How Does a Reverse Mortgage Work - We Explain Everything You Need

A reverse mortgage is a loan for senior homeowners that uses  the home’s equity as collateral. The loan generally does not have to be repaid until the last surviving homeowner permanently moves out of the property or passes away. At that time, the estate has approximately 6 months to repay the balance of the reverse mortgage or sell the home to pay off the balance. Any remaining equity is inherited by the estate. The estate is not personally liable if the home sells for less than the balance of the reverse mortgage.

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How poor credit costs you on homeowners insurance

If your home sits by the ocean, atop a fire-prone canyon or even in a not-so-nice neighborhood, you probably know you're paying more for homeowners insurance, but something even closer to home may be driving your monthly payments higher: your personal credit score.

Lower credit scores are widely known to impact mortgage availability and rates, but what most home buyers don't know is that they also increase the cost of homeowners insurance.

CLICK HERE FOR THE REST OF THE STORY FROM THE LOVELY DIANA OLICK AT REALTY CECK

 Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Wells Fargo Lowers the Bar on Jumbo Mortgages

In late July, the San Francisco-based bank lowered the minimum credit score on these fixed-rate jumbo mortgages to 700 from 720, Goyda said. Credit scores range from 300 to 850, and levels below"The purchase market is softer than we thought that it would be."
640 are often considered subprime.

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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

FICO launches new credit scoring model to benefit millions of consumers

According to a FICO statement, the credit score changes will weigh medical debt less heavily than unpaid credit card debt and other collection information.























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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Thinking of Selling? New Construction Will Soon Be New Competition

Thinking of Selling? New Construction Will Soon Be New Competition

Bottom Line

If you areFor the last several years, home sellers had to compete with huge inventories of distressed properties (foreclosures and short sales). The great news is that the supply of these properties is falling like a rock in the vast majority of housing markets. Many homeowners are now thinking of selling as the impact of this substantially discounted competition has disappeared.

However, every seller of an existing residential property must realize that there is a new form of competition about to hit the market: newly constructed homes.

As the economy improves, builders will again be bringing their housing developments to the market. Trulia recently reported that the purchaser, given a choice, actually prefers new construction. Here are two charts showing the results of the Trulia survey: thinking of selling, perhaps you should do it now to avoid the additional competition that will come to the market later this year.

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Time to downsize? Not for baby boomers

In an edited interview, the director of strategic planning for Fannie Mae's economics group said that though such a wholesale change probably is inevitable, boomers these days show little inclination to leave the single-family home lifestyle that, to an extent, has defined their generation:

Q: Isn't there a general story line that boomers hit 65, become empty nesters, look around at the unused bedrooms that the kids once occupied in their houses, and announce that they're paring down to a smaller space where somebody else will handle the maintenance?

click here for the rest of the story from Mary Umberger- Chicago tribune 

A: Yes. There's a perception, particularly in many media reports, that this massive generation born between 1946 and 1964 is altering its "housing consumption." It's true that they're becoming empty nesters in droves.

DOWNERS GROVE REAL ESTATE
Baby boomers not ready to downsize - chicagotribune.com

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You Don't Need That Much of a Down Payment

Consumers believe they need 11 percent to 15 percent in order for lenders to approve them for a loan, aaccording to a survey of renters and non-home-owners



But in reality, home buyers often can qualify for a conforming, conventional mortgage with a down payment of as little as 5 percent — and sometimes even 3 percent 







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Neal Paskvan is a full time Realtor specializing in Downers grove, Darien,Woodridge, Westmont and Du page county Real Estate

Today's Prices Compared to Peak [INFOGRAPHIC]

Today's Prices Compared to Peak [INFOGRAPHIC]

Chicago-area foreclosure filings rise in October

Foreclosure filings in the Chicago area rose 30 percent in October from a month earlier but remained well below their year-ago level, RealtyTrac reported.

In an area from Kenosha, Wis., to Northwest Indiana, 3,442 new foreclosure actions were filed last month, the company reported. That compared with 2,653 in September and 5,496 in October 2012.

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3 Big Reasons Why Home Sales Are Falling

What’s behind the drop in sales? NAR’s chief economist Lawrence Yun pinpoints three main factors: Higher mortgage rates, constrained inventories, and continuing tight credit.

1. Higher mortgage rates: The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is up nearly a full percentage point in the past year, causing home buyers to face an increase in borrowing costs. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased to 4.26 percent in November compared to a 3.35 percent average in November 2012, Freddie Mac reports. 

The Federal Reserve announced this week that it would begin winding down its bond-buying stimulus program next month, which is expected to result in higher mortgage rates. The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage could likely rise to 5 percent or 5.5 percent next year, Yun notes. 

2. Tight credit: New rules defining Qualified Mortgage will take effect soon, and could leave more borrowers on the sidelines. “New underwriting rules to protect borrowers, effective in January, will prohibit many loan features, set tighter limits on the amount of debt a borrower can have and still get a mortgage, and require that lenders accurately measure a borrower’s ability to repay,” says Steve Brown, NAR’s president. “This means that qualified borrowers are getting a loan that they are very likely to be able to repay, but some borrowers may wind up paying much more for their mortgage, or not get a loan at all due to the tougher standards. The new rules may tighten

Lenders Urged to Improve Foreclosure Efforts

The Obama administration urged banks to improve their service of the government’s anti-foreclosure efforts through the Making Home Affordable Program and to use federal funds more effectively in helping to save struggling home owners from foreclosure.
The U.S. Treasury singled out CitiMortgage Inc., telling the bank it needed to make “substantial improvement” in its loan modification efforts through the Home Affordable Modification Program and to reach out to more home owners who are eligible to receive assistance.
The Treasury provides financial incentives to mortgage servicers under HAMP, which aims to encourage servicers to change the terms of struggling borrowers’ mortgages and lower their m

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