Updates on the FHASecure Program to assist homeowners whose interest rates are resetting

Here is the latest on the web concerning the FHASecure Program, designed to assist homeowners who can no longer afford their mortgage payments due to an interest rate reset:

• CountryWide has already launched the program and, as of last week, 35 loans have already been originated.
  
• First Horizon National Corp. in Memphis is ramping up to begin their participation in the program.
  
• There are strict rules for the FHASecure program - first being that the mortgage must be 30 days delinquent due solely to the interest rate reset.
  
• Ironically, the FHASecure program cannot be used to refinance an FHA loan.
  
• The homeowner must have made six consecutive payments on time prior to the interest rate reset to qualify.
  
• Homeowner must have 3% equity in home to qualify.
  
• Some lenders may even issue this loan when the homeowner has been or is in bankruptcy.
  

If you cannot qualify for the FHASecure program, try the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America based in Boston. To qualify, the homeowners interest rate must be 10% or more and you must have had your mortgage for at least two years.

There will surely be more programs popping up, and I will keep you informed.

So, as always, 'til next time, it's all good!

Where To Eat In Metro Detroit Area?

Since I could not find anything nice to say about the world of real estate, real estate financing, or the State of Michigan's economy today, I will not discuss those subjects at all!

Let's talk about something that we all love - food! Though I do not eat out much, I do like to know which restaurants those that do eat out often recommend. AOL Local/Detroit did a poll and here a just a few of the results:

Best Barbeque:

1. The Bone Yard Restaurant - 30843 Plymouth Rd., Livonia 734-427-6500
2. Chicken Shack - 4040 E 11 Mile, Warren 586-758-2888
3. Memphis Smoke - 100 S. Main St., Royal Oak 248-543-4300
   

Best Chinese:

1. Mon Jin Lau - 1515 E. Maple Rd., Troy 248-689-2332
2. Peking House - 215 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak 248-545-2700
3. New Peking Restaurant - 29105 Ford Rd., Garden City 734-425-2230
   

Best Family Style:

1. Elias Brother's Big Boy - 31270 John R. Rd., Madison Hts. 248-588-6600
2. National Coney Island - 1812 N. Main St., Royal Oak 248-398-6111
3. Rainforest Cafe - 4310 Baldwin Rd., Auburn Hills 248-333-0280
   

Best Italian:

1. Andiamo Italia - 7096 E. 14 Mile, Warren 586-268-3200
2. Roma Cafe - 3401 Riopelle St., Detroit 313-831-5940
3. Lelli's - 885 N. Opdyke Rd., Auburn Hills 248-373-4440

Best Mexican:

1. Xochimilco Restaurant - 3409 Bagley St., Detroit 313-843-0179
2. Mexican Village Restaurant - 2600 Bagley St., Detroit 313-237-0333
3. Mexican Fiesta Restaurant - 24310 Ford Rd., Dearborn Hts. 313-274-3066
   

Best Pizza:

1. Buddy's Pizza - 8100 Old 13 Mile Rd., Warren 586-574-9200
2. Amici's Pizza - 3249 12 Mile Rd., Berkley 248-544-4100
3. PizzaPapalis - 553 Monroe St., Detroit 313-961-8020
   

Best Seafood:

1. Charley's Crab - 5498 Crooks Rd., Northfield Hilton, Troy 248-879-2060
2. Mitchell's Fish Market - 117 Willits St., Birmingham 248-646-3663
3. Big Fish Seafood Bistro - 700 Town Center Dr., Dearborn 313-336-6350
   
   

To read the entire survey, please visit http://www.cityguide.aol.com/detroit
Feel free to comment on any of the winning restaurants, or to add your own favorites.
As always, 'til tomorrow, it's all good! (And I have to go get something to eat now!)

Quick facts on the new FHA bailout program

• Borrowers must have at least 3% equity in the home. That requirement alone is going to eliminate many borrowers who now owe more on their home than it is worth.
  
• More than a quarter of subprime borrowers have missed a payment before their rates reset. That is a fact making political solutions more difficult.
  
• About 48% of the subprime borrowers won't qualify to refinance into a mortgage that conforms to the new standards given by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
  
• The 1/2 point interest rate cut just passed by the Federal Reserve will do very little to help those whose mortgages are adjusting.
  
• U.S. home prices fell by 3.2% in the second quarter of this year, setting a new record.
  
• It would take nearly 10 months to sell off all the existing homes on the market right now; the longest amount of time in at least 8 years.
  
• The average increase for a rate reset is 26%, or about $400.00 per month.
  
  

Here's hoping that there will be better news to relay to you next time!

As always, 'til next time - it's all good!

Remember your gas bills from last winter?

If you live in the NE portion of the United States, chances are your heating bills last winter were nearly as much, if not more, than your car payment!

If you are thinking about ways to save energy this winter and are in the market for a new furnace, the following information may interest you.

What you may not know about heating with wood:

• Wood is environmentally friendly. It may not seem so, since trees have to be cut down, but trees are a renewal source of energy. Trees are also carbon neutral; that is, they absorb carbon dioxide while living, and release carbon dioxide whether they burn or decompose. Fossil fuels, on the other hand, are a one way street - only releasing green house gasses that have been captured deep in the earth for millions of years.

