There is a lot of information on credit repair available and I have reviewed a great deal of it on and off the web. A lot of what I found was mostly promotional material for one service or another. I have used the information from the Federal Trade Commission website as the basis for this section because I wanted to present unbiased facts. The FTC information is in italics. The first thing that needs to be said is that the majority of credit repair companies are a scam. But don’t believe me here is a quote from the FTC concerning credit repair.

“The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says do yourself a favor and save some money, too. Don’t believe these claims: they’re very likely signs of a scam. Indeed, attorneys at the nation’s consumer protection agency say they’ve never seen a legitimate credit repair operation making those claims. The fact is there’s no quick fix for creditworthiness. You can improve your credit report legitimately, but it takes time, a conscious effort, and sticking to a personal debt repayment plan.”

See the full report at:  http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre13.shtm

There are many companies that promise to be able to use the dispute process to remove negative items from your credit even temporarily and give you a short term boos in your score so that you can complete a mortgage application using the higher score. I have heard plenty of antidotal evidence about this but I have never seen any real evidence of this working. In addition the credit reporting agencies are well aware of this practice and from reports have taken measures to counteract this.

Step one.

Get a copy of your credit report and go over it thoroughly. To order, click on https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

Call 1-877-322-8228, or complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to:

Annual Credit Report Request Service
P.O. Box 105281
Atlanta, GA 30348-5281

You don’t have to spend any money or sign up for any additional services to get your free credit report. There are many sites that market themselves as having free credit reports but that require you to sign up for a monthly monitoring service before you get your free credit report. This type of service can be useful if you are actively tracking changes in your credit report but it is not necessary.

Step two.

Look for any mistakes on your credit report. If they are any mistakes that you can correct this will give you a quick boost. Genuine mistakes when removed will have the fastest impact on your credit score.

If you find any mistakes you can file a Dispute, a word to the wise, according to many people in the credit field don’t rely on the online dispute format. They recommend that you write a formal letter and keep copies of everything.

Explain to the consumer reporting company, in writing, what information you think is inaccurate. Include copies (NOT originals) of any documents that support your position. In addition to providing your complete name and address, your letter should identify each item in your report you dispute; state the facts and the reasons you dispute the information, and ask that it be removed or corrected. You may want to enclose a copy of your report, and circle the items in question. Send your letter by certified mail, “return receipt requested,” so you can document that the consumer reporting company received it. Keep copies of your dispute letter and enclosures.

 Consumer reporting companies must investigate the items you question within 30 days — unless they consider your dispute frivolous. They also must forward all the relevant data you provide about the inaccuracy to the organization that provided the information. After the information provider receives notice of a dispute from the consumer reporting company, it is required to investigate, review the relevant information, and report the results back to the consumer reporting company. If this investigation reveals that the disputed information is inaccurate, the information provider has to notify the nationwide consumer reporting companies so they can correct it in your file.

When the investigation is complete, the consumer reporting company must give you the results in writing, too, and a free copy of your report if the dispute results in a change. If an item is changed or deleted, the consumer reporting company is not permitted to put the disputed information back in your file unless the information provider verifies that it is accurate and complete. The consumer reporting company also must send you written notice that includes the name, address, and phone number of the information provider. If you ask, the consumer reporting company must send notices of any correction to anyone who received your report in the past six months. You also can ask that a corrected copy of your report be sent to anyone who received a copy during the past two years for employment purposes.

If an investigation doesn’t resolve your dispute with the consumer reporting company, you can ask that a statement of the dispute be included in your file and in future reports. You also can ask the consumer reporting company to provide your statement to anyone who received a copy of your report in the recent past. You can expect to pay for this service.

Here are the web addresses for the three credit reporting agencies:
Equifax – http://www.investigate.equifax.com/
Experian – www.experian.com
TransUnion – www.transunion.com

Part 2 will follow soon

Based on searching Google at the time of writing there are 25,200,000 results of mortgage calculator, 17,500,000 for mortgage rate calculator and 8,370,000 for mortgage calculators. Depending on the search tool used there are between 2.7 and 3.8 million searches for mortgage rates per month.

