USDA Loans Wilmington NC, Ogden and Leland

The USDA Loans Wilmington NC, Ogden and Leland NC will not have map changes as significant as we initially thought.  We knew that many neighborhoods would lose the ability to offer the USDA Home Loan program when the maps change in September of 2020 – but we just didn’t know how big (or small) the change was going to be, until we were able to actually see the FINAL USDA Eligibility Map for Wilmington in the coming months.

Why are the USDA Map Changes in Wilmington, Ogden and Leland NC a big deal?  Well, USDA Home Loans are the cheapest mortgage loans offered right now.  They have very low monthly USDA PMI charges (especially when you compare them to FHA PMI Rates in Wilmington ) and they require ZERO down payment!  You can also use the NC Affordable Housing Grant program with a USDA Home Loan, and the MCC Tax Credit.

The basic qualifications for USDA Home Loans Wilmington NC are:

• The Home must be located within the USDA Eligibility “footprint”
• Credit Scores need to be at least 600
• The Household gross income for Wilmington, Ogden and Leland can be no higher than
  • Family of 1 – 4 members $83,000
  • Family with 5 or more members $109,550

USDA Loans Wilmington

The shaded areas on the map below do NOT qualify as being within the USDA Home Loan Eligibility area for Wilmington NC, but everywhere else does.  You can clearly see that TODAY all of Leland, and much of Ogden qualifies for the program:

The map below reflects the changes we were told to expect to hit Wilmington in 2020.  Notice the massive difference in the shaded areas! That’s why I said the USDA Map Changes in Wilmington, Ogden and Leland NC could have been significant!

You’ll notice that the entire Leland area is currently within the Eligibility area for USDA Loans Wilmington NC. 

The USDA Home Loan gives you a unique opportunity that you cannot get with any other type of loans out there. No Money Down Home Loan with relatively low closing costs. Because of this we believe the USDA Home Loan gives you the cash to close advantage!  The only thing to consider with USDA Loans Wilmington (right now) is that it takes a GOOD 30 days to get the loan through the System.

This is the SAME no matter what mortgage lender you choose… it’s a USDA Underwriting requirement that all USDA Loans be seen by an actual USDA Underwriter.  While with many loans, we can have them approved start to finish in 10 days  – USDA Loans take longer.  Because of that, we often suggest that folks look at the NC Grant Program that gives first time home buyers FREE Cash to buy a home in the Wilmington NC area!

I read years ago that the average amount of cash needed to close a USDA Home Loan Wilmington NC was in the range of about $575. If you were to compare that to FHA or Conventional financing, that is a difference of several thousand dollars; maybe even tens of thousands of dollars at closing.

How are Student Loans Treated when Qualifying for a USDA Loans Wilmington NC?

Student loans come in two classes: deferred and not deferred.  And one thing to keep in mind when looking at the USDA Home Loan Program is that it does treat student loans differently than the other home loan programs available.  USDA Home Loan Underwriters count a payment – even if it’s deferred (Unless we can document the future payment).  If it’s deferred as an income base loan (meaning the payment on your student loan changes annually) they count 1% of the balance.

Can I finance the Upfront USDA PMI into my mortgage for a USDA Loans Wilmington NC?

Yep.  The upfront PMI that USDA charges on loans (called Upfront Mortgage Insurance or Guarantee Fee) can be included in the loan.  This means that if you are purchasing a $100,000 home in Raleigh, the loan will be $102,000; OR, you can pay the 2% out of your pocket… or see if you can get the Seller to pay it.  We are NOT seeing many situations where the Seller is doing this, but if you have extra funds, you can go ahead and pay this off.  Like FHA, the Guarantee Fee (or Mortgage Insurance Fee) is not refundable.

There’s also an annual USDA PMI fee charged at a rate of .5%.  To calculate that – you take your total loan amount, so the amount you are paying for the home, let’s say it’s $200,000, plus the 2% for the Upfront USDA PMI which would be $4000. So, in this case, $204,000 times .5%.  That equals $1020, which is the annual USDA PMI fee.  Divide that by 12 months, and the monthly USDA PMI charge is $85.

If you are considering a no money down home loan, or you need more information about the USDA loan closing costs, or qualifying for a USDA Loans Wilmington NC, call Steve Thorne 919 649 5058 – we do dozens of these mortgage loans each month in NC!