Living In Tucson Blog

Wow, the weeks have blown by since my last post. Lots of things have been happening in our industry and for me personally.  My family and  I spent the first half of July in South America and had an amazing time. We were there on a personal trip to visit our son Adam who has been living in Uruguay since January. We spent time in Buenos Aires, Iguazu Falls (Click here to check out my youtube video!) and Montevideo. It was a great trip and we had the opportunity to meet several cousins from my father’s side of the family for the first time! My Great Uncle Isidor had immigrated to Argentina in the early part of the 20th century and we spent time with his daughter and grandchildren. (Uncle Isidor pased away in 1981.)

Back in Tucson, my mortgage license was approved. All originators (except for the originators in those big banks like Wells Fargo, Chase and Bank of America) needed to be fully licensed in Arizona on July 1st to continue taking loan applications. National licensing is also required for originators including a background check. Several thousand loan originators have left the business because of the licensing requirement and thousands have been forced to the sidelines while going through the licensing process.

FHA announced some good news and some bad news. The upfront mortgage insurance premium has been reduced from 2.25% to 1%! The bad news it the monthly premium has rise to .9% from .55% for most transactions. Please get off the fence if you are thinking about purchasing a home with a FHA loan! You will save about $40 per month for a $200,000 loan. The implementation date is scheduled to be September 7th, but I have heard that it may get postponed until October 4th.

In other mortgage news, interest rates have been continuing to drop to record low levels in Freddie Mac’s weekly surveys. Freddie Mac has been reporting the weekly average of mortgage rates for over forty years. The phones have been busy with refinance and purchase applications. Unfortunately, not every applicant will qualify these days. The most common reasons for denials include credit issues, lack of down payments or lack of  equity for refinances, inability to verify income or assets and insufficient work history. Don’t despair! We are getting our qualified borrowers approved! I welcome your inquires and referrals.

For further information, contact David Wolsky at david@davidwolsky.com or call 520-275-2536. I have over 16 years of experience!

The Arizona Daily Star published a good article last week by Adrian Sainz about mortgage rates that you can access by clicking here:

Puzzled by mortgage rates? Here’s Q & A help

According to the May 7th Freddie Mac survey the national average for 30 year fixed rate conventional mortgages is 4.84% with .7% in points. Wow!! Great rates!! Why is my quote higher or lower? Well…rates are not one size fits all. They are tiered based on your loan-to-value ratio (LTV) and your credit score. If you are purchasing a home and have a 10% down payment and a 680 FICO score, your rate will be slightly higher than a buyer with a 25% down payment with a 740 score. If you are refinancing your home and your LTV is over 70% and your score is under 740, you will likely be quoted a higher rate or higher points.

Fannie Mae (FNMA) and Freddie Mac have changed the rate or point structure significantly in the past eighteen months for borrowers with lower credit scores and higher LTV ratios. At the same time, credit guidelines have also tightened. Another recent change in mortgage rates is points! In the past fifteen years, lenders paid premiums or rebates to the originator in lieu of the borrower paying points to get a mortgage with low rates and fees. This year, the rebates are smaller and lenders are charging borrowers points. Here in Tucson at Sunstreet Mortgage, LLC, we have not seen as many zero point refinances or no cost refinances of conventional loans. One reason for this dynamic is because borrowers were refinancing the loans frequently and the lenders were not getting their money’s worth for the larger rebates. One positive aspect of the current rate and fee environment is the costs seem to pay for themselves within three years in most cases due to the historically low rates we are currently experiencing.

I would be happy to personally answer any mortgage related questions and concerns that you may have. I can be reached by calling me — David Wolsky – at 520-977-3300. I offer conventional, FHA and VA mortgages. I have fifteen years of experience originating mortgages. In fact, rates were double in 1994 than the current rates.

Here’s my brief commentary on the mortgage industry in Tucson for the month of April, 2009. Refinancings are going strong with record interest rates. Applications have really picked up! As I write this, most of my borrowers have come to the realization that you have to pay an origination fee or 1% of the loan amount as well as closing costs to get a rate under 5% for 30 year fixed rates. I am also in the process of helping a couple of borrowers with their Fannie Mae loans that fall under the new “Marking Home Affordable Program” for folks who owe more than 80% of the value of their homes, but less than 105%. To see if you qualify, go to www.fanniemae.com and enter your address into the form. If Fannie Mae owns your loan, I can help you! The rate will depend on your credit score and loan-to-value ratio (LTV). Your credit score and LTV will also determine your rate for traditional refinances.

For purchases, the lowest down payments are available for FHA loans and USDA loans. FHA loans have a maximum limit for a single family residence in Pima County of $316,250. The minimum down payment is 3.5% of the sales price. The USDA Rural Housing has increased their income limits to $73,600 for a household with 1 to 4 persons and $97,150 for a household of 5 to 8 persons. The loan program features a ZERO down payment with NO MORTGAGE INSURANCE! The properties must be within geographic boundaries that are considered rural, but that would include Marana, Vail and Sahuarita.