The prime reason for this is that for many borrowers the first and primary focus when doing a mortgage is the rate. This is understandable because the rate is one of the primary determinants of the overall cost of a mortgage. However I wonder how many of our mortgage rate shoppers realize how illusionary the rates published on line can be.

Most of the rate sites I visited were active marketers for the companies listed there. The rates listed always come with a set of assumptions that can have a significant impact on the mortgage rate published. Let us look at some of these.

• Loan to Value (LTV) based on the sites I visited the LTV varied between 75% and 90%. The sites with the 75% LTV as is to be expected had the lowest rates. Since LTV is one of the major adjustment factors used by lenders in determining your rate this gives this site an advantage in being able to publish the lowest mortgage rate. Based on current mortgage rate sheets from a couple of national mortgage lenders the difference between 75% and 80% LTV for borrowers with scores of 680- 699 could be as much as .750 ( $ 750.00 on a $100,000 mortgage.) for borrowers with scores  in the 700 to 720 range the difference could be up to .500 ( $500.00 on a $100.000 mortgage)
• Credit score, since the national average score varies between 680 and 692, depending which set of statistics are used, and most sites I examined used credit scores between 700 and 720 again there is at least a statistical probability that a significant portion of the visitors to these sites will get a different mortgage rate than that quoted.
• Length of rate lock there can be a significant variation in rate depending on the lock period. On the sites I visited there was a variation in their assumptions between 30 and 60 day rate locks. The difference at the Par (wholesale rate) between 30 day and 60 day locks averaged .375 ($375.00 on a $100,000.00 Mortgage)

There are other factors to be considered that can affect the accuracy of the mortgage rates given including the type of dwelling being purchased, the area of the country where you live and the type of loan program you are doing. Each of these and others can have a measurable effect on your final mortgage rate.

It is wise for borrowers to treat these mortgage rate calculators as general information tools. If you really want to get an accurate quote you should sit down with a mortgage advisor and look at all your options and what factors you can manipulate to help you get the best mortgage rate. This conversation should take place as far in advance of your anticipated mortgage date as possible. The more time you give yourself the greater your ability have a positive effect on your mortgage rate.

If you or anyone you know is thinking about a reverse mortgage the article by Atare E. Agbamu, CRMS who is director of reverse mortgages at Minneapolis-based AdvisorNet Mortgage LLC.  Is a must read before you sign on the dotted line. Mr. Agbamu points out and explains a problem with the FHA HECM that could affect any borrower in a reverse mortgage that is planning to pass the property on to their heirs upon their death.

For a explanation of the reverse mortgage and its nuances please look over my Reverse Mortgage page on the website.

Use this link to read the article. I recommend this to borrowers or any associated family members, any estate planners or attorneys who deal with estates.

Forward on Reverse: An assault on fairness … quash Mortgagee Letter 2008-38 (Part I)

The issue of yield spread premiums (YSP) in the lending industry is complex and well debated. It seems that the political machinery and the mainstream media have all joined in a one note chorus universally assailing this evil scourge that has been foisted upon the poor hapless consumer.

There are those who go as far as to make the contention that the root causes of the economic meltdown are related to Mortgage Brokers and their perversion of the system through YSP’s to be FRANK this is most certainly a stretch.  However the many members of the Mortgage Brokers have been guilty of a certain amount of abuse. This is not a universal damnation of the profession of which I am part but there are many who have been guilty of it. However the issue is not the existence of the YSP but the way that the same regulators who are now leading the fight to rid us of this plague have consistently abdicated their collective responsibility.

The first step was in 1999 when HUD issued its RESPA reform

Regarding Lender Payments to Mortgage Brokers (http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/ramh/res/resp0222.cfm). This covers commissions paid by lenders to mortgage brokers and establishing rules governing them. A very good policy which was supposed to protect the consumer. However for some inexplicable reason the reforms seemed to ignore the payments paid directly by lenders to their own.  These fees called Service Release Premiums are exempt from the regulations.

