Dora Griffin's Blog

  OFFSHORE APPRAISAL REVIEWS Those of us in the industry have read with interest articles this week about Bank of America sending their appraisal review to India. Reasons cited include, of course, cost. See the article here from "Mortgage Servicing News". http://www.nationalmortgagenews.com/daily...

IS THIS AN APPRAISAL OR PIN THE TAIL ON THE DONKEY?   I received two appraisals last week, both under the expected value. One by a margin that the transaction could be worked out fairly easily. The other, came in 5% under what I imagined would be the LOWEST possible scenario, meaning it came in n...

  IS LYING FOR YOUR SELLER ETHICAL? I ran into a familiar situation this week. A buyer who wrote a contract on a property that had been on the market for quite a while. Her agent through research thought it was overpriced. Often when a property sits on the market, price is the problem!  So, this ...

NON QUALIFIED MORTGAGES... THE FORBIDDEN FRUIT In checking out various publications, it is hard to not see something on a daily basis about qualified mortgages. What are they? What will become of those borrowers who do not fit "qualified" mortgages guidelines? Will mortgage lending tighten even m...

FHA MI CHANGES JUNE 2013 BUYER BEWARE   JUNE 3, 2013 will bring big changes to FHA. Real estate agents and home buyers need to be aware of how the changes in FHA will impact a home purchase. FHA for a long time has been a go to loan program for first time home buyers in particular. Higher debt to...

DO I NEED MONEY TO BUY A HOME? I get this a lot, as a loan originator a potential home buyer calls, especially a first time buyer and we discuss what is needed to buy a home. We cover the credit history, the job and income history, record two years of residence history, talk about debt to income ...

                         WHAT THE CFPB COMPLAINTS SAY ABOUT MORTGAGE BROKERS   Well, it seems after years of the mortgage broker taking it on the chin for the housing collapse, there is good news! Many of us in the industry are constantly hearing those unknowingly using the broker name in vain. N...

        USDA/RURAL HOUSING UPDATE!   Another USDA/Rural Housing Update for Northern Kentucky markets. While the latest news does affect more markets than Northern Kentucky, it is good news! In an earlier post I made note that with the 2010 census bureau there would be some realignment of USDA/RHS...

     Need A Real Estate Agent Recommendation? CAN YOU RECOMMEND A REAL ESTATE AGENT? I've heard this three times this week. It is a sign spring is around the corner. Requests for prequalifications are on the rise and along with it requests for recommendations for a real estate agent. I love bein...

HOW WILL CFPB COUNT L O COMPENSATION? With the CFPB closing the comment period on 2/25/2013 regarding loan originator compensation, here's one Loan Originator hoping they can do simple math.   The CFPB has described the "originator" as the company who originates the loan.  The CFPB has a 3% limi...