Underwater on your mortgage?
December 6, 2011
Some good news came out recently for those homeowners that are still having difficulty refinancing due to their property values. The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced changes to the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) in an effort to attract more eligible borrowers who can benefit from refinancing their mortgage loan. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have adopted these changes, and you may be eligible to take advantage of them. The program has been broadened to allow for more flexibility when the property is worth less than what is currently owed. If you have attempted to get your servicing lender to refinance your loan and were denied due to the value, you should give it another try.
Some of the parameters are as follows:
- If your mortgage is owned or guaranteed by either Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae, you may be eligible to refinance under the expanded provisions of HARP.
- You must be current on the payments with no delinquency in the past 6 months and no more than one late payment in the last year.
- There must be a benefit to you as the homeowner for the refinance to take place. This means a reduction in your current payment or a more stable loan product, such as a fixed rate versus a balloon or adjustable rate.
- You can determine whether your mortgage is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac by checking the following websites: www.freddiemac.com/mymortgage or http://www.fanniemae.com/loanlookup/.
Your current lender is the only option for these loans at this time, so be patient but persistent! In March, it is expected that any lender may be able to assist with these, so we hope to help even more local homeowners get a loan that fits their current financial needs If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call us!
Posted by Pam Woodall
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