Robert asked:


Are you presently considering refinancing your home? possibly you have heard how interest rates are at 5 year lows or that FHA refinance loans and their updated programs have become vastly admired. fortunate for you, both of those things are true making for an excellent refinance opportunity. And it is no more hard to apply for an FHA mortgage than it is for a Conventional mortgage.

Before you elect to refinance, you should know the basic requirements for FHA Mortgages. To be eligible for FHA refinance loans, your monthly housing costs (mortgage principal and interest, property taxes and insurance) must meet a specific percentage of your gross monthly income. This is called the “Top Ratio” and it should be below 31%. You must also have enough proceeds to pay your housing costs plus all additional monthly debt. This is called the “Bottom Ratio” and it needs to be below 43%. These percentages may be exceeded with compensating factors.

Your credit background will also be fairly considered. FHA refinance credit requirements are not entirely credit score driven, while it is helpful to have at least a 580 FICO score to obtain a quicker approval. FHA guidelines are written in a way that provides the borrower the benefit of the doubt that there had been, at some point in their past, circumstances outside their control, and as long as the borrower has improved from those circumstances in a reasonable method, they’re usually going to be credit-eligible for an FHA refinance loan.

If you have had a preceding bankruptcy, it may still be doable to get an FHA Refinance. If you have been discharged from a chapter 7 bankruptcy for two years or more, you are eligible to apply for an FHA refinance mortgage. If you are in a chapter 13 bankruptcy and have made all court approved payments on time and as arranged for at least one year, you are also eligible to make an FHA mortgage application.

FHA Refinance Loans multiple options to meet the needs of your current home equity scenario. If your home has positive equity, you may be able to refinance up to 98.75% or 97.75% of the appraised value of the home or the amount you are refinancing plus closing costs, whichever is lower. If you want to take cash out of the property, then the maximum financing amount is either 95% or 85% of the current appraised value, depending on the borrowers qualifications. If you do not have sufficient equity in your home to pay off your current mortgage or cover your refinancing closing costs, then you should ask your lender to consider a “Write Down”. A “Write Down” is when your lender writes off the excesss balance owed for the purposes of refinancing a mortgage. The Housing bill that goes into effect on October 1st provide for a Write Down to 90% of the current appraised value for delinquent mortgage FHA refinances. Offering this option is at the discretion of the lender.



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Tristan Hunt asked:


People across America are increasingly being faced with a homeowner’s worst nightmare: Foreclosure. The possibility of losing your home to the bank is very real, and it’s very normal to be scared and confused as the process moves along. What’s important is to keep a cool head, don’t panic, and evaluate your options as early in the process as possible. Many people who are approaching or are currently in a foreclosure do not realize that they may be qualified to refinance while in foreclosure and save their home, mainly because by this point in the process they have experienced rejection and denial by their own lender and often several others. But if you have Equity in your home, you can refinance in foreclosure and get back on track to improving your credit.

Refinancing in foreclosure is not like normal refinancing. When you apply for a regular, or conventional mortgage refinance, the most important thing a lender looks at when deciding whether or not to approve the loan is your credit and mortgage payment history. If you have not been more than 90 days late or behind on your mortgage payments, and your FICO credit score is above 500, conventional lenders will look at your refinance application and consider it. They may not approve it, but you’ll at least get looked at. When you go beyond 90 days late on your mortgage payments, no conventional lender will review your application, no matter how much money you make or how much better your situation is now than when you fell behind. Once you are considered 120 days late or behind on the mortgage, or your credit score falls below 500, the conventional lending industry simply cannot take the risks of lending to you anymore. If you’ve been rejected for a loan during the foreclosure process, even before the notice of default was recorded, it is usually because you are over 90 to 120 days late or your credit score is under 500, or both.

You are now in a special situation, and banks don’t like “special”. They just aren’t set up for “outside the box” financing, no matter how much sense it makes, so their response is to either deny your application, or in the case of the lender who holds the mortgage on your home which has fallen behind, they do the only thing they can, foreclose on the home and force its sale at auction to the highest bidder.

