| | | | Meet the $8K Home Buyer Deadline with Help from LGBT Pros | | | | | Most people shopping for a home this year are keenly aware that a special $8,000 new home buyer credit is being offered as part of the government’s emergency economic stimulus legislation. But the clock is ticking toward the expiration date and unless the provision is amended or renewed to extend the deadline, buyers only have until the end of November to finalize their purchases. First timers are urged to do whatever they can to streamline the real estate shopping experience, and working with a gay-friendly Realtor and lender can often save valuable time for LGBT new home buyers.
A gay or lesbian couple may need to seek legal and financial advice in order to help them better understand their rights as owners, for example, since many of the benefits related to real estate ownership are only available to those couples who are legally married according to state and federal statutes. An experienced Realtor accustomed to working with LGBT clients will either know the answers immediately or be able to quickly refer the buyers to a reputable real estate attorney who is well-versed in complex LGBT legal issues.
Similarly, those who want to buy together gay may encounter complic... | | | Read more | | | | | Tips for Buyers: How to Tour a Home like a Professional | | | |  Making appointments to view houses that are on the market can be great fun. If you are not just window-shopping but are seriously looking for property, the chance to tour a home can be critical to your financial decisions and have an impact on your personal living situation for years to come. But touring condos and houses can also be a foolproof way to waste a perfectly good weekend, especially if you are not sure exactly what to look for or how to maximize the brief window of opportunity that a real estate showing provides. | | | Read more | | | | | Plain Talk about Fancy Mortgages: Stick with the old-fashioned 30-year fixed. | | | |  The word “candidate” derives from the word “candid”, and politicians running for office this year have learned that voters prefer frank talk, not a sales pitch. The same is true for homeowners shopping for a mortgage. As we prepare for springtime – which is historically the best time to buy a home – it is appropriate to talk about ways to weed out the hype about exotic residential mortgages in favor of old-fashioned fixed rate loans.
The most recent bull market in real estate was artificially inflated by high-risk loans that encouraged consumers to leverage themselves to the max. The old fashioned and reliable 30-year fixed rate mortgage – which helped to steadily grow this nation’s housing market for many decades – was upstaged by sexier, trendier, more exotic residential mortgages. Too many borrowers got in over their heads a... | | | Read more | | | | | How Financial Overhaul Changes the Mortgage Market | | | | |
Here’s a look at some of the main changes for mortgages:
- The bill requires lenders to have “skin in the game” on certain loans that are bundled and sold to investors as securities. The provision requires lenders to retain at least 5% of the loans that are securitized. The bill exempts certain “safe” classes of mortgages, such as fixed-rate loans that require borrowers to fully document their incomes.
- The bill sets stricter limits on prepayment penalties, or fees charged when borrowers pay a loan off early.
- Lenders will have to take greater steps to ensure that borrowers have the ability to repay the loan they’re receiving. That means consumers will be required to show lots of paperwork—pay stubs, bank account statements, tax forms—to prove that they can afford the loan. (That could cause problems for some sel...
| | | Read more | | | | | The Gay Ghetto Top 10 for 2008 | | | GLBT towns, cities, villages, ghettos, enclaves, districts, quarters, and neighborhoods are referred to with various descriptive words. But they all represent blossoming pride, celebration, and reliable real estate value. | |  Each year we choose our Gay Ghetto Top 10 by cross-analyzing demographics against real estate sales data to discover those especially prized metropolitan areas throughout the USA that are most in vogue with the diverse GLBT community. When the number crunching is over, we usually have 10 distinct winners, individually ranked by virtue of their popularity. But for 2008 we have some unique and special surprises – including three 2-way ties and a 3-way tie. Our top 10 are so outstanding, in other words, that they rate higher than ever.
Here are our selections – ranked 1-6 to accommodate 10 championship GLBT communities:
#1 & #2 - Atlanta, GA & Portland, OR (2-Way Tie)
| | | Read more | | | | | Add Your Listing - Frequently Asked Quesions | | | |
You can't afford NOT to get listed at GayMortgageLoans.com. Just one additional client in the next year can return 100x your investment - instantly!
This is your passport to additional clients and additional profits. Your annual investment is less then you'd spend on ONE magazine ad! Research indicates over 80% of ALL NEW SEARCHES begin on-line!
Please read the"Frequently Asked Questions" below and contact us if there is anything we have not covered - your new pro... | | | Read more | | | | | Real Estate Green Living Tips: Save money with a sustainable home | | | |  Reducing the amount of materials and energy required to build or maintain a home can help to substantially reduce your carbon footprint. At the same time, a green approach to home ownership ensures greater peace of mind, physical comfort, and preservation of a sustainable investment over the lifetime of the home.
Save money while living a more responsible green lifestyle – whether buying a condo, remodeling a home, planning new construction, or just wanting to take simple environmentally conscious steps forward. Here are some of the many interesting paths to a greener home:
Construction Methods | | | Read more | | | | | Types of Loan Programs | | | | | 80/15/5
This is a loan which carries a second mortgage for up to 15% of the purchase price of the property. It is usually used when wishing to avoid PMI insurance or to keep your first mortgage under the FNMA/FHLMC limit to avoid Jumbo rates. The borrower puts down a 5% down payment and then finances a first mortgage up to the FNMA/FHLMC limit and a second mortgage of up to 15% of the purchase price. Other variations are 80/10/10 or 75/15/5.
FHA MORTGAGE
Backed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development this mortgage offers the borrower the ability to put as little a 3% down payment and they can even finance “allowable” closing costs. Seller can contribute up to 6% of the purchase price to the buyer towards closing costs.
Nehemiah FHA MORTGAGE
Same as above but with a down payment assistance granted to the borrower from the Nehemiah Corporation. The seller agrees to give the Nehemiah Corporation up to 4% of the purchase price and Nehemiah will grant back to the borrower up to 3% to be used as a down payment or towards closing costs.
203... | | | Read more | | | | | Closing The Deal | | | | | The closing is the final step in which the home is transferred to you. Once your loan is approved, a closing date is set. Depending on the laws of your state, the closing may be conducted by either:
- Your lender
- A title insurance or escrow company
- Your real estate broker
- An attorney who represents either you or the seller
Pre-closing activities
The purpose of the closing is to make sure the property is ready to be transferred to you from the seller. To ensure that the transfer can be made, the lender normally prepares the following items ahead of time:
| | | Read more | | | | | Underwriting | | | | | Once all the required documentation has been gathered, your application is submitted to underwriting. Underwriting is the process of reviewing all of the information and making a decision as to whether a borrower qualifies for a loan. Underwriters evaluate your ability to repay the loan (income), your willingness to repay the loan (credit) and the value of the property that you've identified (collateral).
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