Marc Brinitzer's (merlin) Blog

For those who missed it, the Sacramento Bee posted this article Tuesday.  The 80 or so comments that follow the article make for a lively and sometimes ugly discussion.  Not particularly cheery, but there is a silver lining.    Foreclosures in full boom In ominous sign of more to come, capital r...

One of my agents emailed this to me today.   It’s part of a newsletter from National Realty News…. An Open Apology From The Publisher of The National Realty News  Wednesday, March 14, 2007 Last November several of our staff attended the National Association of Realtors annual convention in New O...

In the scramble to address the difficulties of home owners trapped in bad loans, help may be on the way. From the Associated Press today: MORTGAGE GIANTS MAY HELP BORROWERS WASHINGTON (AP) - The heads of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac said Tuesday the mortgage finance giants are developing new types...

It is said that “once sub-prime, always sub-prime.” Well…maybe not in those exact words. But you may have heard it argued that people with lousy credit don’t change their habits. If that’s true, the sub prime 2/28 loan is a mortgage death sentence. In my experience, many people become sub prime ...

I recently wrote about FHA Access, a wonderful and safe way to obtain 103% financing. With 100% financing becoming more scarce every day, I’ve been rechecking guidelines for traditional 100% loan programs. I’ve done plenty of FHA, VA and 100% agency loans, but that was years ago, and it’s time n...

Mortgage rates rose just a bit this week on a strong unemployment report. Here in the West, the 30 year fixed rate mortgage reached an average of 6.18% with .6 points. Behind the Numbers “Interest rates in general ticked up following the release of the March employment data, which showed stronge...

Today’s message from Wells Fargo on 100% stated income/stated asset loans. Urgent notice: Wells Fargo Home Equity will continue to have SIVA (stated income/verified assets) to 100%, however, the Stated Income/Stated Asset to 100% will no longer be offered for loans locked/registered on or after ...

…the jist of this is that HSBC pulled it’s high LTV 2nds off the shelf today. 100% financing is disappearing fast. MortgageIT and Chase Manhattan Mortgage also announced similar changes in the last two days. IMMEDIATE CHANGES TO HSBC STAND ALONE AND BLENDED HOME EQUITY PRODUCTS Due to current ma...

Here is this morning’s installment in the ongoing subprime meltdown. Realtor and borrowers need to be very cautious, even when borrowers appear to be fully approved. Lenders are shutting down suddenly, cancelling loans, and leaving borrowers stranded. As fewer options remain, the type of loan fo...

A couple of weeks ago I wrote an article called Qualifying For a Home Loan: 6 Reasons to Consider FHA.  Not all lenders have been around long enough to remember FHA loans.  Those who have remember the extra requirements that made FHA loans unpopular with sellers.  But it’s a buyer’s market today...