Johnston County | NC FHA Expert

FHA Appraisal NC Changes Effective1/1/2010

September 25, 2009 By Eleanor Leave a Comment

FHA Announced this week that it will make some “proceedural” changes to the appraisal process at the beginning of the year. They hope that the changes will, in some cases,

“help to expedite loan closing when a borrower decides to transfer their application to another lender during the transaction process. The changes also ensure that lenders are not obtaining second appraisals solely for the purpose of getting a higher value or eliminating required repairs.”

When a borrower (who is in process) moves their FHA loan from one lender to another, the original lender is required to move the FHA Case number to the new lender. At that time, most lenders will require a NEW appraisal. FHA wants to discourage this, and says you can only order a 2nd appraisal under limited circumstances.

These circumstances include:

The DE Underwriter for the second lender found material defects with the original appraisal.
The original appraiser is on the second lender’s exclusionary list.
The first lender failed to provide a copy of the appraisal in a timely
manner, which causes potential harm to the borrower for events outside of the borrower’s control. These events include rate lock expiration, purchase contract deadlines and foreclosure proceedings.
In all cases the lender must document the loan file regarding the reason for the second appraisal and both copies of the appraisal reports must be retained in the case binder.

In addition to THESE changes – FHA also announced that they will be changing procedures for ordering FHA appraisals, which move them firmly closer to the HVCC ruling that Fannie and Freddie adopted earlier this year.

FHA will prohibit appraisals ordered by mortgage brokers or borrowers, in addition to the current restriction of real estate agents’ involvement in the appraisal order process. Does this mean that a Broker can not order an appraisal? No. It simply means that they can not SPEAK to the appraiser, and it will be ordered on a rotation basis, OR ASSIGNED by the LENDER. This process has worked POORLY for the consumer (IMHO) and I’m sad that FHA took this position. But – these are the rules, and we will work with them!

If you are looking for a FHA Mortgage in Cary, considering a purchase in Raleigh, or refinance in Johnston County, call Steve and Eleanor Thorne! We know all of the mortgage program details, and we have the LOWEST Mortgage Rates in NC!!

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What are VA Home Loan Benefits??

October 20, 2008 By Eleanor 5 Comments

The VA Loan came about as part of the 1944 original Servicemen’s Readjustment Act most people refer to as the GI Bill of Rights. President Franklin D. Roosevelt provided veterans with a federally guaranteed home with no down payment. This feature was designed to promote housing and assistance for veterans and their families, at a time when we needed more veterans to realize the dream of home ownership. The GI Bill contributed more than any other program in history to the welfare of veterans and their families, and to the growth of the nation’s economy.

Although it might seem like a complicated formula, the VA will guarantee a maximum of 25 percent of a home loan amount up to $104,250, which limits the maximum loan amount to $417,000 (except in some very high cost areas where they go over $700K). Generally, the reasonable value of the property or the purchase price, whichever is less, plus the funding fee may be borrowed. All veterans must qualify for the loans, they are not automatically eligible for the program.

Today, there are over 30 million soldiers and service personnel eligible for VA financing. This loan 100% loan is attractive and has many advantages. Eligibility for the VA loan is defined as Veterans who served on active duty and have a discharge other than dishonorable after a minimum of 90 days of service during wartime or a minimum of 181 continuous days during peacetime. If you served in Vietnam, or the National Guard or Reservist, and want to find out if you qualify please click here.

If you are purchasing between 1/1/2009 and 04/30/2010 you might qualify for an $8000 tax credit! For details click here! (For First Time Homebuyers!)

Veteran’s! We love to do VA mortgage loans! Call Steve and Eleanor Thorne, Cary, NC 919-649-5058

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Who Qualifies for VA Mortgage Loans

October 20, 2008 By Eleanor 7 Comments

The VA, has offered 100% mortgage loan financing to Veterans for many years. It is one of the best benefits a Soldier has. If you are serving in time of War, the length of time in the service, before you are you are eligible for VA home loan is much shorter.

Because there are varying rules applied for soldiers that served in War and Peace times, we wanted to highlight the requirement for veterans who served on active duty in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard and were discharged under conditions other than dishonorable after either:

90 days or more, any part of which occurred during wartime, OR
181 continuous days or more (peacetime)

Like All Things with the Government – It couldn’t be That Simple… So there’s a TWO YEAR RULE that states:

If you:

enlisted (and service began) after September 7, 1980, OR
were an officer and service began after October 16, 1981

You must have completed either:

24 continuous months or more, OR
the full period for which ordered to active duty, but not less than 90 days (any part during wartime) or 181 continuous days (peacetime)

What Constitutes War Time versus Peace Time?
Wartime and Peacetime, as used in the General Rule for Eligibility, refer to the following periods of time:

Wartime	Peacetime
World War II 9/16/40 – 7/25/47	Post-World War II period 7/26/47 – 6/26/50
Korean conflict 6/27/50 – 1/31/55	Post-Korean period 2/1/55 – 8/4/64
Vietnam era 8/5/64* – 5/7/75	Post-Vietnam period 5/8/75 – 8/1/90
Persian Gulf War 8/2/90 – undetermined

were discharged for a service-connected disability, or
were discharged for the convenience of the government after completing at least 20 months of a 2-year enlistment, or
completed not less than 90 days (any part during wartime) or 181 continuous days (peacetime), and

were discharged because of a hardship, or
were determined to have a service-connected compensable disability, or
were discharged or released from active duty for a medical condition which pre-existed service and has not been determined to be service-connected, or
received an involuntary discharge or release from active duty for the convenience of the Government as a result of a reduction in force, or
were discharged or released from active duty for a physical or mental condition not characterized as a disability and not the result of misconduct but which did interfere with your performance of duty

are an unremarried spouse of a veteran who died while in service or from a service connected disability, or
are a spouse of a serviceperson missing in action or a prisoner of war.

Active Duty???
If you are currently on active duty, you are eligible after having served on continuous active status for at least 90 days. When an ending date is established for Persian Gulf War service, a minimum of 181 days of continuous active duty will be required for persons who did not have wartime service.

If you are a Member of the Selected Reserves:
“Selected Reserve” means the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve of any of the Reserve components which consists of units and individuals who participate actively in paid training periods and serve on paid active duty for training each year.

SIX Year Rule:
A veteran, who is not otherwise eligible, who completes a total of 6 years as a member of the Selected Reserve (need not be ordered to active duty) is eligible if he or she either:

received an honorable discharge
was placed on the retired list
was transferred to the Standby Reserve or an element of the Ready Reserve other than the Selected Reserve after service in the Selected Reserve characterized as honorable
continues to serve in the Selected Reserve

The 6 years service need not be continuous nor in the same Reserve or National Guard unit. However, active duty regular military service cannot be combined with Reserve service to reach the 6 year requirement.

certain United States citizens who served in the armed forces of a government allied with the United States in World War II.
individuals with service as members in certain organizations, such as Public Health Service officers, cadets/midshipmen at service academies, officers of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, merchant seamen with WWII service, and others.

** Please Note: The VA has the final authority on issuing eligibility **

If you are considering a VA home loan – please call us! Steve and Eleanor Thorne 919-649-5057