• Wood can save money. With the new generation of high efficiency hydronic furnaces (or wood boilers), the heat generated is much more intense than in the older furnaces and very little is lost up the chimney. These new furnaces can be used as a secondary heating method and have been shown to save up to 70% in reduction of oil, propane, and natural gas heating bills.

• Wood can be clean. Because the new furnaces burn wood at much higher temperatures, there is almost no smoke. Also, there is very little ash and the firebox only needs to be cleaned once a month, rather than every day. And, the furnace can be installed outdoors, eliminating the need to lug your logs through the house.
  

• Wood is safe heating method. Of course, as with any type of heating material, the proper precautions must be taken. Be sure to look for a wood boiler system that is both UL and CSA approved.
  
  
• I cannot recommend a brand for you, as I don't yet have a wood burning system, but if you are interested in researching your possibilities or want more information, visit www.greenwoodfurnace.com
  

Happy Burning!

And, as always, 'til tomorrow - it's all good!

More good news for the struggling real estate market!

The Wall Street Journal's on-line Guide to Property announced today that federal and state banking regulators are urging lenders and investors to restructure the loans of homeowners with interest rates that are resetting to amounts beyond their means to repay.

Many of these same loans are no longer on the books of the original lender, and so have been extremely difficult to rework with the homeowner. There will be fewer negative tax of accounting implications for those lenders and investors who buy these loans to restructure.

This is just one other initiative coming out of Washington to assist everyone in the housing industry - especially those homeowners who could afford their house payments until their interest rates reset.

Spokespeople for the National Consumer Law Center are encouraged by these new actions; stating that the consideration of loan modification is on it's way to becoming a standard practice.

As always, 'til tomorrow, it's all good!

Help from Washington for the Mortgage Industry

It was announced Friday, August 31st, that HUD will offer help to an estimated 250,000 families to avoid foreclosure on their homes by allowing them to refinance at a lower rate. This aid is available immediately.

And, in addition, HUD will launch it's new FHASecure plan in January, 2008, which will allow families that had strong credit histories before their interest rates reset to qualify for refinancing. These new programs will charge a risk-based premium based on the borrower's credit profile. Those with riskier credit will pay a higher insurance premium.

FHA transactions are expected to surpass 100,000 loans by the end of this fiscal year. And those figures do not include refinancing for delinquent borrowers.

To qualify, homeowners must meet the follow criteria:

1. On time mortgage payments before interest rate reset.
   
2. Interest rate reset between June 2005 and December 2009.
   
3. 3% cash or equity in home.
   
4. Sustained history of employment.
   
5. Sufficient income to make the new payment.
   

For more information, call 800-CALL-FHA or visit www.fha.gov and look through your old files to see if you have customers that may need your assistance with these new programs.
And, as always, remember that we are FHA certified and would love to do business with you!

So, who were the real winners in the real estate boom?

The way I see it, no one in the United States has had any long term gain from the craziness that was the real estate bubble of the last five years or so.

The big lenders that issued the "liar's loans" and sold them to foreign investors are now being forced to buy back some of those loans, and are therefore in financial trouble and are either closing their doors or laying off their staff.

So, if the lenders didn't gain, what about the loan officers and brokers? Well, if they were human like the rest of us, they all went and bought new homes and new toys when business was good, and now have no jobs and are going to be in the same foreclosure boat as the rest of the Joe Schmoes out there rather quickly. Or, worse yet, some of them are going to face prosecution for predatory lending - and do you think the big lenders that they were working for are going to pay for their defense? I think not...

So, if the lenders, loan officers, and brokers didn't gain, how about the appraisers? Well, the appraisers that played along with the game are sitting on the hot seat now, and some may well face criminal prosecution for mortgage fraud. And do you think the lenders that they were playing the game with are going to defend them? Not a chance! And the appraisers that refused to play the game are hurting, too, as orders slow down to a small trickle......it would help us reputable appraisal companies if lenders would remember that we have been on the up and up all along.

So, if the lenders, loan officers, brokers, and appraisers didn't gain, how about the homeowners? Sure, they got their homes with little or no money down, with forged documentation, or with a little fudging of the numbers here and there, but where are they now? Many have lost their homes completely and all of the hard earned cash they have paid into their mortgages. There are nine vacant homes just on the two sides of my block here - do you think that helps the market value of my home? (Not to mention, it breaks my heart to look at them every day!)

So, if the lenders, loan officers, brokers, appraisers, and homeowners didn't gain, how about the investors that are "snapping" up these bargain bank owned homes? Well, I just looked at roughly 200 listings of foreclosed homes in my city, and only about 20 of those listings were below the estimated market value of the property. Most were listed at MUCH higher prices than the real value of the property (just my opinion - but I have lived here all of my life and have a pretty good idea what a home is worth, right here and right now). So, I see a minimal number of "bargains" out there and so what if an investor does buy a "bargain"? Who is he going to sell it to? No one can get a mortgage now unless you are a "Rockefeller"! And, let's not even talk about renting it! To whom? The only jobs available in our area don't pay enough to afford to live in your parents basement, let alone a home!

So, in all of this big mess, guess who the only winners were? The foreign investors - who not only made big dividends on the risky loans when business was good, but can now force many of our big financial companies to their financial knees by forcing them to buy back a majority of the defaulted loans......way to go, America! But, I have faith that Americans are smart and compassionate enough to figure out how to fix this mess now....and I rack my brain daily for some answer. I just hope we can remember this the next time we are tempted to take a ride on Easy Street....