In order to handle special situations like this, you need a lender who specializes in refinancing foreclosures. There are only a few out there, but you’ll know one when you find one, because the first question they will ask you is “If you had to sell your home quickly, how much would it sell for?”, followed quickly by “And how much do you owe on your first mortgage”. This is because they are trying to establish how much Equity you have in the property. Equity for these purposes can be calculated easily:

A) Just subtract the Balance of your first mortgage from the Value of your home.

B) Take that Number and divide it by your property Value (there’s that word again),

C) Multiply by 100 and you’ve got your gross Equity percentage.

Because your credit and mortgage history cannot be considered for the purpose of qualifying you for a foreclosure loan, foreclosure refinancing is all about Equity. Lenders specializing in foreclosure refinancing will routinely request that you order an appraisal and an additional appraisal review performed by a realtor, commonly referred to as a BPO or Broker Price Opinion.

Here’s a general guideline: If you have 35% or more Equity in your property, and your property is Valued at $200,000 or more, you are probably qualified for a foreclosure refinance, and you can save your home from the auction block if you act quickly. Again, this is a rule of thumb. Sometimes, you may be able to get away with having a little bit less Equity, or a little bit less Value, and in some states you will need much more Equity and a much higher Value to qualify for a refinance in a foreclosure scenario.

If you have two mortgages, a first and second, you still may be eligible for a foreclosure refinance if you meet one or more of the following conditions:

1. The Balances of your 1st and 2nd mortgages added together amounts to less than 70% of the Value of your home.

2. Your 2nd mortgage can be “subordinated”, or kept in place while you refinance the 1st mortgage.

I can’t emphasize enough the importance of acting as quickly as possible to save your home through a foreclosure refinance. The foreclosure clock starts ticking from the day on which you receive a notice of default or on which you become 120 days past due on your mortgage payments, and it can move very quickly. While most foreclosures don’t get to the stage of a property auction, sherrif’s sale or trustee sale in which you will lose your home until about 120 days from the recording of the NOD ( Notice Of Default ), in many states this can happen much more quickly, as fast as 60 days. While you delay, your mortgage company’s payoff balance, the mount required to cure the default and prevent foreclosure, will increase as legal fees and interest pile up, eating away at your Equity and robbing you of the ability to refinance out of the foreclosure. It’s easy to feel lost, almost paralyzed by the shock and fear of losing your home, but if you are serious about saving your home from foreclosure, get on the phone and find a foreclosure refinancing specialist as quickly as possible.

Don’t forget, your first priority is to save your home, and a foreclosure refinance is considered a short term loan, usually with a fixed rate for 2 or 3 years. This gives you enough time to get your credit back together and refinance at the end of the fixed period into a much lower payment. Because you have shown your current lender, as well as the credit reporting agencies and by association every other lender in the country that you could not make the mortgage payments in accordance with the terms of the loan which is in foreclosure, it’s understandable that the lender providing the foreclosure refinance is taking a substantial risk in lending you the money to prevent the foreclosure, and the financing will not be at a very low rate. However, in most cases, the foreclosure refinance loan’s payments are Interest Only, and will be lower than the payments on most forbearance, or payment agreements, which your lender may have proposed or enrolled you in prior to filing for foreclosure. And if you consolidate high interest debts like credit cards and personal loans, payoff judgments, and clear away liens, you can potentially free up a lot of cash flow from your monthly budget and begin improving your credit score with a clean slate.

Don’t waste time talking to lenders and brokers who don’t know the foreclosure refinance process inside out, there are simply too many out there who will just waste your time and money trying to learn how to get your foreclosure refinanced while you slide closer and closer to a sale date and the real possibility of losing your home. On the other hand, the right lender can help you lay out other options to save the equity in your home even if you don’t qualify for a foreclosure refinance. Find a special lender for your special situation, and you will have a fighting chance of refinancing in foreclosure and saving your home.



