Most lenders have always been good about giving their customers this information at application and most lenders don’t change their fees significantly between application and closing so this should not be a problem. This law really will protect the consumer by forcing all lenders to disclose their fees accurately and in a timely manner so customers aren’t sitting at the closing table thinking…”This isn’t the loan I signed up for!”

So what documentation should a borrower receive when they apply for a loan? The two documents in question are a Good Faith Estimate and a Truth in Lending Disclosure. The Good Faith Estimate breaks down the payment for the loan, discloses the down payment required, type of loan, the closing costs that the lender expects to charge and the items to set up the borrower’s escrow accounts if the borrower will be putting real estate taxes and homeowner’s insurance in an escrow account.

The Truth in Lending tells a customer the annual percentage rate, how much they will pay in finance charges, whether the loan is fixed or variable and whether a loan has a pre-payment penalty, among other items. All the things you’d like to know in writing before you agree to the loan, huh?

One of the first numbers on a Truth in Lending Disclosure is the Annual Percentage Rate. APR is a required item to be disclosed when you make a major purchase like a car or a home. It blends the note rate with the cost of the financing.

The official definition reads: “APR is the cost of the loan in percentage terms taking into account various loan charges of which interest is only one such charge. Other charges which are used in calculation of the Annual Percentage Rate are Private Mortgage Insurance or FHA Mortgage Insurance Premium (when applicable) and prepaid finance charges (loan discount, origination fees, prepaid interest and other credit costs). The APR is calculated by spreading these charges over the life of the loan which results in a rate higher than the interest rate shown on your mortgage/deed of trust note. If interest was the only finance charge, then the interest rate and the annual percentage rate would be the same.”

Charges on the Good Faith Estimate which are for actual services, like a survey and an appraisal, don’t impact annual percentage rate. However, charges on the form that go to pay lender’s and title company’s overhead do impact the annual percentage rate.

The important way this protects the consumer is that the figures disclosed at loan application can’t vary much between application and closing without letting the customer know in advance. This law won’t hurt a consumer dealing with a reputable lender, but it will protect a consumer who has fallen in with a lender who planned to bait and switch.

As of the time of this writing, these 79 Foreclosures (or possible Short Sales) that are currently listed in Greenwood range in price from $680,000 all the way down to only $24,800….amazing!!!

This is an even better and easier way to search for these types of properties than on our Multiple Listing Service or through the Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors.  I’m not even sure that Realtor.com has a searching tool that’s this easy.

This is so awesome and we’ve just added it to our website to make it easy for you to search for Greenwood Foreclosure Homes, too.  Check it out and let us know what you think!

When using the VA Loan to purchase your Greenwood IN home, Veterans (or active duty service people who have served enough years to earn their eligibility) can borrow more than 100% of the sales price of the home.

Here’s how it works:  When you use the VA Loan to purchase your Greenwood IN home, you’re going to pay a VA Funding Fee.  This VA Funding Fee is normally about 1.25% – 3.3% of the loan amount (this amount is going to vary somewhat depending on whether you have been full-time military or reservist and whether you have used your VA eligibility before).

This funding fee then gets added onto your loan amount and if you are entering the home with no money down your loan amount is 100% of the sale price of the home.  Add the VA Funding Fee to this amount and that is how VA is able to finance more than 100% of the sale price of the home.  It’s quite possible that Disabled American Veterans may be exempt from paying this Funding Fee, so be sure to check on that if you are a DAV.

Another huge advantage of using the VA Loan to purchase your Greenwood IN home, besides not needing a down payment, is the fact that these loans have no monthly mortgage insurance!  That’s always good news and another way to keep your monthly house payment down.

If you’re thinking about using the VA Loan to purchase your new Greenwood IN home, be sure you have your VA Eligibility Certificate handy.  Not sure where yours is?  Click Here to obtain it.  You definitely don’t want this to be a last minute hang up when you’ve found your Greenwood IN dream home. 

