LendingArizonaMortgages.com

Freddie Mac®'s Online Tools help to educate and prepare yourself for your home buying process:

Considering Homeownership?

• Rent vs. Buy
  Understanding the financial differences between renting and homeownership.
• Tax Savings
  Learn about potential tax savings by becoming a homeowner.
• How Much House Can You Afford?
  Research how much house you can purchase and finance within your budget.
• How Much Money Can You Borrow?
  Learn how much of a loan you might be able to borrow to finance your new home.

All About Mortgages

• Fixed or an Adjustable-Rate Mortgage?
  Understanding the financial differences between fixed- and adjustable-rate mortgage programs.
• Adjustable-Rate Mortgages
  Find out how much monthly mortgage payments might be with an adjustable-rate mortgage.
• Fixed-Rate Mortgages
  Find out how much monthly mortgage payments might be with a fixed-rate mortgage.
• 15-year or 30-year Term?
  Learn how a different length term affects your monthly mortgage payment and overall cost of the loan.
• Down Payments, how much is needed?
  Research how much of a down payment you should consider, and the impact on your purchasing power they have.
• Closing Costs
  Estimate what your home mortgage's closing costs might be.
• Extra Payments
  Learn how advantageous extra monthly mortgage payments could be.
• Paying Points
  Find out how paying extra points might beneficially lower your mortgage rate and increase your buying power.
• Mortgage Insurance
  Understand how to possibly reduce mortgage insurance.
• Blank HUD-1 Form
  Examine this example blank HUD-1 to see how a loan settlement takes place.

Purchasing A Home, and Avoiding Foreclosure

• Refinancing Costs in a Mortgage
  Understand what your loan refinancing costs might be.

Financing Resources, Mortgage Knowledge Base, and Informative Links:

The Arizona Corporation Commission
Responsible for final decisions on granting or denying utility rate adjustments, enforcing transportation safety and public service requirements

Arizona Department of Financial Institutions
Toll-free: (800) 544-0708
Regulates and supervises the financial institutions and enterprises of Arizona.

Better Business Bureau
Better Business Bureaus can alert you to complaints against companies in your area.

The Federal Reserve
The Federal Reserve System (also the Federal Reserve; informally The Fed) is the central banking system of the United States.

RESPA - Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act
RESPA covers loans secured with a mortgage placed on a one-to-four family residential property. These include most purchase loans, assumptions, refinances, property improvement loans, and equity lines of credit. HUD's Office of RESPA and Interstate Land Sales is responsible for enforcing RESPA.

Featured Agent Rebecca Roberts specializes in many types of Mortgage Lending. For instance, Mortgages for Condos. Condominiums must be certified by the government department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Rebecca can help a qualifying condo community get their certification. Rebecca also specializes in Manufactured Home mortgage lending. She is a published author on the subject as well. Her book will educate you, or at least give you the confidence in her abilities to guide you as your loan specialist, if you are interested in purchasing one. Check out her book here.

Compared to conventional loans, Federal Housing Administration loans have more lenient requirements for applicants to fulfill. For more than 75 years, the FHA has insured millions of loans to help Americans finance their homes. In fact, last year the federal government financed about 28 percent of home loans.
Even though qualifying for FHA loans is easier, not everybody meets the requirements. Those who do will find favorable terms, and for those who don’t other home-financing options are available.
Qualifying for FHA loans
When people apply for loans, the FHA considers a number of things, most importantly:
-The percentage of monthly income spent on the mortgage payment. Although borrowers may be able to stretch this amount to 35 percent of monthly income, the FHA recommends 29 percent.
-Credit history. A score of about 620 is the minimum, but those with no credit history may still qualify. If major credit problems arose because of serious reasons, such as illness or a job transfer, the FHA will likely excuse it. Borrowers with a history of foreclosure or bankruptcy must allow three years and two years from discharge, respectively.
-Debt-to-income ratio. Including the mortgage payment, the FHA allows 41 percent of a borrowers’ monthly income to go toward outstanding debts.
More benefits of FHA loans
-Conventional loans expect borrowers to have savings, but FHA loans do not necessitate savings or checking accounts.
-If combined with other loans, the down payment can be 0 percent. When borrowers need to put money down, it’s acceptable to get money from non-profits or family to cover the cost.
-FHA loans’ interest rates change within 0.125 percent of conventional loans, if at all.
-With the government’s insurance of the loans, lenders are more comfortable issuing them.
Alternatives to FHA loans
Since not everybody can get FHA loans, other financing options exist for prospective homeowners. Like any loan program, these options come with different prerequisites.
-The U.S. Department of Agriculture insures up to 100 percent of a loan, and tends to help low-income families in rural areas.
-VA loans are available to veterans and active-duty military members. Like USDA loans, VA loans are one of the few no-money-down options on the market.
-Instead of buying a home, renting may be a better option. Apartment owners who get financial assistance from the Department of Housing and Urban Development offer lower rent to tenants.