Isn’t this a set of interesting statistics?
In 2005, 46% of consumers who opened a new mortgage had a FICO score less than 700. In 2008 this percentage had dropped to 25% . Fair Isaac (creators of the FICO score) reports that borrowers in the Northeast continually present the least amount of default risk nationally for real estate loans.
It’s good news that creditworthiness increased in the last few years. I know someone who actually got a mortgage offer in the mail for their dog in 2005. Their dog! <le sigh>
It’s pretty common wisdom that the foreclosure rates need to fall in order for a real recovery in real estate to happen. Maybe the 2008 and beyond buyers who were more creditworthy won’t default on their mortgages and we’re near the light at the end of the tunnel. On the other hand, if the dismal unemployment rate continues, that’ll mean more foreclosures and more uncertainty in the market.
Wishing I had a crystal ball. . . .
(stats provided by Rob Chrisman of Mortgage News Daily)
Heather Barr is a Realtor. She's a chow hound, a gym rat, and the only political junkie in the USA who can actually keep her political views to herself. Instead, she focuses on educating her clients about the often-confusing world of residential real estate.
Tagged as:
Economics
I often lack words to describe to my clients exactly how mind-bogglingly fast the world of mortgage lending is changing lately. Home buyers not only need good credit, a steady income, and piles of documentation to back all that up.. . . . . you need to be aware that loan guidelines change near-daily.
Yep. Nearly daily loan investors make changes to their rules about what they’ll lend on, what they won’t, who qualifies for a mortgage and who doesn’t, and how to properly fill out 9 inches of forms in triplicate to get the loan money.
I subscribe to a daily email that discusses changes in lending standards throughout the industry. It’s usually 2 pages long. Two pages of changes in loan guidelines per day!
Don’t assume you’re going to have zero trouble getting approved for a mortgage. If you have excellent credit you’ll probably get approved, but you’ll have to produce more paperwork than you can imagine.
Get approved. Then start shopping. Trust me. You don’t want to spend weeks looking online at this:
only to be told you’re approved for a mortgage to buy this:
Want to get pre-approved? Our favorite lenders, in no particular order:
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Kevin Reiser, AmeriFirst Loans, 480-289-7635
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Andrew Schmidt, WJ Bradley Mortgage, (602) 999-1912
Heather Barr is a Realtor. She's a chow hound, a gym rat, and the only political junkie in the USA who can actually keep her political views to herself. Instead, she focuses on educating her clients about the often-confusing world of residential real estate.
Tagged as:
From the Trenches