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Dewey Kearney asked:


If you are considering a home refinance there are some things you should be aware that should be avoided. Here are the 10 top mistakes people make when refinancing a home:Drawing On Your Home Credit Line Before Doing A Home Refinance

Many lenders have “cash out” waiting requirements or “seasoning” as it is referred to in the industry. That means they want to see a set period of time elapse once you have withdrawn equity from your home prior to issuing a new loan. Cash-out followed by refinancing may indicate a pattern of irresponsible credit use; a red flag for a lender. This could lead to stricter requirements and possibly a rejection of your loan. The typical waiting requirement is six months.

Taking On A Second Mortgage Before Refinancing On Your First Mortgage

A lot of mortgage companies look at the combined loan amounts (i.e., the sum of the first and second loans) even when you’re only doing a home refinancing your first mortgage. Don’t be surprised if your first mortgage lender requires you to pay off both your first and second mortgages. Check with your lender to see if having a second loan will impact your refinancing.

In some instances lenders may allow you to keep your existing second mortgage while refinancing only the first. This is done by obtaining a “subordination agreement” from the lender who provided you with your second mortgage.

Paying For An Appraisal When You Think The Appraised Value May Be Too Low

Don’t pay for a formal appraisal if you think the home has a low appraised value. Home value is determined by many things, including the home’s location. Both lenders and Realtors use a market analysis based on the value of homes in your area to determine value. Paying for an appraisal shouldn’t be necessary.

Their comparable rate comparison should allow them to determine if your home is within the expected parameters of the financing you have requested. Especially in today’s market where home prices have stabilized or even declined a little, it pays to save your hard earned cash.

Not Doing A Break Even Analysis

Evaluate the money you will spend in getting the home refinance loan to determine if it is cost effective. It’s important to compare the total loan costs with how much you will save each month by lowering your monthly payment. Very simply, just divide the transaction costs by your anticipated monthly savings to figure the number of months you will have to stay in the loan to recoup your refinancing costs.

For example, if the costs of the home refinance total $2,000, and your monthly savings are $50, your break-even point is 2,000/50 = 40 months. In this case you should only refinance if you plan to stay with this new financing for at least 40 months.

Failing To Choose The Best Home Refinance Loan

There is more than one home refinance loan out there. There are fixed-rate loans, adjustable rate refinance loans, etc. While we at 1-800BadCredit don’t recommend the adjustable rate mortgages (ARM), there are people who insist on them. The loan that is best for you depends on your situation. We don’t recommend them because many people have been caught in a squeeze situation with ARM loans and have been unable to qualify to refinance.

For example, in some cases a 15-year term is better than a 30-year term and vise-versa. Think about your long and short term goals before you refinance and choose the loan program that fits those goals best.

Paying Too Much For Mortgage Insurance

Mortgage insurance, or PMI, is what you pay on your home in case you default on your mortgage. PMI adds a lot to your mortgage payment, but you don’t have to pay PMI if you have an 80% equity stake in your home. If you refinance at less than 80% then you could wind up paying too much for PMI.

Using Your Current Lender When Doing A Home Refinance

Although you may have an excellent history with your current lender, you may not always get the best deal when considering a home refinance. That’s the reason why we give you so many choices.

Your original lender will need the same documentation as any other lender. Each time you refinance your financial picture has to be re-verified. You will be subject to re-qualification, even if you have developed a relationship with your lender. So you might as well shop around and get a couple quotes just to make sure you’re getting the best rates and fees.

Not Getting A Good Faith Estimate

You always want a written Good Faith Estimate (GFE) when securing a home refinance loan. Within three working days after receipt of your completed loan application, your mortgage company is required to provide you with a written GFE of closing costs. However don’t make the mistake of shopping for your mortgage via a simple GFE.

In fact, if the GFE has a substantial portion of the fees marked zero may be a warning sign that not all fees are being disclosed up front. Be sure to ask if all the fees are accurately reflected on the document.

NOTE: if you are considering a “no cost” home refinance many of the fees may be blank. Be sure to ask.

Not Getting Your Rate Lock In Writing

Know the length of time the rate lock is in effect and check all particulars, such as APR, closing costs and any other fees that are listed. A loan officer can tell you verbally that the rate is a certain amount and the interest rate can change radically within the next few hours based on the economic rates that are always in flux. When a mortgage company tells you they will give you the home refinance loan for a certain amount, get a written statement to that effect, the length of time it’s guaranteed and any other particulars about the loan. This information is readily available by a Rate Lock Commitment. Request a copy for your records.

Signing Documents Without Reading Them

Never sign documents in a hurry. And don’t expect to read them at the time of signing. Sitting in front of the escrow company’s desk having form after form thrust at you for signing is intimidating and can make reading them thoroughly difficult.

As soon as possible, request a copy of the home refinance loan documents in order to review what you will be signing at the close of escrow. This way you can read them at your leisure and get any questions answered ahead of time.

Make sure you understand what you are signing! Don’t be afraid to ask questions because you are entering into a long-term relationship. Be sure to bring your Good Faith Estimate when you go to sign the final papers.



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Rick Churchill asked:


For golf fans, whether professional or just starting out, the quest for the perfect swing is often a top priority for perfecting their game. While some golfers may have the resources to pay professional trainers to help improve their game, others may look to improve their swing through golf swing trainers such as the Refiner Golf Training Aid. How a golf swing trainer device works, the diversity of the aids available, the effectiveness of the product, and the reputation of the manufacturer are all things that a golfer looks for when deciding on which golf swing training device to use. This article will explore the Refiner Golf Training Aid and try to determine if this product can live up to its claims.

The Refiner Golf Training Aid works on a patented hinge principal which claims to make it possible to improve your swing by feel instead of swing mechanics. Refiner Golf states that a golfer uses the Refiner Golf Training Aid just as they would a normal club throughout the swing up to the point of connecting with the ball. If anything is wrong in the golfers swing, the club will hinge and make it impossible to finish the swing to completion. It is said that the Refiner Golf Training Aid can detect and help improve problems such as excessive grip pressure, an open or closed club face, bad swing plane, and improper lower body movements. Aside from the ability to detect such swing problems, the Refiner Golf Training Aid also comes with a variety of clubs.

Most golfers will realize that in addition to using a driver to hit the ball a long distance they also need to improve their skills in using other types of clubs in order to hit the ball a shorter distance, chip, and putting. Because of this fact, the Refiner Golf Training Aid program offers four styles of clubs including a driver, a 5 iron, a chipper, and a putter. The website says that you can purchase these clubs separately depending on your specific needs or pick from three different combination packages of clubs for specific goals. The clubs are offered in men, women, and junior lengths with some, but not all, available with a left hand option or you can custom order specific length clubs if needed.

The Refiner Golf Training Aid makes some awesome and what would seem to be difficult o believe claims but testimonials on their website indicate that they have many satisfied customers. The company claims that while there are other hinged golf swing training aids available, the Refiner Golf Training Aid product is superior due to its patented hinge design that can easily be calibrated by the user to suit their own preferences. With the purchase of any Refiner Golf Training Aid product, you will also get a 30 minute instructional video with PGA trainer Rick Bradshaw demonstrating how to use the product. The Refiner Golf Training Aid has been around since 1992 and is said to have a solid reputation in the golfing industry. Refiner Golf is said to have an excellent warranty on all of their trainers and offer a 30 day money back guarantee if you feel that your golf game does not improve. It is also said that Refiner Golf employs a unique advertising strategy which brings the cost of its product down to a level other companies can not meet.

As you may now realize there are many reasons why the Refiner Golf Training Aid is getting a lot of attention thorough out the golfing world. With its inexpensive price, variety of clubs, and patented design, it may well live up to its claims. While most companies make claims that are hard to believe, reviews of the Refiner Golf products do indicate that while people are not becoming golfing professionals over night, the Refiner Golf Training Aid products do improve their game.



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jocajura4 asked:


I have been going through this divorce for over 4 months now and I have been forced to live off of credit cards because my ex refuses to unlock my funds. My attorney is a wimp and has no knowledge. He tells me we have to wait until the final court date, but there has got to be a way to force my ex to refinance our home now. He said he’s going to do it to buy my out, but he’s just sitting on it and not doing it. How can I force him too?

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