Lee Ginsburg

Great Loan Options are Here!!!
September 9, 2011 · · 1 Comment
Dear Homeowners and Potential Home Buyers,
I want to let you know of a great opportunity. Interest rates!!!
Interest rates are at record lows. We have been hearing that for a few years and our government plans to keep it way for a few more. With that said mortgage interest rates do fluctuate daily.
Many people think loans are difficult to get. That is a misnomer. Just prove you can afford the payments and you get the loan. The bank might ask lots of questions and request lots of papers but they are willing to offer you a loan and guarantee to hold the same price for the next 30 years. Do you know of another product or service that guarantees the price for the next 30 years?
30 year fixed rates today are 4.25-4.5%. For your knowledge a 1% increase will affect a $500,000 loan by about $300. A 10% price adjustment will affect your payment by about $250.000. I am trying to show the influence of interest rate on your monthly payment.
10000-2b
Many people believe you need 20% down payment or equity for refinancers to get a loan. Another misnomer, that is not correct. With all that has happened in our banking system it is unbelievable but you can still obtain a loan with only 3.5% down payment or equity.      Read more
Lupita Terlau

Como Refinanciar Su Propiedad Cundo Poca o Nada de Plusvalía
June 21, 2011 · · 1 Comment

Recientemente, yo tome una aplicación de una veterana que quería refinanciar a sus dos préstamos en la casa que compraba hace dos años.  Ella se ahorraría $700 por mes con su nuevo préstamo fijo a 30 años con una  tasa de interés del  4.75%.

Esto me recordó que todavía hay mucha gente que no han aprovechado  las bajas tasas de interés  disponibles  porque  piensan que no tienen suficiente equidad/plusvalía  en su propiedad para refinanciar.

Simplemente, quiero compartir tres opciones a considerar si esta es su situación:

1.      Opción de Fannie Mae o Freddie Mac – Depende si Fannie o Freddie posee su hipoteca actualmente, se puede refinanciar aunque  se deba más del valor actual de su propiedad  

¿Has visto si Fannie o Freddie posee a su préstamo?  Si no, visite los siguientes enlaces:

  • Hace clic aquí para confirmer si Fannie Mae posee a su hipoteca
  • Hace clic aquí para confirmer si Freddie Mac posee a su hipoteca

 2.       FHA

FHA asegurará hipotecas hasta 97.75% del valor de la casa.  El monto máximo del préstamo es $729,750 en los condados de San Mateo y San Francisco.  Este límite del préstamo va a bajar al fin de 2011.

 3.       VA

 Si Ud. o su cónyuge es un veterano, se puede prestar hasta 100% al valor de su casa.  Esta es una muy buena opción para veteranos porque los préstamos de VA no requieren seguro de hipoteca.  El límite de préstamo actual en los condados de San Francisco y San Mateo es $1,000,000.
Jay Sondhi
http://www.jaysondhi.com/ 

 Translation:
Lupita Fernandez-Terlau
http://www.lterlau.prucal.com/
Greg Herman
http://www.gmwest.com

Jay Sondhi

How to refinance your property with little or no equity
April 25, 2011 · · 1 Comment

I’ve recently taken an application for a veteran who will be refinancing their two purchase loans from a couple years back.  She will be saving about $700 per month with her new 30 year fixed rate of 4.75%.  It reminded me that there are still a lot of folks out there who may not have taken advantage of the low rates available because they thought there was not enough equity in their property to refinance.  Without getting into too much detail, I thought I would share three great options to consider if this is the case for you:
Freddie/Fannie option
If Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae own your mortgage, it may be possible to refinance your current loan even if it’s underwater.  Have you checked to see if your loan is Freddie/Fannie?  Here are the links. 

Click here to see if Fannie Mae owns your mortgage
Click here to see if Freddie Mac owns your mortgage

FHA
FHA will insure mortgages up to 97.75% of the home value.  The maximum loan amount is $729,750 here in San Francisco County.  This loan limit is slated to be decreased at the end of 2011.

VA
If you or your spouse is a veteran, you can borrow up to 100% of your home value.  This is a great option for veterans because mortgage insurance is not required for VA loans.  The current VA loan limit for San Franciso and San Mateo County is $1,000,000.

