Tuesday, July 3, 2012

The Home Affordable Refinance Program

By Kevin Barry


Underwater mortgage borrowers can get financial assistance from the US federal government so they can possibly avoid getting into default. The Home Affordable Refinance Program was set up by the Federal Housing Agency to help troubled home loan borrowers to refinance their current mortgages.

What is an underwater mortgage? In general definition, it is a home loan that has accumulated higher loan balance compared to the current free-market valuation of the property. This condition is usually the result of the weakening real estate market. Underwater mortgages are categorized as troubled and as such are not possibly qualified for refinancing. Underwater mortgages became more common following the recent housing bubble burst.

The Federal Housing Agency is directly in charge of the Home Affordable Refinance Program. It is provided and offered though accredited and partner lenders where borrowers can enter into the refinancing program. Any borrower who aims to become a recipient of the assistance should know which loan providers in his community or state are authorized to offer it.

Of course, the Home Affordable Refinance Program comes with specific eligibility and loan qualifications. Not all mortgage borrowers and homeowners can qualify for it. Here are the main requirements and qualifications that should be met:

To become more accessible to more borrowers, specific modifications were set in the last part of 2011. The aim was obviously to make the Home Affordable Refinance Program more helpful and advantageous to more people. As a result, more borrowers have been made qualified for the program. If you thought you were not qualified before, you may try out now.If you owe about 125% or more of your property value, you can possibly qualify for the Home Affordable Refinance Program. Are you wondering what the other modified qualifications are? Here are those. First, you should make sure that your home loan is already guaranteed or owned by either Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae. If you are not sure about this, you can check on your lender. Any of the two institutions should have taken over your loan before May 31, 2009 for you to qualify. Second, your loan-to-value ratio should be more than 80%. Third, you should not have been approved with a refinance under the program before. Lastly, the program is strict about your responsibility or credibility as a borrower. You should not have missed any mortgage payment in the last half a year. You should not have missed more than one payment in a home loan for the last 12 months.The Home Affordable Refinance Program can be accessed through any partner lenders. You should file for an application if you are qualified. The program should help you save up to a whopping $3,000 per year on mortgage payments.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment