, however, no exception applied to any amount debt forgiven on a mortgage for a taxpayer’s principal residence. Thus, until now, when some portion of a mortgage debt was forgiven, that amount has been treated as taxable income and the borrower has been taxed at ordinary income rates on the forgiven amount, even though there is no cash.

 

The newly-enacted relief for mortgage debt forgiveness is Congress’s response to the problems generated by the subprime crisis, short sales, rising foreclosure rates and price corrections in some markets.  Thus, when a lender forgives some portion of a borrower’s mortgage debt in a short sale, a foreclosure, a workout with the lender or some similar circumstance, the borrower will not be required to recognize income or pay tax on the forgiven amount. This relief applies to debts forgiven between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2009.

 

Provisions: General

 

-          No income limitation: All borrowers receive the relief, no matter what their income.

-          Dollar limitation: No more than $2 millions of mortgage debt is eligible for the exclusion ($1 million of debt for a married filing separately return).

-          Relief applies only to an individual’s principal residence.

-          The forgiven mortgage debt must have been secured by that residence.

-          No relief is available for cash-outs, whether the cash-out takes the form of a refinanced first mortgage, second mortgage, home equity line of credit or similar arrangement.

-          Eligible debt is what is called “acquisition indebtedness.”  This is debt used to acquire, construct or rehabilitate a residence.

- Refinanced debt qualifies, so long as the debt does not exceed the original amount of the debt. (Same rule as Mortgage Interest Deduction)

- Home equity debt (or second mortgages) qualifies if the funds were used to improve the home.  (Borrower must have adequate records, as under current law.)

- See cash-outs, above. No amount of a cash out may be treated as acquisition debt.

 

Additional Information:

 

Refinanced Mortgages:  The relief does apply to refinanced debt in some circumstances.  The rules seek to assure that any debt eligible for the relief is directly related to the acquisition or improvement (such as rehabilitation, expansion, renovation, reconstruction) of the principal residence.  Debt used for furnishings (i.e., any movable property) in the home is not eligible for the relief.  When the proceeds of any refinanced debt is used for any purpose other than acquisition or improvement, those proceeds are not eligible for the relief.

 

Principal Residence:  A principal residence is defined in the same manner as the rules that apply to the capital gains exclusion on the sale of a principal residence.  An individual may not have more than one principal residence at any given time.

 

Second Homes:  As a general matter, the relief does not apply to any debt forgiveness on any mortgage for any second home of the taxpayer.  However, if a taxpayer uses a residence (other than his principal residence) solely as an income producing rental property, already existing relief provisions might apply, depending on the taxpayer’s situation.  If the second home property was acquired as a speculative investment (such as for resale rather than rental), relief provisions are unlikely to be available.

 

In all events an individual who is in a short sale, foreclosure, workout or similar situation on a residence (including condos) other than his principal residence should consult a tax adviser to determine what, if any, relief provisions might be available.

 

Other Provisions in H.R. 3648

 

Mortgage Insurance Premiums:  The deduction for mortgage insurance premiums is extended through tax year 2010. Income limitations on the deduction will continue to apply.

 

Surviving Spouses/$500,000 Exclusion:  In some circumstances, a surviving spouse is denied eligibility for the full $500,000 exclusion on the sale of his/her principal residence. This most frequently occurs when the residence is not held in joint ownership at the time the spouse who is not on the title dies.  In that case, the deceased spouse had no ownership interest, so there is no basis step-up on that half of the property. The surviving spouse is thus eligible only for an exclusion of $250,000. (Had the home been sold during the deceased spouse’s lifetime, the full $500,000 exclusion would have applied, so long as they filed a joint return.)

 

Challenges for the surviving spouse are compounded when this circumstance occurs late in the year. The surviving spouse is often unable to sell the property within the same year that the spouse died. This legislation provides that a surviving spouse may claim the full $500,000 exclusion not only in the year of the deceased spouse’s death, but also during the two years after the spouse’s death.

 

Second Homes Converted to Principal Residence:  The original house-passed version of this legislation included a provision that would have limited the application of the $250,000/$500,000 exclusion when a second home is converted to a principal residence and later sold. This change was not included in the final legislation that the President signed. 

