Texas Real Estate Blog & Market News - Mortgage

The Biggest Factor in Determining the Price of a Mortgage

What is the biggest factor in determining the price of a mortgage? It is the interest rate. How so? Read along to learn more about this very important aspect of real estate.

Most buyers these days usually do not have enough resources to cover the price tag of the house that they want to purchase. As such, they depend on getting a mortgage loan. These loans are usually payable every month, for a continuous period of several years. This significantly reduces the amount that they need to pay initially. However, it only increases the overall amount paid in the long run.

Interest Rates – What You Need to Know

There are certain terms that you need to understand at this point. One is the principal. It refers to the amount of money that you are…

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4 THINGS FIRST-TIME BUYERS SHOULD KNOW ABOUT MORTGAGES

The first-time buyer is often in for a shock when it comes to getting a mortgage. What seems as if it should be a straightforward process ‒‒ you want to borrow money to buy a house, the bank wants to loan money to qualified buyers, what could be a match made more in heaven, right? ‒‒ can quickly become an overwhelming, confusing mess. Before you apply for a mortgage, here are a few things to keep in mind:

Debt-to-Income

Whether you get your mortgage at all depends largely on your debt-to-income ratio; in other words, the ratio between how much money you make and how much you will have to spend per month on the projected total costs of your house. That includes mortgage payments, property taxes, and insurances. If what you will have to pay in a…

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Rising Mortgage Rates and Their Effect on the Housing Industry

By most accounts, the first half of 2013 was a keeper.

Although July saw a slight dip in housing sales, analysts see this as just a small bump in the road, with consumer confidence remaining high.

The first part of 2013 was a banner year for both housing sales and consumer confidence. Buyer traffic in July may have dropped, but that was likely due to the increase in interest rates. With a surge in the spring due to impending interest rate hikes, the housing market has quieted down, as those on the fence are hanging back and re-evaluating their options. But that surely doesn’t spell doom for a housing market that has rallied since December.

A new Fannie Mae survey, along with a 14 percent jump in mortgage applications in July, further highlight…

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Yes, You Can Cut Your Mortgage Payment!

If you purchase a property with less than 20 percent down, you most likely will end up paying private mortgage insurance, more commonly referred to as PMI. PMI, although it may allow you to secure a home loan without saving up 20 percent, it will cost you every month in the form of a PMI payment, which is on top of your mortgage and taxes every month. For many homeowners, this extra payment can be quite costly, as PMI can run as high as a few hundred dollars, depending on the loan program and the amount of the down payment.

Many homeowners just assume that they have to pay PMI. While this used to be the case, homeowners today can now opt for single-pay mortgage insurance, which reduces the long-term mortgage payment.

Single-Pay Mortgage Insurance

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What’s Your Mortgage I.Q.?

Do you fancy yourself to be a mortgage know-it-all? After all, you’ve been down the mortgage road before, bought a few properties, and think you have a pulse on mortgages and how to secure a competitive one.

Unfortunately, there may be a quite a few things about mortgages you aren’t aware of – things that could cost you big in the long run. Here are a few mortgage trivia questions to keep you on your toes:

True or False: I can figure out my mortgage payment using my interest rate.

False! The cost of your home and the interest rate do not tell the entire story of the mortgage payment for your Plano residence. Instead, look to your loan’s annual percentage rate (APR), which includes not only the interest you will pay on your loan, but the points,…

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Credit Standards Relaxing For Home Buyers

Loosening credit standards may be coming to the rescue for home buyers everywhere. Most economists agree that the one overriding factor why home sales haven’t rebounded in many parts of the country is because lenders are still making it too difficult for many homeowners to secure home loans.

Although the average credit score needed to secure a home loan currently hovers around 700, which is where it has been for some time, more banks are loosening up their standards in other areas, such as how much money they will lend borrowers. Banks, in fact, are lending amounts of up to three and a half times the salary to borrowers (for example, if you make $50,000, you can expect to be approved for a loan of up to $175,000, although this amount may vary depending…

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Mortgage Tips for First Time Homebuyers

As a first-time home buyer, you may be quite overwhelmed at the thought of obtaining a mortgage. There seems to be so many options, and the process of finding a home loan program and applying for it leaves you feeling nervous and more than stressed out! However, the mortgage process is not so intimidating if you take it one step at a time:

1. Consider how much money you can spend on a new home – Before you even look at your first property, consider how much of a home you can afford. It simply doesn’t make sense to waste your time and build up your hopes, only to learn that you cannot afford as much of a house as your first thought. In addition to considering a monthly housing expense, add in the cost of taxes, as well as utilities and the cost of…

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