Kenn Renner's (kennrenner) Blog

Another good case for negotiation and great deals is for what are called “aging specs.” Spec homes (a.k.a. inventory homes) are homes built as inventory – without a particular home buyer in mind. The reason builders build spec homes is so they have homes available for a buyer who doesn’t have the...

Most first time home buyers purchase from large national or local volume home builders. These builders are corporations that rely on their reported financial statements to reflect their ongoing performance as a company. It’s all about “the numbers.” The monthly, quarterly, and yearly “numbers.” K...

Homebuilding is a huge economic force. Even in tougher times, hundreds of thousands of homes are built each year by private builders, small home building companies and large “production” builders. The majority of homes built in America are built by large production builders. Production home build...

There are four main areas that lenders evaluate when reviewing your loan application. They are: 1. Employment/Income 2. Assets 3. Liabilities/Credit 4. The Property Employment Home mortgage lenders look at a borrower’s income, employment, job stability, and whether a borrower is self-employed or ...

Discuss with your lender the interest rate lock policy. In most cases, you will have to have found a property before you can lock an interest rate. Rates are usually locked for sixty days or less. Extended locks can be requested but may involve an up front “lock fee.” Keep in mind that interest r...

The following questions will help qualify your lenders. They will also imply that you know how their business works which sets a professional tone: 1. How long has the loan officer been in the lending business? (I consider at least five years or longer to be good.) 2. What was their loan volume l...

A top tier lender will know the program guidelines and how to best direct you to the home loan product that will best fit your needs. Also, a top tier lender will charge a fair and equitable interest rate and fees. There are several different types of lending companies and all have their advantag...

The majority of first time loans are government backed or government insured. A few examples of minimum down payment home loan products that you may be discussing with your loan officer are: 1. F.H.A. Insured Mortgage – F.H.A. is a 3.5% down payment home loan product (most first timers use F.H.A....

Down payment, closing costs, & prepaid expenses The minimum down payment for most home buyers is 0% to 3.5% down. The average closing costs on a purchase are 2-3% of the sales price and the prepaid expenses are 1-2% of the sales price. Some closing costs and prepaid items can be financed into the...

The great news is that the government realized how important first time homebuyers are to the economy and have made it attractive and easier to get financing by offering tax credits and incentives to first time homebuyers. Loans for first timers are available and insured by the government. The Fe...