Posts Tagged ‘mortgage rates’

Today's Mortgage rates in N. Carolina (1)

Today it appears that mortgage rates are hovering round the 5% mark for conventional 30 year fixed mortgages. This assumes good credit scores and 20% equity in the property.

According to our sources(2), the average mortgage rate for North Carolina today is a super low 4.94% mortgage rate.

Now is one of the best times to get your North Carolina mortgage reviewed, and if possible refinance you current home loan into something better.

Sources: 1. Money, by twcollins @ Flickr 2. Zillow.com

Best Negotiating Technique When Using USDA Mortgage Loans

Typically, when negotiating on a home purchase contract, many home buyers will offer a price that is lower than the listing price. The idea is to get a deal… a bargain. No matter who we are, we love to negotitate (even if we say we hate it!) However, when you are using a mortgage loan from USDA funds, your strategy may be slightly different.

USDA Mortgages allow 100% financing. As a matter of fact, USDA mortgages are about the only true no money down mortgage loans available today! In addition to 100% mortgage financing, USDA mortgages have no monthly mortgage insurance and enjoy really great rates! If you can qualify for a USDA mortgage, you should really consider it.

The one thing that is different about a USDA mortgage is that instead of monthly mortgage insurance, USDA mortgages require a funding fee. This fee acts much like mortgage insurance as the fee is used to insure potential losses from foreclosures. Currently, the up front funding fee for USDA mortgage loans is 2% of the loan. The best news is that this can be added to the mortgage itself!

Back to the negotiating strategy… When you are going back and forth on the offer to purchase on a home, you have a very unique opportunity in front of you. So many people come in asking for discounts and for the seller to pay closing costs. In more and more cases, using FHA mortgage loans, home buyers are also asking the seller to help pay for the downpayment! In so many cases, a buyer is asking the seller to drop over 10% off the price of the home to accomodate all these requests.

When offering to buy a home using the USDA program, you may want to consider a different approach. Since you won’t need down payment, focus more on asking for seller paid closing costs! USDA mortgage loans do not have a cap on how much a seller can contribute towards closing, so you can use that to your advantage.

For example, rather than asking for 5% off the home and the seller pay 3% towards closing, offer full price and ask the seller to pay 8% towards closing. Why so much? First off, this can help offset the 2% funding fee required by USDA mortgages! And since there is no cap by USDA on how much the seller can contribute, use any additional money you can to buy down your mortgage rate! An extra 1% to buy down the mortgage rate could save you thousands more than a simple price discount on the home!

Ask your mortgage lender for a comparison of rates if you wanted to buy down the mortgage this way. Between your mortgage lender and your Realtor, you will have more than enough information to insure you make the right offer and win!

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Hold on to your seats! Rates are heading up!

Over the past couple weeks, we have begun to see a steady upward trend in mortgage rates. Last week, rates began to worsen and we have not seen any real relief since.

Much like the gas prices, even when good news comes, the prices seem to still climb. Mortgage rates have tended to follow the news. Good economic news such as a down turn in unemployment and an improvement in the stock market would usually push mortgage rates upward. Conversely, if unemployment rates rose and the stock market fell, rates would decline. However, over the past week, we have seen a steady increase regardless of what the news says.

This makes one wonder if we have seen the bottom of mortgage rates for a while.

Last week, you could find 30 year mortgage rates hovering around 5.875%, where today given the same pricing criteria, you might see rates more along the 6.375%. (This is not an advertisement of any rate or program; rather it is for illustrative purposes to explain the rise in mortgage rates lately.)

If you are on the fence waiting to see if rates will get better, get off the fence now! Mortgage rates in Charlotte may have seen the lowest rates we will see for some time to come.

Why Charlotte NC is The Place to Buy Your First Home

Are you tired of renting? Every month you write that check for $600, $750 or over $1,000 for your rent and you have to wonder… how much home could you buy in Charlotte?

If you are thinking about buying your first home, Charlotte NC is the best bet around!

Charlotte’s real estate market is great! There is a great selection of homes available to purchase and despite the national news of falling home values, Charlotte boasts one of the few growing real estate markets in the country. So the investment you make today won’t disappear tomorrow!

Mortgage rates in Charlotte are cheap! While the entire country is still seeing great mortgage rates, Charlotte is really reaping the benefits! In addition to people buying their first home today, many Charlotte home owners are also refinancing their current mortgage. When you see mortgage refinances up, you know mortgage rates are low! And right now, you can enjoy super low mortgage rates in Charlotte.

Despite the news that it’s harder to get a mortgage today, there are still many Charlotte mortgage financing options. First time home buyers are finding it a little more tricky today, but with the right guideance and advice (from the right Charlotte loan officer of course), Charlotte home buyers can find the right mortgage product to help them get approved! FHA and VA mortgages for Charlotte are just a few of the many options available today.

So if you are still renting, you need to consider buying your first home in the Charlotte area. With a solid real estate market, great selection of homes for sale in Charlotte, super low Charlotte mortgage rates and mortgage programs designed to help first time home buyers, now is your time to buy!

Good News for Financial World

With all the negative press and cries of the sky falling, many times people miss the hidden gems of good news. National City just got a $7 Billion cash infusion. Even though National City has taken major hits and its stock has dropped dramatically, this is GREAT NEWS!

If the sky was falling, who in the world would be willing to offer $7 Billion to a company with major losses? Folks, you gotta see this… now is the best time to make investments! While companies are dealing with the losses and issues, smart investors are jumping in and taking BIG risks to help move things along. This is 7 billion reasons to believe that things are not as bad as everyone seems to say it is!

On a smaller scale, now is the best time to make an investment for yourself. If you have been considering purchasing a home, now is the best time in recent history to do so! Mortgage rates in Charlotte are still very low and homes for sale in Charlotte still offer great selection.

Typically in a buyer’s market, rates are higher. Yet today, Charlotte mortgage rates are super cheap and there are still tons of homes to buy! So if you are thinking of buying a home in Charlotte or the surrounding area, now is the time to move!

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Zillow Launches Mortgage Marketplace

That’s right! Zillow has launched their long awaited “Mortgage Marketplace.” This not-so-great idea is being billed as a place that consumers can get quotes from multiple lenders without having to provide any personal information.  Spencer Rascoff, Zillow’s chief financial officer and vice-president for marketing claims, “This is a huge step forward in terms of putting borrowers in control and giving them access to information.”

What’s wrong with this, you ask? Read on… Read the rest of this entry »