Positive Real Estate Professionals

The United States Department of Agriculture may not seem like a vehicle for home loans but as Fred Chamberlin explains in another excellent and informative post, utilizing the often overlooked USDA mortgage programs can be a real benefit to many prospective home buyers. Though Fred primarily discusses the use of USDA loans in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest, these loans are available in most parts of the United States.

Via Fred Chamberlin – Eugene/Springfield’s #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant:

The USDA Rural Guaranteed Loan Program is an exceptional vehicle for first time home buyers who often times have trouble coming up with the down payment. The credit crunch keeps some home buyers sidelined because of credit problems, many others with good or adequate credit are able to purchase real estate and get best deals in years, including mortgage programs with no down payment like this! Large portions of Lane County qualify for this program.

This loan program is available right now for Florence, Veneta, Junction City, Cottage Grove, Creswell, Oakridge, Westfir, Swiss Home and Pleasant Hill. The credit guidelines are quite liberal and more people can qualify that may think they can.

To qualify for the program (it is income limited), a family of four cannot have a total household income of more than $70,750 per year. That is a pretty liberal guideline. After Jan. 1, a family of 1-4 qualifies with the same income. Larger families have much higher income limits.

If you are interested in property in this area and would like to see if the address falls within the USDA “footprint” click here.

So – THE TIME IS RIGHT!  We have many properties on the market, we have MONEY TO LEND, and the Federal Government is giving First Time Homebuyers a $7500 tax credit if they purchase prior to next summer!

Visit Fred for more information on USDA mortgage loans in Lane County, and to see if your household income qualifies for this NO PMI (private mortgage insurance) loan check this link.

Fred Chamberlin breaks out with another article that can help during this economic crisis that we are in. If you are unfamiliar with HUD’s new Neighborhood Stabilization Program, then you most certainly want to read this very informative post by Fred. This is a great program that can help the local government acquire some of these foreclosed properties.

I was getting ready to write the latest version of my series, Power Quotes Series, when I came across a post from Carol Smith. Her post was about the “Dreaded DPA” and if it was going to be OK. And this is what got me back to thinking that someone needs to set a few things straight on DPA. Now mind you, Carol is not one of those people that need to be set straight. The ones that need to be set straight are the people that are against DPA.

The biggest misconception to the DPA “going away” is that this will force the customer to have to bring 3.5% of their own money to the table. Some Realtors contend that if they can not do that, then they do not need to buy. Those same Realtors are the ones that call their loan officer and want to know why a particular condition from underwriting cannot be overlooked. But, that is a chicken of a different color. Time to get back on track. The misconception with this is the fact that the down payment actually DOES NOT have to come from the buyer. It actually can be a gift as long as the SELLER is not a part of it.

When people think that DPA is dead and gone, they then think that they have no viable option. The DPA programs are fighting along with a bunch of Realtors, Lenders, and others that think the DPA programs that are SELLER based program are helpful to people that need them. Yes, I will be the first to admit that people abuse these programs. It is like any programs that are out there. Give a person a little and they want a lot. It is the American way. And for those of you out there that think to yourself that you do not act that way, you need to wake up.I have been associated in the credit industy for over 20 years and I see it everyday. If the sale is 2 for a $1, you want it to be 3 for a $1.

So, let’s get back to the misconception theroy at hand. A potential buyer wants to buy but does not have the downpayment is hampered due to the fact that they do not have the option for DPA or have the funds in their account. Case in point is, the down payment can actually be a gift. Now mind you, I did not say “borrowed”. I said gift and a GIFT LETTER will have to be supplied stating that this money will not have to be repaid. It can come from any number of sources. A few examples would be their family, their church, their school, their friends, a local or national charity, or every the city, county, or state government. And it is not limited from just these.

So, just because programs like Nehemiah are gone for now, DPA is not dead and gone. If you need more information, then please call or email me.