california refinance

Mortgage fraud is on the rise today in the housing market, significantly so since 2001. In a real estate market where mortgage fraud was few and far between it has grown to high levels for both buyers and sellers and has created havoc and financial damage in the lives of many homeowners and home buyers. First-time home buyers and seniors are two of the highly targeted markets for home mortgage scams.
Mortgage fraud actually refers to a variety of scams. Most of these scams involve inflating the value of a house or other real property for more than its value and the scammer pockets the difference. It significantly affects your home buying, home-selling and home equity. It can raise its ugly head for subprime loans, foreclosures and reverse mortgages. It also can affect insider trading as it relates to mortgage securities.
The following tips will show you how you can avoid these scams and stop or spot mortgage fraud. It’ll help you become informed and prepared if you’re a homeowner looking to refinance or sell your home or if you’re a home buyer.
Be wary of any investment opportunities that offer “no money down” or “cash back at closing. ” Be wary of adjustable mortgage interest rates and thoroughly understand what this means before you go this route.
Adjustable interest rates have created many home bad credit problems. Many home buyers just did not understand or were not fully informed about the future jump in interest rates and what that would mean. Many home buyers were not prepared for these high interest rates.
Make sure to check the history of the sales on the property. How many previous owners were there for the property? If there have been several sales within a short time it indicates the values are inflated.
Make sure to have your own real estate agent, real estate professional or real estate appraiser establish the value. Your best bet is to hire you own appraiser or a bank official who can validate the property price in case it’s inflated. This can be hard to tell in rapidly rising or falling markets. Scammers who are intent on fraud will pay an appraiser for the appraisal and report they want.
Make sure they are using comparables - that is getting the prices on similar properties that have sold in your area - not the prices on listed homes that haven’t sold. Check with your local tax assessor or whoever records the deeds to the property to make sure that the seller really does have title or own the property.
Common sense would tell you never to let anyone else use your name or Social Security number to buy a home or other property, even if they offer to pay you. But believe it or not this does happen.
Make sure to read and understand everything on your contract and other documents that you’re asked to sign. Talk to your real estate agent if you have one or a real estate attorney if you need anything explained.
If any of the documents have any blank areas or have any information that is not accurate, don’t sign. Check to make sure that your income is not overstated, the, source of your down payment is correct, the sales price is right, the type and length of your employment and states your intention to live in or on the property as your primary residence not use it for a rental if that’s the agreement.
Make sure to deal directly with the mortgage broker you’ve been working with or directly with the lender. Don’t let anyone lese handle or arrange your loan for you. Make sure you get a copy of all the signed closing documents.
Make sure to watch out for any of the older folks or first-time home buyers you know who may be unfamiliar with real estate transactions and real estate financing.
Mortgage fraud is most rampant in Nevada, California, Florida, Arizona and Illinois so if you live in these states watch out.
Much of the real estate fraud or mortgage fraud or scams are due to real estate insiders - mortgage brokers, lenders, loan officials and real estate brokers.
For example: your real estate broker insists that you use a certain lender or they have a mortgage company on site or in the same complex. Sure, many can be on the up and up but some are not. Your real estate broker should help you find the best and not steer you to one that he is in cahoots with. You have the final say.
Don’t let any lender try to talk you into borrowing more money than you need or can afford. Make sure to take your time and don’t feel pressured or rushed. Beware of any nothing-down loans and altered information to qualify you for a home loan. Don’t borrow any money that you can’t afford to pay back.
Ask your family, friends, co-workers and associates, who you trust who have recently completed a home mortgage, for referrals to mortgage brokers, lenders or other real estate professionals. This would be true also for loan modifications and “restructuring” loans.
Lastly make sure you get the best credit and financial counseling, go to home buying classes, real estate financing seminars or workshops and brush up on your mortgage and home buying education before taking the plunge. Avoid mortgage fraud by knowing the pitfalls and proceed slowly and cautiously and get an honest real estate broker or professional for the best home mortgage experience.