The new modification to the Truth in lending act http://marshonmortgages.wordpress.com/2009/07/29/the-new-truth-in-lending-act-what-does-it-mean-to-you/

Now comes HVCC to protect the consumer again. See my blog on the subject http://marshonmortgages.wordpress.com/2009/07/29/hvcc-home-valuation-code-of-conduct/ and take a look at some of the real world experiences with HVCC thus far.

http://nationalmortgageprofessional.com/news13134/living-hvcc-industry-weighs-effects-home-valuation-code-conduct

Even though we are still in the early days of this legislation it is clear that what our lawmakers have done is protect us into higher cost and delays.

The best system for protection of the borrower is one where every channel of lending is regulated the same way and all fees are disclosed clearly and completely. Where every loan uses the exact same form and there is no variation from one set of documents to the next. Independent professionals must be free to carry out their business free form influence from one group or another.

The point I am trying to make here is that the solution does not lie in law makers and more regulation it lies with a more educated borrower. It is amazing what a little knowledge about the process can do. I sat in a auto dealer and watched a soft spoken lady completely out maneuver a car sales man with a little bit of knowledge about the vehicle she wanted and the process. she was simple able to separate the facts from the hype. A little education can go a long way.  That is my goal both here and on the website.

marshonmortgages.com

The more you understand the process the better able you will be able to avoid being taken for a ride. That’s the Truth.

I have been reading a number of articles which refer to data from a Discussion Paper by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston which presents data that indicates that the current National fervor concerning loan modification may be doomed to failure or at least much lower rates of success than has been estimated by our esteemed leaders. Whether it’s the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan or any other loan modification program, based on the Boston Fed’s discussion paper there are going to be significantly fewer beneficiaries than the governments’ projections indicate

The various writers in each of the articles listed below, which I highly recommend that you read, highlighted the complexity of the issue. In general there are three categories of borrowers in distress. There are sectors of delinquent borrowers who will be able to cure their situation on their own. There are categories of borrower who will slip back into delinquency after a modification and then there are those who through a modification program will keep making payments on time.  Each of these groups has a different economic risk reward profile for the investor.

Only one of these groups (those who will be able to benefit from the process and maintain payments) actually represents a profitable modification for the investor. The other two are a money losing proposition. The self curing group represents an unnecessary additional cost if they are given a loan modification. Those that will slip back into default cost additional money because the investor will have expenditures related to the modification then have to foreclose later anyway which represents another cost. If you combine the cost of the modification plus the cost of the subsequent foreclosure with the possibility that the property could be losing value as time goes on this is a huge cost to the investor.

Without demonizing the lending industry, which is all to easy too do, it is important to understand that very frequently the interests of the larger society run counter to that of specific sectors. While it may be socially desirable to have all the borrowers who are at risk given help, the cost and who is to bear it is a vital factor. Is it the job of the government to cure this problem?  Should the investors be forced to stop or delay foreclosures?  How much of the current crisis could have been prevented if we had effective regulation and oversight in place? Whose fault is this?

Every one of these questions and the many more that can and should be asked invites a plethora of debate that hopefully should lead to more effective systems of control and prevention in the future. On the other hand is this just part of the cycles of growth, contraction, correction, growth …

Let me know what you think?

marshonmortgages

Read these articles!

(Lenders Calculus)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/graphic/2009/07/28/GR2009072800292.html

(Are Mortgage Servicers Like Evil Credit Card Companies?)

http://business.theatlantic.com/2009/07/are_mortgage_servicers_like_evil_credit_card_companies.php

(Foreclosures Are Often In Lenders’ Best Interest)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/27/AR2009072703065.html

(Why the Banks Aren’t Modifying Home Loans)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20090731/us_time/08599191373200

(Discussion Paper by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston)

http://www.bos.frb.org/economic/ppdp/2009/ppdp0904.htm

In short this was the result of a process which started in 2002 aimed at simplifying and clarifying the Good Faith Estimate (GFE) to enable the average borrower to easily understand a mortgage offer from any particular lender and to compare it with an offer from another.  A secondary goal was to harmonize the GFE with the HUD 1 final settlement statement enabling the average borrower to be able to easily comprehend any changes between the GFE and the HUD1.

