The Down Payment Assistance programs are still up in the air, unknown at this time, whether or not that they will be extended beyond the March 28th deadline. This is for all DPA programs such as Nehemiah and AmeriDream. Judge Friedman of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia issued an injunction prohibiting HUD from implementing the downpayment assistance rule back on October 31,2007. He was suppose to have revisited this ruling on February 28th, 2008. But at this time, the injunction still remains in effect and the judge can come back at any time to make his final decision.        FHA is still working on the actual loan limits which should be any time soon. Part of the FHA reform act, which is going to be part of the economic stimulus package, was going to in... 03/03/2008

How many of you out there start your search on the internet when it comes to buying a home or refinancing your current home?  You do a few weeks of research trying to find that lender or real estate agent that not only gets back to you in a timely manner, gives you good information, but that you feel good about them because they seem honest and caring. Wake up call !!!!  Yes, I believe that many of us have that gut that can usually pick out those that are phonies or might truly be a good sales person. But then again, are some of these people that good, that their primary goal is just to get you into the door? Once you are in, paid a fee or a deposit to proceed, you don't feel the warm fuzzy's that you felt from your initial contact with them. What seemed like a perfect marriage at firs... 02/22/2008

    The mortgage process, whether you are applying for a FHA mortgage or a convnetional mortgage, the process should not be as difficult as it appears more times than none. After over 15 1/2 years in the mortgage industry, I just don't understand why some loan officers just don't learn the basics, instead of trying to sell rate and fees. They get so caught up in this, oversell the rate and undercut fees, that they lose sight of the service part of the mortgage process. And the basics of knowing what questions to ask.  As I mentioned in Part 1, the Purchase CHECKLIST is so critical. This is why it's so important to talk to a loan officer before you even set out to purchase a home. I can't tell you how many consumers that I have talked to in the last 6 months that started to look, fell i... 02/21/2008