Minnesota Mortgage Blog - Mortgage and Real Estate News You Can Use

Minneapolis, MN: FHA has announced tightening of their guidelines that lenders must follow when approving loans. It estimates 4% to 5% of all FHA loans would be affected going forward versus current FHA guidelines. This works out to be between 40,000 to 50,000 loans this year.Should we be worried...

Minneapolis, MN:  Mortgage insurance? Everyone asks how long before mortgage insurance cancels is a pretty common question when buying a home.The answer can vary greatly bepending on loan program chosen, the down payment size, and market conditions. Understanding the basic's goes a long way in he...

Minneapolis, MN:  Are your tired of the snow yet?  Record amount of snow, including the most snow ever in February here in Minnesota, along with continued below average temperatures is expected to delay the local spring this year.As many people, both buyers and sellers come out of the woodwork to...

Minneapolis, MN: One of the biggest reasons people don’t buy a home is the lack of down payment money, and the false belief that you need 20% for down payment. We get it. Saving is hard. Not only can you use your tax refund for down payment, your tax refunds make the perfect down payment for many...

A VA loan is perhaps the most amazing loan in the housing market today!Minneapolis, MN: Rather than issue loans, the VA instead pledges to repay about a quarter of very loan it guarantees in the unlikely event the borrower defaults. That guarantee gives VA-approved lenders greater protection when...

Minneapolis, MN: I get it. You are buying a new home, or refinancing your existing home mortgage, and are looking for the best mortgage interest rate. But buyer beware, the Internet is full of places to avoid.  So here I'll give a little primer on the process, along with some common lender games,...

Credit report inquiries, What is the real story? Minneapolis, MN:  As a Mortgage Loan Officer, I’ve pulled and reviewed a lot of credit reports in my day.  I’ve also spent an incredible amount of time debunking the irrational fear so many people have about credit report inquiries.   This one sent...

Do Mortgage Pre-Approval Letters Really Mean Anything?Minneapolis, MN: When buying a home, everyone will tell you that you need a Pre-Approval Letter, and pretty much no sellers will look at your offer without a Pre-Approval Letter being attached to your offer. But do Pre-Approval letters really ...

Minneapolis / St Paul, MN:  When buying a home, your credit matters - a lot. While credit scores alone don't get you a home loan approval, credit scores are one of the most important factors in the loan approval decision.  With places like Credit Karma, and being getting your credit score with y...

The Digital Mortgage HypeIt is 2018. The number of people who physically step into a bank or mortgage lender to do a home loan application is dwindling everyday. The vast majority of people now complete an online loan application on a desktop computer, iPad, or even apply via a Smartphone.Technol...