What is Mortgage Insurance or PMI?

John Thomas December 29, 2018 Tags: Mortgage Insurance, PMI

What is Mortgage Insurance or PMI?

Mortgage Insurance is an insurance policy that protects lenders against a borrower defaulting on the mortgage loan for a portion of the loss incurred by the lender. Mortgage Insurance is sometimes termed PMI which stands for Private Mortgage Insurance. Mortgage lenders typically do not want to lend more than 80% of the value of a home as it is too risky long term. Mortgage insurance is used to offset the risk to the lender and allows a borrower to put down less than 20% to purchase a home so it creates a win-win scenario for lender and borrower. If you have questions or would like to get started on a mortgage pre-approval, call 302-703-0727 or you can APPLY ONLINE Keep Reading...

Understanding Your Debt to Income Ratio (DTI)

John Thomas December 27, 2018 Tags: Debt to income ratio, DTI

Understanding your Debt to Income Ratio (DTI)

Your Debt to Income Ratio is used by mortgage lenders to determine how much money you can borrower for the purchase or refinance of a home. Your Debt to Income Ratio is abbreviated as DTI for short. The DTI is a comparison of your gross monthly income to your monthly liability payments. Mortgage Lenders use two Debt to Income ratios when determining if you qualify for a mortgage loan: Housing DTI and Total DTI. If you have questions about qualifying for a mortgage loan or would like to get pre-approved, call 302-703-0727 or APPLY ONLINE. Keep Reading...

Delaware FHA Loan Limits for 2019

John Thomas December 22, 2018 Tags: Delaware FHA Loans, FHA Loan Limits

Delaware FHA Loan Limits for 2019

Delaware FHA Loan Limits for 2019 were raised in all three counties of Delaware effective January 1, 2019. The Federal Housing Administration increased its mortgage loan limits by almost 7% for the new year, mirroring the increase in conventional loans. The new base loan limit maximum was increased from $294,515 to $314,827 for a single unit home. In some high-cost areas of the country, the maximum loan limit was increased to $726,525. The department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released Mortgagee Letter 2018-11 on December 14, 2018 which increased the loan limits for 2019 nationwide for all Forward Mortgage loans insured by FHA. Call 302-703-0727 to apply for a Delaware FHA Loan or get started online at http://www.PRMILoanApplication.com Keep Reading...

Cost of Waiting to Purchase a Home

John Thomas December 3, 2018 Tags: Cost of waiting

Cost of Waiting to Purchase a Home

If you are thinking of waiting to purchase a home, think again! There is a definite cost of waiting to purchase a home. Home ownership has significant financial benefits but there is still a significant number of renters and people living with family that are delaying investing in one of the biggest sources of long term wealth. With mortgage interest rates and home prices expected to continue to increase, waiting to purchase a home is definitely going to cost more money and even more than most would think. If you are interested in getting started right away on getting pre-approved for a mortgage, call us at 302-703-0727 or APPLY ONLINE Keep Reading...

Understanding Homeowners Insurance

John Thomas November 29, 2018 Tags: Homeowners Insurance

Understanding Homeowners Insurance

Your mortgage lender will require that you have Homeowners Insurance on the property that is effective the date of settlement. The lender calls the insurance Hazard Insurance, but everybody else calls it homeowners insurance. If you have questions about the correct insurance policy or need to get a recommendation to a great insurance agent please give us a call at 302-703-0727. If you would like to get pre-approved for a mortgage APPLY ONLINE.

Homeowners insurance is designed to repair or replace your home in the event it is damaged or destroyed. Homeowners insurance also protects the valuables within your home in the event they are stolen or destroyed; this is termed personal property coverage on the policy. Your homeowners insurance policy also provides you with personal liability insurance. This protects you in case you are named as a defendant in a civil lawsuit. It will not cover the cost of a criminal trial or any penalty set forth in a criminal trial. Keep Reading...

Understanding Your Mortgage Payment

John Thomas November 22, 2018 Tags: Mortgage Payment

Understanding Your Mortgage Payment

Your monthly Mortgage Payment consists of paying back the money you borrowed (principle balance) and the interest charged to borrower the money. This is commonly called your Principle & Interest or P&I for short. The actual payment is calculated based on how much you owe, the interest rate on your mortgage loan, and the term of the loan (amortization). Below is an example:

Amount Owed (Principle Balance) – $200,000

Mortgage Interest Rate – 5.5%

Term (Amortization) – 30 Years

Monthly Mortgage Payment (P&I) – $1,135.58
Keep Reading...

Understanding the Home Appraisal

John Thomas November 21, 2018 Tags: Home Appraisal

Understanding the Home Appraisal

The Home Appraisal is required by your mortgage lender so that they can determine the value of your home compared to the sales price. The home appraisal is ordered by the mortgage lender through a independent third party called an appraisal management company or AMC for short. The AMC will assign a licensed appraiser to take the order. The mortgage lender and the borrower are not allowed to know who the appraiser is prior to the inspection of the home and the completion of the appraisal report. This rule is to ensure that the lender and the borrower do not try to influence the appraiser’s opinion of value. The appraiser’s opinion of value on the home appraisal report is called the “fair market value” of the property. If you would like to get started on a mortgage loan to purchase or refinance a home, give the John Thomas Team a call at 302-703-0727 or APPLY ONLINE
Keep Reading...

Understanding the Delaware VA IRRRL Refinance Mortgage Loan

John Thomas September 17, 2018 Tags: Delaware VA Loans

Understanding the Delaware VA IRRRL Refinance Mortgage Loan

Delaware homeowners with existing VA mortgages have an option for refinancing called the Delaware VA IRRRL Refinance Mortgage Loan. Commonly known as the VA Streamline Refinance, the program simplifies home refinancing for Delaware Veterans by waiving documentation typically required by lenders, including income information, employment verification, bank account and credit score verification, and even an actual appraisal of the home. Call the John Thomas Team at 302-703-0727 with questions or to get started with a VA Loan. You can also APPLY ONLINE Keep Reading...