Tim Lucas's (timothyalucas) Blog

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RECENT BLOG POSTS
  If any of you Realtors have any clients looking to buy or sell a condo in the next year, or if you are a prospective home buyer looking for a condo, this will affect you.  Condo buyers who have less than 20% down and/or are looking to use an FHA loan on a condo will be very limited in financing...
12/08/2009
On December 12, 2009, it will be a whole lot harder for home buyers to qualify for a mortgage. Currently, a home buyer with good credit can go up to 55% debt-to-income ratio and still qualify. On 12/12, Fannie Mae is limiting that to 45%, with some flexibility to 50%.  This means that prospective...
12/08/2009
The House Financial Services Committee is discussing the possibility of raising costs on FHA loans. They are proposing an increased down payment from the current 3.5% up to 5%.  Other options being discussed are raising the up front mortgage insurance premium form the current 1.75% to 3%, or limi...
12/02/2009
Stock markets around the world were reeling last week because of Dubai's announcement that they needed more time to pay back nearly $60 billion in debt. Dubai has run up massive debt with building projects they hoped would help it become a world class destination. With the recent credit crisis an...
11/30/2009
Today is one of those days that leaves a hole in you. As time goes on from this historic day, I hope Michael Jackson will be remembered for all the good he did in the world:  Best selling albums, breaking racial barriers in the music industry, giving people happiness and inspiration. I hope also ...
06/25/2009
Even though I'm a Gen Xer, I was pretty reluctant to get on the social networking bandwagon.  But I'm starting to see potential of networking sites like Facebook at Twitter. I joined Facebook and within days I reconnected to people I haven't seen or talked to in 10 years. In a few cases, I found ...
06/22/2009
Ever hear those stories like "I bought a home right by downtown X for $50,000 back in the '80s. Now it's worth $500,000." Those stories are annoying for all of us. But it's time to turn the tables. If you buy a home now and hang onto it, you will be able to say "I bought a home for X dollars at 5...
06/18/2009
The past few years has been a time of unprecedented change in the mortgage industry.  Banks and lenders go under almost every week, and the ones that are left are changing their rules daily to avoid the onslaught. This time of lending upheaval has brought about the new kind of Loan Officer: The T...
06/12/2009
  This blog post can now be seen at http://home-mortgages.suite101.com/article.cfm/chinas-role-in-mortgage-interest-rates  
06/04/2009
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Ouch...for all of you who wanted to get on the 4% bandwagon, those rates have gone the way of the buffalo.  Most predict rates in the 4's are gone forever. I helped many people join the club. A few waited too long. But rates are still good, in the low to mid 5's. Historically, that's still amazin...
05/29/2009
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