Work in Jacksonville and Live in Hampstead

Work in Jacksonville? Living in Hampstead Could Save You Some Serious Money!

It’s not uncommon for us to work with a couple that wants to live in one city while their jobs are in another. There are many reasons you might want to consider this: the homes might cost less, the schools might be better, or there may be more career opportunities in one area as opposed to the other. We’ve typically worked with Veterans where one spouse works in Fayetteville, the other in Raleigh, and they want to own a home in the middle. We’ve recently seen that happen a lot more frequently in the Hampstead, Wilmington, and Jacksonville areas, where a family will work in Jacksonville and live in Hampstead.

Recently we have partnered with Wynn Homes in their new Hampstead neighborhood called King’s Ransom. We started looking into the town of Hampstead and realized it is somewhat of a hidden gem. For folks who work in Jacksonville and want to live close to the water, with better school districts and lower priced homes, it can’t be beat. It’s a great choice for people who work in Wilmington and want to find a lower priced home, too. King’s Ransom is zoned for Topsail Elementary, Topsail Middle, and Topsail High.

Active Duty Military Families Buying a Home in Pender County

If you are a Veteran, and the best thing for your family is to work in Jacksonville and live in Hampstead, there can be some complications.  But, VA home loan occupancy requirements for moms and dads away on active duty, are a little easier these days. Now, dependents of single or dual-active parents serving away or overseas can occupy their family’s home to satisfy long-standing VA home loan Occupancy rule.  

This important change in the ability to make VA Home Loans for Active Duty Families, means that the Veteran does not have to occupy the home they buy in Hampstead within 60 days of closing.

A new addition to the VA occupancy guideline may be good news for single parents, and families with parents serving overseas. VA borrowers have to meet owner-occupancy requirements to qualify for the government-backed mortgage program.

If a VA loan applicant has a spouse that could move into the property within 60 days, there is no need for additional attention on the loan beyond what’s required to establish the spouse’s occupancy.  Our underwriters are very familiar with this situation, and we can easily accommodate this type of closing. As for a dependent child, the legal guardian or attorney-in-fact must certify the intent of the child to act as the owner-occupant until the parent(s) return.

These improvements to VA occupancy guidelines are part of The Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act (H.R. 1627).  Qualifying Veterans do not need a down payment to purchase a home in Pender County, and Student Loan Debt is treated different than other programs.

VA Loans are also underwritten considering Veteran Student Loan Payments. If those Student loan payments are in deferment – we are going to need to document those payments. One of the reasons some Veterans joined the Military is because of the Military Student Loan Repayment Program.

One of the incentives of joining the Military could be repaying part, if not all of your student loans. The amount that could be repaid varies across the military branches. For instance, the Navy and Army pay up to $65,000, however some folks in the Air Force only receive $10,000. We will need the evidence of that repayment to be certain we are providing the accurate picture of your Debt to income ratios for VA Loans.

Disaster Area Declaration in Pender County Means Lower Mortgage Payments!

Hampstead and Topsail are part of Pender County, NC. In October of 2016, Pender County was one of nineteen to be declared a disaster area after Hurricane Matthew struck and flooded the eastern part of the state. The debris and damage is long gone now, but the declaration will remain intact until October 24, 2018. What does this mean for home buyers in Hampstead and Topsail?

For home buyers who want to work in Jacksonville and live in Hampstead, you will receive LOWER PMI on conventional mortgage loans as well as NO INCOME LIMIT on FreddieMac HomePossible Mortgages.

This makes more borrowers eligible to buy their dream home with only a 3% down payment, and also enjoy the perks of a Conventional mortgage loan with lower rates.  The Conventional PMI (Mortgage Insurance) falls off at a certain point in the life of the loan.  With Government loan programs in Wilmington, like FHA, no matter how much equity you have in your home, you will be required to pay PMI.

Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) is the instrument strictly used for traditional Conventional Mortgage Loans. PMI is also required for refinances where 20% equity has not been reached yet.

Similar to other types of insurance we use everyday, mortgage insurance is paid for ahead of time on the chance that you might need it. Like car insurance, you may pay for it and never need it. However, the major benefit of Private Mortgage Insurance is that you do not need to have it for the length of the mortgage loan.

Once you reach 78% Loan to Value, or 22% equity in your home, PMI automatically terminates. Even better, at 80% Loan to Value, or 20% worth of mortgage payments made, you can request to cancel your PMI. 

5% Mortgage Grant Government Loan Program

We refer to these programs as “mortgage grants” because there are no payments to be made, there is no interest charge, and there’s no expectation that you will have to repay ANY of the money you receive for down payment, unless you move out of the property or refinance prior to the dates assigned by your specific down payment assistance program.

The literal term for this down payment assistance program is a “forgivable loan.” Under the terms of the program that best suits you (we offer several different ones), a portion of this down payment assistance will be forgiven on a schedule that we will share with you when you make loan application. These funds are available to us through NC Housing (NCHFA) and are available through other lenders in the state as well. The interest rates for these programs, however, will not vary from lender to lender as that is set by NC Housing.

In addition to the 5% First Time Home Buyer Loans NC available, there’s a program that offers 3% in mortgage Down Payment Assistance for folks in Pender County and the Wilmington, Ogdon, Hampstead areas.

• There are no payments required on the 5% down Payment Grant program and No interest Accrues on the Grant.
• $87,500 statewide income limit.  This is especially important.  Unlike USDA Home Loans, the 5% down payment / closing cost Grant Qualification is only looking at the income that we use to qualify you for the mortgage.  So if we are not using Bonus, or Overtime income to qualify you – and your income is under $87,500, then we are Golden.  We also do not have to count a spouses income, if that income will put you over the limit
• Middle Credit Score Requirements for the First Time Home Buyer Loans are 640.  This means that for all borrowers on the loan, we will need at least 2 of the 3 credit scores are over the 640 threshold.
• You can’t get 4% or 3.5% – with this program you are getting a grant of 5%, and we have to apply that to down payment, PMI, closing costs, or reduce your loan amount by the dollars we have left.
• The 5% grant does carry a slightly higher mortgage interest rate, and again, the rate is set statewide by the NC Housing Agency that oversees the program.
• You can only use the 5% grant with FHA Mortgages, VA Loans and USDA Home Loans.  Each of these programs have their own form of PMI.

This down payment assistance is PART of the mortgage.  So when you are applying for a mortgage, you are applying WITH THE SAME LENDER for the First Time Time Home Buyer Loans NC – grant (“Forgivable Loan”) program.   You don’t go to one lender for the down payment and another one for the mortgage.

Not all Lenders in NC offer each of the First Time Home Buyer Loans NC.  So CALL US! (shameless plug).  We focus our mortgage business on ways to help First Time Home Buyers move into their dream home in Hampstead, Pender County!  Who doesn’t want to live next to the Inter Coastal Waterway?

Please call Steve and Eleanor Thorne 919 649 5058 if you’d like for us to pre-qualify you to work in Jacksonville and live in Hampstead.  We want to help you purchase a home at the Coast!