Month: March 2022

If you’re buying or selling (but especially buying), a home inspection is a crucial part of the process that too often is seen as just another step. So here are the 3 keys to make sure you come out on top and avoid surprises after you move in! 1. Inspect the Inspector First! Make sure your inspector is certified, qualified and experienced. You want someone who is going to check things thoroughly and not just check the boxes. Find a good inspector early as the good ones can often be like a popular restaurant – hard to get a reservation. 2. Be Present for the Inspection If at all possible make sure you attend the inspection too! It may take a few hours so block out the morning or afternoon…

Last week the Federal Reserve announced it was raising the Federal Fund rate by a quarter percentage point rate, the first rate increase in three years. You are probably wondering what that actually means for homeowners. Although not officially connected this normally means mortgage rates go up, and rates have increased recently. The Fed has also indicated that it will increase rates even more in the coming months as inflation is one of their top priorities. If you are currently on a fixed interest rate mortgage the won’t affect your rate or your mortgage payments. If you have an ARM variable rate mortgage then it will be affected affected and you may want to consider locking into a fixed rate mortgage before rates go higher. If you are under contract…

As we enter tax season, let's review how owning a home can help lower your tax bill. First, lets clarify that you’ll need to do an itemized return to take advantage of the deductions. Second the deductions are just that deductions from the income that is subject to tax, not just taking an amount straight off your tax bill. Onto the benefits! The biggest one, you may already be familiar with – the interest deduction. The money you pay in interest over the year on your loan is fully deductible on the first $750,000 of your loan or up to $1 million if your loan was originated before December 15, 2017. The other biggie is deducting property taxes. You can deduct up to $10,000 in state and local taxes including…

If you bought your home with less than 20% down, you are most likely paying private mortgage insurance (PMI). Most borrowers can’t wait to get to 22% equity when their PMI will be cancelled. One way to stop paying PMI is through refinancing your home. Now this likely won't be an inexpensive way to avoid PMI in terms of closing costs involved with refinancing. So you may want to have other reasons to refinance such as a lower monthly payment or getting cash-out as well. If you’re equity has increased a good deal recently so that you have more than 20% equity then you could avoid PMI through this route as well – you’ll still have to pay for an appraisal but that will be a lot less than the…

What Is A Non-QM Loan? A Non-Qualified mortgage loan (Non-QM) is a loan that falls outside of the QM (Qualified Mortgage) loan parameters, which provide legal protection to lenders and have stricter guidelines to help prevent against default. Non-QM loans fill a void for people with fluctuating income that may come in lump sums. Most often they used by people who are self-employed (like a small business owner, entrepreneur, contractor, nurses, etc.) and don’t tick the boxes for a traditional mortgage with requirements for their tax statements, pay stubs and W-2s. They are also used by borrowers that may certain credit issues in their past that rule out a QM loan. Non-QM loans do not have the traditional guarantees backed by those of Freddie, Fannie, FHA and VA loans. If…