Mortage Tips and Home Loan Tips
Applying for a home loan could be a dreadful experience, especially if you are a first-time home buyer. There’s a lot of paperwork and longwinded processing involved. But still, it is worth your effort. This comprehensive mortgage guide will walk you through the process of securing financing for your home and make you feel that applying for a mortgage is not that dreadful after all.
Don’t fall for mortgage fraud
1. Learn the mortgage lingo
When you shop for a home loan and read through a number of mortgage terms and conditions, you will come across financial terminology that you probably won’t find elsewhere. It is very important for you to understand those mortgage terms so that you can secure the best deal possible. In fact, many financial institutions and real estate firms offer free homebuying seminars, which can help you understand what people are talking about in real estate business. Here are some basic mortgage terms that you should know:
APR - Annual percentage rate, intended to reflect the annual cost of borrowing. It is also known as the “advertised rate” or “headline rate”, that should make it easier for borrowers to compare lenders and loan options.
AAPR - The annualised average percentage rate or “the true rate”. It is calculated for the nominal interest rate per annum, the compounding frequency and all upfront and ongoing fees over a seven-year period (the average term of a loan).
Arrears - An overdue amount of interest that is yet to be paid on your home loan.
Closing Costs - Closing costs include “non-recurring closing costs” and “prepaid items.” Non-recurring closing costs are any items to be paid just once as a result of buying the property or obtaining a loan. Prepaid items are items which recur over time, such as property taxes and homeowners insurance. Usually a lender is supposed to estimate both the amount of non-recurring closing costs and prepaid items, then issue them to the borrower within three days of receiving a home loan application.
Collateral - A collateral is what you use to secure a loan or guarantee repayment of a loan. In a mortgage loan, the property is the collateral. The borrower will lose their property if the loan is not repaid according to the agreements of the mortgage.
What are dangerous mortgage practices?
There are a lot of good mortgage lenders across the country, both banks and small lending businesses. But, There are many dangerous lenders that will try to hurt you financially buy getting you a mortgage for terms and conditions that are very high and that can ruin you financially. Here are some things to watch out for and avoid when choosing a mortgage lender. Bad mortgage lenders will try to do the following:
1. Sell properties for much more than they are worth using false appraisals.
2. Encourage mortgage borrowers to lie about their income, expenses, or cash available for down payments in order to get a loan.
3. Knowingly lend more mortgage money than a borrower can afford to repay.
4. Charge high interest rates to borrowers based on their race or national origin and not on their credit history.
5. Charge fees for unnecessary or nonexistent products and services.
6. Pressure mortgage borrowers to accept higher-risk loans such as balloon loans, interest only payments, and steep pre-payment penalties.
7. Target vulnerable borrowers to cash-out refinances offers when they know borrowers are in need of cash due to medical, unemployment or debt problems.
8. “Strip” homeowners’ equity from their homes by convincing them to mortgage again and again when there is no benefit to the borrower.
9. Use high pressure sales tactics to sell home improvements and then finance them at high interest rates.
Watch out for these warning signs!
1. A lender or investor tells you that they are your only chance of getting a mortgage or owning a home. You should be able to take your time to shop around and compare prices and houses.
2. The house you are buying costs a lot more than other homes in the neighborhood, but isn’t any bigger or better.
3. You are asked to sign a sales contract or mortgage documents that are blank or that contain information which is not true.
4. You are told that the Federal Housing Administration insurance protects you against property defects or loan fraud - it does not!!!!
5. The cost or mortgage terms at closing are not what you agreed to.
6. You are told that getting a new mortgage or second mortgage can solve your credit or money problems.
7. You are told that you can only get a good deal on a home improvement if you finance it with a particular lender.
Armed with this information I hope that these lists of bad mortgage practices and ways to spot bad mortgage lenders will help you out and save you a lot of pain and heartache
Mortgage Insurance - Mortgage insurance is designed to protect the lender in case the borrower defaults on their loan, and the sale of the property cannot cover the outstanding debt.