New GFE and HUD Changes

Posted on December 15, 2009

Many of you may have already heard that starting Jan 1st, 2010 the lending world is undergoing even more change.  The current Good Faith Estimate (GFE) and the HUD-1 Settlement Statement are being revamped.  The old versions will be a thing of the past and everyone in this industry must adapt and adapt fast.  There will be a window of time to allow for everyone to become accustomed to the new laws before the hammer comes down on us hard, but Flat Branch Home Loans, Inc. wants to be ready on day 1!  We pride ourselves on staying on top of these changes so that our service is top notch.  While there will be a learning curve, out goal is to keep thing rolling so we don't miss a beat.  To keep it very brief the whole point of  these changes was to create transparency and make it easier for a borrower to compare their fees and make sure nothing is changing.  As we all know, obstacles arise in transactions all the time and these are deemed a "change in circumstance".  If one of these come up, we are allowed to make adjustments and re-disclose to you.  The change must be legitimate.  It can not be because we made a mistake.  If we failed to list a fee on the GFE, then we can't add it.  We eat that cost!  All in all these changes are good and as with most of the changes in our industry over the last few years, the intentions were good.  They just went a bit overboard and we all will have to deal with it.  As a company Flat Branch Home Loans continues to educate ourselves on these changes and will keep you informed on any developments.

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Flat Branch Home Loans, Inc.

Roller Coaster Rates Continue

Posted on December 8, 2009

So far this week has been just as crazy as last week.  In our last blog we reported that after seeing historic low rates, we saw rates steadily creep up each day to end the week.  On Monday we received pleasant news as the MBS market rebounded which resulted in rate improvements on Monay and this morning.  Well no sooner than we got excited about this, the market turned sour and a re-price for the worse followed.  This again is just further proof of how wacky the market can be and what volatility is present.  So once again please keep this in mind while you are rate shopping and do not simply let our posted rates take the place of a firm quote from one of our Mortgage Originators.   Each and every one of you have a differnet set of circumstances surrounding your situation and your quote could be the same, better, or worse than our posted "Daily Mortgage Rates".  Our simple online application makes this process super easy.  All you have to do is APPLY HERE and your information will be securely emailed to the loan originator of your choice.  As long as you fully complete your application, we can work up a quote for you in no time!  It is that simple!  If you choose to work via email, we can do that at your request.  If you would rather work via phone or in person, we can accomodate those requests as well.   Current Mortgage Rates are amazing right now, so please contact us for your Purchase or Refinance.  We will do our absolute best to try and earn your business.

We hope to hear from you soon!

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Flat Branch Home Loans, Inc.

Wild Rates!

Posted on December 4, 2009

If you have watched our daily rates on our site lately you will notice that we have experienced some wild and crazy swings lately!  We have seen virtually all of our programs rates drop into the high 4% range (for those that can qualify) only to watch them shoot back to the low 5% range the last 3 days.  Don't get me wrong, low 5's are amazing rates, I just wanted to point this out to rate shoppers out there that will no doubt be frustrated.  This doesn't mean rates won't get back to the previous lows, but if they do history tells us that you better act fast.  When pricing gets to those levels, traders of MBS (which is what dictates mortgage rates) start profit taking and rates rise.  So if you are shopping rates right now, make sure you and your loan officer are on the same page so that your LO is well aware of your expectation and your risk tolerance.  It is simply not worth getting too greedy!  While shopping around is encouraged you don't have a bunch of time to do it.  I doesn't take very long to pre-qualify you and quote you a rate so don't sit around and wait for 2-3 days on a lender.  Getting quotes on different days in this market isn't doing yourself much justice because a rate is typically only good for 24 hrs.  In some cases it could be even less if mid-day reprices are issued.  I hope this quick update makes sense to you if you were wondering why our rates have been changing each day.  As always, never just take our posted rates as your quote.  Contact a loan officer to get YOUR specific quote.  This way you know for sure.  It is always possible that our rates have not been updated and your rate could be better than the posted rate in some instances.  Lastly, the rates posted on our site are Current Mortgage Rates at the time they are posted for a given scenario.  Your scenario will most likely be different, therefore obtaining a customized rate quote is always best!

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Flat Branch Home Loans, Inc.