The GFE is as you would think an estimate of the costs that a borrower will incur in doing a particular loan. Because it is an estimate there can be changes to the final loan costs which are reflected on the HUD1.  Some of these are justified due to changes that will occur in the mortgage process. However many times the GFE was issued artificially low in order to lure a borrower into doing a loan then the fees and charges would be added later and then reflected on the HUD1 with a surprise at closing.

After reading the lengthy document what became clear to me was that the consumer was never in the forefront of the process. According to HUD and I quote “The changes made by this final rule are designed to protect consumers from unnecessarily high settlement costs by taking steps to: improve and standardize the GFE form to make it easier to use for shopping among settlement service providers:”

Whatever the original intent at HUD for this process was, by the time the various industry groups (Bankers, Brokers, Realtors, Closing Agents’ Appraisers etc…),  plus the lobbyists, and politicians had put in their 2 cents worth, what has emerged is a regulation that is anything but simple and straight forward for the consumer.  As you read the document and the various statements by the different industry groups it is quite interesting that it reads more like a turf war than anything else. For example the Bankers support the bill as long as the Mortgage Brokers have to disclose the yield spread premium, the Brokers agree except they want to be able not to show the YSP just like the bankers. After the 6 year period of being pulled, poked, prodded by all concerned what has emerged is at best a weak compromise that accomplished only marginal improvements.

It seems to me that the simplest way to do this is to give the consumer a good faith estimate outlining all charges in a logical comprehensive way with no differentiation for the lending source and make this form standard in same format in the preliminary GFE as it is in the final HUD 1 settlement statement. List in detail all the charges that are involved in the loan and who they are paid to. Unfortunately the only group that would benefit from this is the consumer. So we have ended up with a compromise document that will like the Truth in Lending (TIL) form will probably do as much confusing as clarifying.

If we can learn anything from past experience it is that once various special interest groups get involved the interest of the people gets sidetracked or at least diminished. The complexity and variability of the Mortgage Process has made it much easier for those who wish to perpetuate mortgage Fraud. Half baked attempts at reform will not result in change. The real answer for the average borrower is to understand the process. This is and will be the ongoing goal at marshonmortgages.com

HERA: Housing and Economic Recovery Act Effective July 30, 2009

HERA amends the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), and is intended to improve the disclosures consumers receive in connection with closed-end mortgages and home-equity lines of credit (HELOC’s). It has a number of provisions including the Mortgage Disclosure Improvement Act, which changes the TILA requirements surrounding early and final disclosures to homebuyers and addresses the timing of when fees can be charged.

Exactly how will these two affect the borrower?

If the homebuyer is financing the property, these new guidelines will impact  and could even dictate the closing date. In the past, homebuyers and sellers would agree on a closing date, and then realtors, broker’s lenders and all associated professionals – would work as best they could toward meeting that date. In the new environment, purchase contracts can still be written with a specific closing date in mind, but all parties need to take into account that there are many elements of the new regulations that can delay a closing date.

If a mortgage is involved the earliest any home purchase transaction can close is 7 business days after the homebuyer is issued his or her initial mortgage disclosures from the lender. However at each step of the process there are potential triggers that can cause delay.

Here are some of the potential events that could trigger a delay:

An increase of more than .125% in the Annual Percentage Rate (APR) from the initial Truth in Lending disclosure (TIL) requires the TIL disclosure to be revised and reissued to the homebuyer. The homebuyer must receive a revised TIL disclosure at least 3 business days before closing, factors that could cause an increase include changing from one mortgage program to another, an increase in your interest rate caused for example by a rate change between the time application and locking of the loan. Keep in mind that your final APR cannot be set until the loan is locked. It is advisable to have the loan locked a minimum of 10 days before closing and to cover contingencies the lock should extend at least 10 days beyond the scheduled closing date.