Tags: Fraud, Mortgage, Recognize

Mortgage Insurance companies as we all know are helping Banks and Homeowners to avoid foreclosures, as surprisingly as it sounds these Mortgage insurance companies will even put some of their own money to help homeowners to make the payments for their homes.
Why do Mortgage insurance companies do willing to put their own money? How can we know if we’re insured by these insurance companies? Why these big corporations help banks and homeowners? Will the Insurance companies help the homeowners also if they’re no insured?
Lots of homeowners don’t have a lot of knowledge about their Loans, some people don’t even know their own Interest rate, So I will assume that most of you out there will not understand the term PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance).
What is PMI? PMI Is basically a policy which the bank act as the beneficiary and the Borrower make a monthly payment for the insurance of course. The PMI(Private mortgage insurance) protects the banks in bad times like today, when a lot of homes are foreclosing or selling through a short sale (when you sell the house for less then what you owe) and the banks are loosing a lot of money. When do you pay PMI? Normally if you buy a house or refinance your existing house there will be a very important issue that can also prevent you from qualifying, and that is the LTV (Loan to Value). If you take a Loan with more then 80% LTV (Loan to Value) then you will probably will pay PMI. Some of us will remember great times that we could loan more then 80% but then we also had to take a second or an equity Line of credit Loan of 10% or even 20%, but those days are long over. Today banks will want you to put more down so you’re not going to let your self go from the house and also so the banks will have a PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance)to be protected.
I know that it sounds that the insurance companies are just there to protect the banks, but that’s not true they’re helping homeowners too, as I said before that they will help you with payments and they will also partner with credit counseling agencies to help homeowners with their payments. Insurance companies will try contacting you through phone and/or mailing you letters to refer you to different website so you can get an idea what to do next with your home and save your home from a Foreclosure.
Mainly what you really need to do if you have any problem with your house and you’re negative with your payments first you should contact your lender, your Lender will guide you what to do next.

Tags: Company, Foreclosures., Helping, Insurance, Mortgage

Many investor from Europe and the UK are buying Real Estate in the united states. I’ve interviewed a real estate agent in California a week ago and he was telling me how much the market was bad until he started to work with investors from Europe and the UK. “They just have a lot of money” he said, “I met them during a spring brake in Europe, I figured there is no work anyway so I will go and travel a little bit, I think it’s the best vacation I ever had and it’s still continuing , the only difference is that now I’m actually making money”. I
nvestors don’t need any Green card, good credit, Bad credit or Visa, they only need to put a least 35% of the purchase price as a down payment. These Investors will get a higher interest rate and if they will put 50% down they will probably get a much lower interest rate. Today the euro is much higher then the dollar, So if American investors are excited about the Foreclosures can you imagine the Europeans?For the Europeans everything is much cheaper then for the Americans Residents, because the value of the euro as oppose to the dollar. Can a Foreigner really get a Loan in America? Sure they can get a Loan, just like an American investor can get a Hard money Loan without showing any credit information, he just need to show interest. interest for a Mortgage Lender is measured with money, Banks or Hard money lenders will Loan you the money but you will have to put down a big chunk of your money, so then you will not going to let your self loose the property you’ve purchased and get the banks in trouble.
Also there are many banks out there that are selling their Loans or Notes to Foreigners just because they need to take some Loans off of their shelves, just the way you’re trying to avoid foreclosure or trying just to sell the house. Banks today have to deal with so many issues, Foreclosures, Bankruptcies, Notes, Money. Most banks that have loaned money to borrowers in the past 3 years are not protected or insured.
Three years ago the bank started to loan 1st and 2nd mortgages, 2nd mortgages are the cause of them not having mortgage insurance, and because they don’t have mortgage insurance they will loose their money if a foreclosure is placed. Read other articles I wrote to learn more about mortgage insurance.

Tags: Estate, Foreigners, Real, States, United