 

 

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Ways Buyers Can Save Money at Close

Wednesday, January 9, 2008
by Group One Realty Team - Real Estate One

Seller Concessions:

Percentage of purchase price towards allowable costs (percentage depends on program and downpayment, see chart below).

 

In addition to concessions, sellers can pay for the following:

1. Seller can waive tax pro­-rations from the buyer on the purchase agreement.

2. Disburse Use and Occupancy fee's (if any) to Buyer at clos­ing.

3. Pre-­pay association fee directly to the association. By giving the buyer a paid receipt allows this cost to remain off the final HUD.

Conventional

Down Payment

Allowable Concession

0 - ­10%

3%

11 - ­24%

6%

25% or more

9%

FHA and Non­-Conforming

Down Payment

Allowable Concession

3%

6% for costs/3% for down­payment (through 3/31-­2008)

VA

Down Payment

Allowable Concession

0%

6%

Investment Properties

Down Payment

Allowable Concession

All down payments

2%

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7 Simple Steps to Raising Credit Scores in Only 3 Weeks

Sunday, July 22, 2007
by Group One Realty Team - Real Estate One

In the wake of the subprime market fallout, lenders are making it tougher for consumers to get a loan. As a result, borrowers would be wise to try to raise their credit scores to qualify for loan products that have better loan terms and  lower interest rates.


Starting Over, borrowers can follow seven simple steps to raise their credit scores. The steps required to raise credit scores may appear counterintuitive. In fact, individuals should be warned that without knowledge of how credit scores are derived, individuals can be damaging their credit scores rather than raising them when taking such actions as closing credit cards.


It is generally recommended that borrowers wishing to raise their credit scores first check their credit limits and evenly distribute the balances they’re carrying to help increase their credit scores, or that they pay them off in full to get the highest score increase. Make sure your maximum limit is reported.  When no limit is reported, credit scoring software presumes the account is ‘maxed out’. The credit scoring software scores more favorably the closer a balance is to zero. Balances over 70 percent damage credit the most, followed by the next tier of 50 percent and again by the tier of 30 percent of the maximum credit limit. Rather than carrying a large balance in an unfavorable tier, redistribute outstanding balances over several credit cards.


I would generally advise keeping credit cards open. Closing credit card accounts can hurt your score unless the accounts were opened less than two years ago, and you have over six credit cards.  Also consumers should make sure to keep their old credit cards open as well. Fair Isaac’s credit scoring software assumes that people who have had credit for a longer time are at less risk of defaulting on payments.


Borrowers also need to get rid of late payments listed on the credit report. Contact the creditors that report late payments and request a good faith adjustment that removes the late payments reported on your account.   Since you are a customer in good standing, the creditor may work with you. This may require more than one phone call. If you’re frustrated, rude or unclear with your request, you’re making it very difficult for the creditor’s representative to help you.  There are lenders that can help you with this process as well.  Contact my office for more details on Ann Arbor Area lenders or mortgage brokers that I have found to be helpful and competent.


A very important step is for consumers to rid themselves of any collection accounts by paying them off provided the collection agency agrees to delete them in return. Paying it off can otherwise actually lead to a decreased credit score due to the date of last activity getting updated to the current date when you pay. The consumer should contact the collector and request a letter explicitly stating their agreement to delete the account upon receipt or clearance of the payment. Although not all collection agencies will delete reporting, it’s certainly worth the effort.


Next, consumers should pay off past due amounts on delinquent accounts that are not in charge-off status. After that, I would advise getting rid of charge-offs and liens that are less than two years old. Charge-offs and liens that are older than 24 months do not affect your credit score nearly as much as ones under 24 months. But if they’re newer than 24 months, they can seriously damage your credit.  If you have both charge-offs and collection accounts, but have limited funds, I would advise paying off the past due balances first, then paying collection accounts that agree to remove all references to credit bureaus.


Individuals can positively affect their credit scores in as little as three weeks if your ambitious. It's just a matter of getting educated and focused on the best, fastest and most reliable course of action to raise one’s credit score.  If you are looking for a new Home, you might want to view new listings using the Realtors mls system by clicking here.  Other helpful credit tips can be viewed by click on this link.

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