Major Increase in Monterey; San Diego; Sonoma; San Luis Obispo; Ventura and Yolo Counties as well as King; Pierce and Snohomish Counties in Washington Single family conforming loan limits increased to $424,100 across the nation and to $636,150 in certain high-cost areas. People who need a loan can find forbrukslån uten sikkerhet here. Several counties that previously were in between the base and high-cost limits saw significant increases based on rising property values in Signet Mortgage service areas. Monterey; San Diego; Sonoma; San Luis Obispo; Ventura and Yolo Counties in California as well as King; Pierce and Snohomish Counties in Washington will now have access to conforming loan limits reflecting the current market values. Speaking of loans, I know that you are familiar with “student aid bill of rights” which was signed by President Barack Obama in 2015 aiming to help students with their student loans. It is still active now, apply! According to knowledgefirstfinancialresp.ca/, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced these changes in a press release  today.  The new conforming limits will be effective for loans closed after January 1, 2017. The new limits are helpful as conforming rates generally are lower than jumbo rates and underwriting more consistent and flexible so a few more transactions will get done!   A purchase in the Bay Area up to $795,000 at 80% loan to value can be done with a conforming loan … Particularly relevant with this news announcement is the average U.S. home prices have edged slightly above pre-decline levels from 2007.  Data published in the third quarter Housing Price Index (HPI), reveal that housing prices are approximately 1.7 percent above the value for third quarter 2007. Here is a link to the loan limits by county for Signet Mortgage service area (CA, WA, OR, ID, UT) and for the entire country.  Included on the right of the chart are the changes from 2016.   The source document from FHFA is here. Certain high-cost areas have the higher limits at 150% of the base at $636,150 (150 % of $424,100).  But many counties, such as Monterey, Orange, Sacramento, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Summit (UT), Jefferson (WA), Pierce (WA) and Snohomish (WA) saw significant bumps to its loan limits. Here are highlights of loan amounts and details for single family and up to 4 units and changes for those counties.           The changes do not impact FHA forward or reverse mortgages or VA loans for the moment. Those announcements should be forthcoming in the next couple of weeks.   With the 2008 economic stimulus plan FHA increased loan limits to $625,500 for reverse mortgages for one year and has extended this limit one year at a time since.  The $625k is due to expire this Dec 31. We should hear soon if it has been extended again or changed up or down. As Jonckers professional in business for over thirty years, I am here to consult with you and answer any questions you have about the strategic use of your mortgage. Let’s talk about your goals and perhaps ways that you can take advantage of these changes.  Call or email me – I am happy to help!    

There are things you might want to consider before you take on the task of managing your own rental property. The article below, by Sandy Adams of the Rental Housing Network, goes through some key questions to ask yourself first.

https://www.rentalhousingnetwork.com/newsletter/download_newsletter/18

These solicitations to get a copy of your recent deed after closing ARE BOGUS!

If you have ever closed a real estate transaction or refinance – then you have likely received solicitations from “title recording services” or “local property transfer services” looking very official because they contain details of your recent transaction. These solicitations are bogus and simply a money grab for companies set up to sell you a copy of your grant deed that the county is going to send you anyhow, or ask you to complete a declaration of Homestead which you can do with the county for free. This is the old-fashioned form of phishing – these companies are selling you “services” that you do not need. While these companies may be technically compliant because the fine print disclaimer indicates they are “not a governmental agency and do indicate you can get a copy of your deed or record from the county recorder’s office” – it still stinks and is very deceptive. The documents are cleverly designed to create urgency and be something that you need to take care of right away simply because they arrived shortly after your transaction and always contain a deadline for response.  They even go so far as to put a warning on the envelope indicating “$2000 fine and five years imprisonment or both for a person interfering with the delivery of this letter” … Well that is standard Postal Service regulation!

Treat these as junk mail and toss them in the trash (or better, recycle the paper!)  Keep that $48.95 – $89.00 in your pocket – where it belongs!