Randy Kirsch's Blog,, NMNLS #1012303 - Your Dedicated Mortgage Consultant, Right Trac Financial Group, Inc. NMLS#2709

The federal government requires all federally regulated or insured mortgage lenders to require borrowers to maintain flood insurance if the property to be mortgaged is in a high risk flood area.  Flood insurance is available only through the federal government in the form of the National Flood In...

I have been working for a while with a young couple that is buying their first home.  After several offers were not accepted, they finally went to contract on an interesting property.  We recently got back the home inspection reports and there are numerous problems and some code violations.  One ...

According to Realtor.com as reported on CNBC the most searched (minimum 5,000 hits, most unique visitors on desktop computers) neighborhoods in the country are: 10.)  Columbus, Ohio (Grandview Heights), median home price = $298,000; 9.)    Chicago, Illinois (northwestern neighborhoods of Jefferso...

Another group of mortgage lenders has contacted HUD Secretary Julian Castro, urging him to lower the FHA mortgage insurance fees.  In a letter dated December 18, 2014, Bill Cosgrove, Chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association, indicated that, "MBA thinks mortgage insurance premiums are counterp...

In a statement released by the Federal Housing Finance Agency and reported in DS news the Federal Housing Finance Agency ("FHFA") has indicated that it will aggressively protect the lien position of mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  Certain energy retrofit financing programs adopte...

The Congressional Budget Office ("CBO") recently released a report entitled, "Transitioning to Alternative Structures for Housing Finance", in which the CBO set forth its alternatives to the existing structures for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  The report is summarized in Publication 49765. The CB...

An article appearing on nationalmortgageprofessional.com indicates that seventeen prominent Senators led by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) have sent a letter to HUD Secretary Julian Castro, urging him to price FHA loans appropriately to cover expected losses and to serve the agency's mission.  The ...

A recent court decision by the Supreme Court of the State of Minnesota held that an insurer was required under the terms of its policy to replace all of the siding on 20 buildings in a common interest community even though the greatest damage to one building from a hail storm affected only ten si...

In a blog appearing in the Wall Street Journal for December 19, 2014, the author is blaming loan servicers for the tight credit market despite the relaxation of the QM rule and the requirement that lenders retain a 5% stake in mortgages they sell that have LTVs of greater than 80%.  The blogger c...

Ever have a property that absolutely no one was interested in buying?  Under the Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. 170, it is possible that the property may be donated to a charitable organization in return for a tax deduction for a charitable contribution.  These transactions are rare, but may we...