In perfect transactions the loan process can be accomplished in 30 days. This is not a great difference from what was possible prior to the new regulations went into effect but that time estimate assumes that everything goes according to plan. Unfortunately in the mortgage process most of the time at least one issue will pop up. In the past the various parties involved would work to iron out any issues while the process continued in other areas keeping the original closing date. Now each time there is a triggering event there can be delays from 3 to 7 days. So to be completely safe I would recommend that your Realtor should include language in any purchase contract that allows for the new environment. This is doubly so if the transaction includes a sale of a property in order to purchase a new one.

Read the Federal Reserve Press Release Here:  http://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/press/bcreg/20090723a.htm

The HVCC is an attempt to remove the ability of Bankers, Mortgage Brokers, Loan Officers, Realtors and Borrowers to influence the appraisal process. The opening paragraph reads as follows:

No employee, director, officer, or agent of the lender, or any other third party acting as joint venture partner, independent contractor, appraisal management company, or partner on behalf of the lender, shall influence or attempt to influence the development, reporting, result, or review of an appraisal through coercion, extortion, collusion, compensation, , inducement, intimidation, bribery, or in any other manner…

The act requires absolute independence within a lender’s organization between the appraisal function and loan production. The act also stipulates that the borrower must receive a copy of the appraisal at least 3 days before closing.

In looking through the HVCC summary on the Freddie Mac website  this seems like a solid attempt to address the problems that have plagued the lending industry with appraisals. However if you listen to the comments of appraisal industry there are a number of possible issues with the act. In a very good article published by Dave Biggers in the Appraisal Press a number of interesting points are discussed that could be a problem for borrowers down the road.

Mr. Biggers points out that the Lender now has effective control of the process and that while the act restricts the activities of licensed appraisers and prohibits the banks from owning or controlling more than 20% of an appraisal management company, the banks can own up to 100% of an automated valuation company. He further points out that the banks have a vested regulatory and financial interest in using Automated Valuations as apposed to using licensed appraisers.

If Mr. Biggers is right then what HVCC has done is created a situation where the lenders now control the appraisal process. So what our government has done is created another profit center for the banks and allowed them to take control of the appraisal process. Let’s not forget that these are the same banks that were the creator of the crisis to begin with.

Read the HVCC code of conduct here: http://www.freddiemac.com/singlefamily/docs/030308_valuationcodeofconduct.pdfRead Dave Biggers article here: http://www.appraisalpress.com/news/articles/hvcc_the_cure_is_worse_than_the_disease/

These scam artists, bearing promises of foreclosure relief and loan modification assistance, are bilking thousands of homeowners out of thousands of dollars while doing precious little to mitigate already perilous situations. Most of us have seen, heard or received mail about these “programs”.

Using a variety of empty promises and weaving in enough half truths to convince the “mark” they collect fees for their services, take mortgage payments which they keep and never pass onto the lender, or assume title for houses which they let go into foreclosure anyway and then in a variety of ways take either the equity from the home or outright ownership, leaving the original homeowner on the street.

Desperate homeowners are targeted in a variety of ways. They may receive mail directly from these vultures who use public records to identify those is foreclosure. They may advertise their services on the internet, or use roadside posters to attract their victims. These parasites use a variety of pitches to lure their desperate victims.

They will offer to negotiate with your lender once you have paid an upfront fee. Then they disappear. They may tell the homeowner to stop paying the lender and pay all mortgage payments to them. Then after a couple of months they disappear.

Another variation is to produce a loan modification or refinance package to bring the homeowner current. The paperwork provides a “rescue loan” but the homeowner has also signed over title to the scammer in return for this loan.