Rates for using a VA Loan to purchase your Greenwood IN home are very competitive and qualification is not difficult.  But it will be important for you to talk with a local Greenwood IN Mortgage Lender so you know what the VA Loan Limits are for your particular area.

The bottom line is, if you’ve served in the military, be sure to ask about using the VA Loan to purchase your Greenwood IN home.  And most importantly, thanks for serving our country.  We appreciate all you do.

By the way, this information was provided for us by Jody Bleier at Stonegate Mortgage.  If you’re wanting a quick response and excellent service, contact Jody NOW at:  317.213.1387  Also . . . be sure to ask Jody about using the VA Loan to refinance your current mortgage, as well!

If you found this information helpful, you might also enjoy

http://ishopgreenwood.com/2008/12/19/more-specifics-on-the-fha-203k-loan/

http://ishopgreenwood.com/2008/12/13/is-it-really-possible-to-roll-rehab-money-into-my-mortgage/

http://ishopgreenwood.com/2008/12/03/i-have-no-down-paymentcan-i-still-buy-a-home/

Again, this is a great loan for financing HUD Homes, Bank Owned Properties and “As Is” or “Handyman Specials”.

From our friends at Indy Mortgage, “Here are some allowable improvements:

• Roofs
• Gutters
• Downspouts
• Windows
• Siding
• Doors
• Kitchens
• Bathrooms
• Room Additions
• Appliances
• A/C
• Hot Water Tank
• Well
• Septic
• Floors
• Basement Waterproofing
• Basement Finishing
• Porches
• Patios and more!”

If you are anywhere near the Greenwood or Indianapolis area, you know our real estate market is full of HUD Homes and Bank Foreclosures to choose from.

Want to try your hand at bringing some love back in to these once loved homes?  Give us a call at 317.893.1636 or send me an email at Shawna@iShopGreenwood.com 

We’d be more than happy to hook you up with the best deals and the best loan programs for these types of projects.  Contact us today!

Prior to closing, you will need to have contractors come in and give you bids for how much it will cost to make the needed repairs to your new home.  Now your new loan amount will be based upon the sale price of the home plus the amount of money it will take to make the repairs.

After closing, you will have a limited amount of time to get all of the repairs made.  Then the property will be re-inspected by the lender and if everything meets their approval, the money to pay for the repairs is then released to the contractors.

There are many HUD owned and bank owned properties that could qualify for the FHA 203k loan program.  Right now, the loan limits for FHA loans in the Indianapolis area is $271,050.  And best of all, the down payment needed for an FHA loan is only 3% of the purchase price.  But if you’re thinking about going this direction, you may not want to put it off because this down payment amount will be increased to 3.5% as of January 1, 2009.

Want more info or want to see if you could qualify for this type of loan program?  Please contact Jody Bleier at Stonegate Mortgage (317.213.1387) and be sure you tell her you found out about her at iShopGreenwood.com !  Good luck!  Thanks for the info Jody!

These loans are Zero Down and require no Monthly Mortgage Insurance (commonly referred to as “PMI”).  They do, however, collect a Guarantee Fee which ends up getting financed into the loan (so yes, the customer ends up financing more than 100% into the loan when you figure there was no down payment, plus an additional fee rolled in).

Borrowers must meet income limits and the property must fall into a Rural Housing designated area.  Right now, the income limits are based on household size and go up incrementally per person.

After January 1st, they will have only two categories of income: 1. Family of 4 or under  or  2. Family of greater than 4.  This will benefit singles and couples with no children as they will be able to take advantage of higher income limits.

To find out if a property you are interested in is in a USDA area, simply go to www.rurdev.usda.gov 

From there you will need to go to:

• Housing and Community Facilities, then
• Income and Property Eligibility, then
• Property Eligibility – SF Housing, then
• Accept their terms and plug in the address you’re curious about

This information came to us courtesy of Jody Bleier with Stonegate Mortgage here in Greenwood.  If you have more specific questions, please feel free to contact her directly at:  317.213.1387  And be sure you tell her that you found her at iShopGreenwood.com !

