In a previous article, we shared some mortgage rate forecasts for 2018 gathered from three expert sources. Today we will look at three more mortgage industry predictions for 2018, published recently by the economic research team at Freddie Mac. 2018 Forecast for Home Loans, Refinancing, Equity Levels In September 2017, Freddie Mac published an updated […]
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Minimum Down Payment for a Conventional Home Loan
Home buyers tend to have a lot of questions regarding the down payment needed to buy a house with a mortgage loan. One of the most common questions has to do with the minimum down payment required for a conventional home loan (one that is not insured by the government). This article explains what the […]
Overview of First-Time Home Buyer Income Requirements, 2018
Planning to buy your first home in 2018? Do you have questions about the income requirements and limits for first-time home buyers seeking a mortgage loan? If so, keep reading. Here’s an overview of the basic income requirements and qualifications for first-time buyers seeking a mortgage loan in 2018. Income Requirements for First-Time Home Buyers […]
Mortgage Requirements for First-Time Home Buyers
We receive a lot of mortgage-related questions from our readers. One of the most common questions is: What are the minimum mortgage loan requirements for first-time home buyers? In other words, what does a first-time buyer needed to do and have in order to qualify for a mortgage loan? This is actually a multi-part question, […]
Philadelphia, PA Housing Forecast for 2018: Are Prices ‘Normalizing’?
According to the latest round of predictions and forecasts for the Philadelphia real estate market, home-price appreciation is expected to continue through the end of 2017 and into 2018. With that said, price growth is expected to slow down a bit over the coming month, following a couple of years of above-average growth. Here are […]
FHA Rate Predictions for 2018, and Loan Limits Outlook
Recent FHA mortgage rate predictions suggests that borrowers could encounter higher interest rates in 2018, compared to 2017. Additionally, the FHA loan limits for some counties might go up next year, due to significant home-price gains that have occurred over the last year or so. Here are the latest FHA mortgage rate predictions and trends, […]
Mortgage Rate Forecasts for 2018: Predictions from the Experts
A recent round of mortgage rate forecasts for 2018 suggest that we could see steadily rising rates through the end of this year and into 2018. These predictions (covered below) were issued by economists and analysts with the Mortgage Bankers Association, Freddie Mac, and the personal finance company Kiplinger. Here’s an overview of their 2018 […]
Austin, Texas Housing Forecast: ‘Normal’ Gains Through 2018?
A recent forecast for the Austin, Texas real estate market suggests that home prices could rise by a historically “normal” pace of around 3% over the next 12 months. This would follow above-average price gains that occurred over the last couple of years, suggesting that the hot Austin housing market could be cooling down a […]
Do Mortgage Lenders Use FICO Scores to Approve Borrowers?
Reader question: “I recently ordered my credit scores from two of the reporting agencies, TransUnion and Equifax. Then I read somewhere that mortgage lenders don’t even look at those scores, that they use the FICO numbers instead. Is this true? Do mortgage lenders use FICO scores to approve borrowers?” The short answer is yes, most […]
Average Mortgage Payment in Phoenix, Arizona: Early 2017
Home prices in Phoenix, Arizona rose significantly during 2016. Additionally, mortgage rates are higher now (February 2017) than they were at the same time last year. This means that the average monthly mortgage payment in Phoenix has risen as well. Based on current home prices and mortgage rates, and factoring in the average down payment […]