Then there is the rent to own program where the homeowner signs over the title of the house to the scammer and then rents the home from them, with the ability to buy back the home at a later date. The trick is that the terms of the repurchase are extremely arduous making is effectively impossible for the homeowner to recover title to the house.  Another variation on this is the scammer may also periodically raise the rent until the homeowner can no longer pay and them the scammer evicts the former homeowner.

The scammers use another scheme to bilk homeowners: they will collect a fee from the homeowners and then file bankruptcy either with or without the homeowners’ knowledge. The bankruptcy temporarily halts the foreclosure. However if the bankruptcy is not fully processed the foreclosure can continue or restart.

There are a number of things for homeowners t look for when looking for help with a foreclosure.  Be wary of any service that offers to provide a service for an upfront fee especially if they want it by cashiers check or wire transfer. Don’t get caught in a lease program to save your home, don’t make mortgage payments to anyone else than your lender. Don’t transfer your deed or title and be very wary of any one offering to do all the paperwork for you.

In a nut shell to avoid getting scammed

• Work only with a nonprofit, HUD-approved counselor you can find a list on HUD’s website HUD-approved housing counseling agencies, or call 877-HUD-1515 (877-483-1515) for more information.
• Don’t pay an arm and a leg. Most councilors offer their services for free or at a very low cost. Certainly make sure the councilors are on the HUD list
• Be wary of guarantees.  A reputable councilor will not offer guarantees
• Know what you are signing before you sign it. Don’t sign any blank forms or anything you don’t fully understand.
• If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Here is a link to HUD’s website that details specific details about foreclosure scams

http://www.occ.treas.gov/ftp/ADVISORY/2008-1.html

If you are having for closure problems or think you might be headed that way. First contact your lender see if you can negotiate a settlement. Foreclosure is an expensive process. Many lenders will try to work with you to avoid it.

You also may contact a credit counselor through the Homeownership Preservation Foundation (HPF), a nonprofit organization that operates the national 24/7 toll-free hotline (1.888.995.HOPE) with free, bilingual, personalized assistance to help at-risk homeowners avoid foreclosure. HPF is a member of the HOPE NOW Alliance of mortgage servicers, mortgage market participants and counselors. More information about HOPE NOW is at http://www.hopenow.com/

For a  borrower to qualifying  they have to be at least 62 years old. Where you have two borrowers, such as a husband and wife, the age of the youngest borrower is used to qualify.  They have to have equity in their primary home and want or need to get access to the equity. This is a great tool that won’t create any monthly payment obligations. The effect of a Reverse Mortgage is to take the equity now and delay payment until later. A Reverse Mortgage doesn’t come due until the youngest applicant either permanently leaves the residence (going into assisted living facility for example) or dies. In essence the borrower gets cash now and the repayment is somebody else’s problem.

One of the issues associated with this product is the vulnerability of many older people to being taken advantage of. The mortgage process can be confusing for even the sharpest and financially savvy person. The senior market is particularly susceptible. I would encourage seniors to have a child, friend, other relative or a spiritual advisor help them in making the decision. The majority of Reverse Mortgages are offered through the FHA HECM (Home Equity Conversion Mortgage) program which has a number of safeguards built in. However there are independent companies now offering the product which do not necessarily provide the same levels of protection for the borrower. I encourage those who are unsure to insist on an FHA lender.

For more information about Reverse Mortgages please follow this link

Below you will find three links two to the HUD (US Department of  Housing And Urban Development) website which has an excellent piece titled “The top 10 things to know if you are interested in a Reverse Mortgage”:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hecm/rmtopten.cfm

The second link is to an page which discusses the FHA HECM is greater depth:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hecm/hecmabou.cfm
Here is a link to the AARP ( American Association of Retired Persons) website where you can use an online calculator to estimate how much cash you could get for a Reverse Mortgage:

http://rmc.ibisreverse.com/rmc_pages/rmc_aarp/aarp_index.aspx

In future posts I will examine in greater depth specific issues with Reverse Mortgages.

Posted in Uncategorized | Edit | No Comments »