Well, I think there has been a lot of confusion over the years (even among Realtors) about exactly what an Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement and why it is important.

Essentially, if you’re working with a Realtor that you like and that you feel comfortable with, and you want them to represent you in your real estate transaction then yes, by all means, you need to enter into an Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement with that Realtor.

It seems to be common knowledge that if you’re a Seller wanting to list your home, you sign a Listing Contract with your Realtor.  When you do this, it means that you (the Seller) and the Realtor have entered into an Exclusive relationship in which you have agreed to hire the Realtor to represent you in the transaction and the Realtor has agreed to represent you (the Seller) and your best interests in the transaction.

Well, if you’re a Buyer out running around calling the phone numbers listed on every For Sale sign you see, and you have not signed an Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement with any one particular Realtor, then at the end of the day, who is really obligated to help you and represent your best interests in the real estate transaction?

No One!  The only people being properly represented in that real estate transaction are the Sellers!

So regardless of who you choose to work with, be sure you ask about getting an Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement signed.  And Realtors, don’t be afraid to ask the Buyer to sign one.  It is in your Buyers best interest and gives them the assurance that you are going to be loyal to them and not jump ship mid way through the process!

PS – Want to take a sneak peak at what the Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement looks like before signing one? By all means, please let us know, we’ll be happy to send you a copy!

Sure, there’s a crisis going on and many are not going to be able to get a mortgage right now.  But for those of you that have been good with your money and have protected your credit, now is your time to take advantage of this crazy situation we’ve found ourselves in.

No matter what you’re looking at to buy right now, whether it be clothes, or a car or what have you, good deals are all around us.  But when we bring it specifically to the world of real estate, the deals that can be had right now are on a much grander scale.

If you’re a “Move Up Buyer” and looking to get into “that” neighborhood….now is the time to do it!  Go ahead, take a hit on the sale of your home, but take advantage of the hit that the seller of “that” home is having to take.

For example, if you’re taking a 10% hit on the sale of your home, how does that help you buy another one?  Well, a $100,000 home minus 10% is now going to sell for $90,000.  Ouch! That doesn’t feel good! 

But look, a 10% hit on a $200,000 home means you can now buy your next home for $180,000.  You lose $10,000 on the sale of your current home, but gain $20,000 on the purchase of your next home.  At the end of the day, that still puts you ahead by $10,000!

Or…maybe you don’t have any desire to move right now.  Fine.  Stay in your current home, but take advantage of this mortgage crisis and buy bargain homes and hold on to them as rental properties.  Because people are going to have a harder time getting approved for mortgages right now, it means that the rental market is going to be in even greater demand.

Bottom line – if you’ve been good with your money and have protected your credit along the way, now is the time to reward yourself…Go For It!

General Info:

Housing Type

click to enlarge

From what we can see, it looks like most of our residents are staying in their homes close to 4 years before moving onto the next one and that our Median Home Price in the 46142 zip code is $99,000.

A little over 40% of our residents stay in their homes for more than 5 years; the average home is about 22 years old and every year, approximately 19% of the homes in our 46142 zip code get sold to new owners.

Nothing earth shattering, but kind of neat stuff to know!

Yes, if you have been pre-approved for a loan program that allows the seller to pay your down payment for you, you absolutely have to close on the house BY THE END OF THIS MONTH – SEPTEMBER 30, 2008 or there’s a very good chance you’re not going to get the help you need!

This is very serious business.  Do you already have an accepted offer on a home?  If so, have you made sure that your contract specifically states that you are to close “on or before September 30, 2008″? 

Or even worse…have you been pre-approved for a down payment assistance program but have not even made an offer on a home yet?

If that’s the case, your window of opportunity may already be closed, but that is definitely a question for your specific lender. 

From what I’ve heard, you should have already had an accepted offer by the end of August for you to qualify for the program.  But again, please check with your lender for the specifics.  But the point is, if you were counting on the seller to pay your down payment for you…the clock is ticking!!!

Have a comment or question?  Click Here for the Financing Option that’s best for you?