Jay Sondhi
http://www.jaysondhi.com/ 

Shokoofeh Nowbakht

FHA? Ready..Go!
April 20, 2010 · · 4 Comments

My client, James is in contract for a really nice townhouse in Hayward. He is using FHA financing. Townhouse complexes, unlike Condo complexes, apparently, don’t need to be FHA approved. The pest inspection was few days ago and the inspector said it was free of section 1 items! Great! What’s the problem, then?

There may be no problems at all. But, I wanted to make sure there will be no issues from the FHA appraiser. I know “Peeling Paint” is a safety item and has to be fixed before the FHA approval. So, with the sellers permission, my client and I decided to get ready for the appraisal and bought some spackle and paint and spend a couple of hours working on the property. I pulled out the nails and screws off the wall, James filled in the holes with spackle and then painted over them. Oh, we also cleaned the tub and the shower, so there will be no dirty spots that may be mistaken for mold.

Everything looks good, or at least looks good to us. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for the FHA approval!

Shokoofeh
www.shokoo.com

Lee Ginsburg

An Open Letter to Potential Home Buyers and Fence Sitters
January 19, 2010 · · 2 Comments

Dear Home Buyer and Fence Sitter,

The window of opportunity is closing. Let me explain my thoughts. Prices in the Bay Area are already inching up, same with interest rates. The time to receive the Federal Tax Credit of $8000 or $6500 is rapidly approaching. (Must be in contract by April 30, 2010) FHA is talking about increasing the minimum required down payment and or increasing the cost of required mortgage insurance.

250px-The_Thinker_close

You can purchase a home today and your costs will be fixed for the next 30 years. What else can you buy and maintain the same cost for the next 30 years? Rents will continually go up. You are at the Landlords mercy. It is time to get off the fence. The first step is to get pre-approved. This will tell you what the bank will loan you. There are many loan programs out there. I could refer you to someone if you would like. The pre-approval process is easy, is no cost and with no obligation. If you don’t do it now you will never know.

You do not need a large down payment. You can purchase a home with only 3.5%. Yes you need mortgage insurance. I don’t like mortgage insurance but if that is the only way to own a home, then go for it. Mortgage insurance will go away once you have 20% equity. Economists think values will increase substantially in the next 3-5 years and that will more than make up for the mortgage insurance. Some people tell me they want to save for a larger down payment. That bothers me because from my experience most people cannot save as much as prices increase.     Read more

Lee Ginsburg

My Thoughts for Real Estate in 2009 in San Francisco and the Peninsula
November 16, 2009 · · 3 Comments

The year began with home prices free falling and no end was in sight.  In April we, in the business began seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Homes in the starting price points began selling and inventory started to stabilize. Banks were pricing their homes on the low range and were receiving multiple offers.  I consider single family homes under $700,000 to be the starting price point on the peninsula. Homes over a million dollars were having trouble due to the higher interest rates for loans of that size and the lack of lenders willing to loan. Loans under $729,750 were backed by the government and hovered around all time lows all year. Loans were broken up into different categories. Rates for loans under $417,000 were below 5%; rates for loans between $417,000 and $729,750 were slightly higher. Above that they took a jump. Finally we are now seeing the rates for the larger loans fall into line. Today rates are below 4% fixed for five years for loans under $417,000. That could be the right loan for many people.      Read more

Nicole Machado

Slow & Steady wins the race!
September 11, 2009 · · 9 Comments

What do you do when you have close personal friends who are in the market to buy, but can’t hire you as their agent out of obligation to a family member? I recently had a situation occur where my friends decided it was time to jump off the rental train and become home owners. I thought it was a great idea and a wonderful way to secure their financial future. The wife would call me and ask me questions and of course I would answer any and all that came my way. I even set them up with a loan agent to get them pre-approved and started sending them automated email alerts for new active properties.  Read more

What a Way to Get Your Down Payment!
May 13, 2009 · · 6 Comments

More good news for prospective homebuyers!  The following article is taken directly from the latest news came out of National Association of Realtors®.

Tax Credit Can Be Used for Down Payment
Shaun Donovan, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, on Tuesday said that the Federal Housing Administration is going to permit its lenders to allow home buyers to use the $8,000 tax credit as a down payment.

 Previously, most buyers wouldn’t receive the funds until after they filed their tax return, and that deterred some people from using the credit. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® has been calling for the change.         Read more