With the spring and summer buying season right around the corner, now is a good time to take a closer look at interest rates in terms of how they’ve been trending and what we might see in the next few months. Recent Interest Rate Trends: According to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the rates on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage have generally been trending down since the middle of last November. Since reaching a high of 4.94 percent for the week of November 15—which

"I’VE HEARD COMMENTATORS ON TV TALKING ABOUT ‘HOMEBUILDER CONFIDENCE’ RECENTLY. WHAT IS HOMEBUILDER CONFIDENCE AND WHY WOULD IT BE IMPORTANT?" “Homebuilder confidence” is a statistic from a monthly survey about current economic and housing conditions. More specifically, the survey results—conducted through a poll of the members of the National Association of Homebuilders—are compiled into a report called the Housing Market Index (also known as the “Homebuilder Confidence Surv

Many borrowers have long viewed closing costs as a sort of necessary evil of getting a loan. For them, settlement day means writing a big check for all of the fees and charges associated with getting a mortgage. However, that’s not strictly the case anymore. Today, most borrowers have three options in terms of paying their closing costs—with two of those options having no out-of-pocket expenses on settlement day. Each option does have its pros and cons, so be sure to talk to

"Although my credit score is fairly good, my husband’s score is about 100 points lower than mine. Is his score going to be a problem when we apply for a loan?" First, keep in mind that unless you and your husband have opened joint credit accounts in both of your names, your credit score and your husband’s credit score are completely separate. Second, understand that lenders will look at the lower of the two credit scores rather than the higher score or taking the average betw

According to real estate data firm CoreLogic, home values have risen more than 11 percent nationally in the past year. If you’re a homeowner, this is great news because a rise in home values means that you’re gaining more equity in your home. So what can you do with an increase in home equity? Although the answer to that depends on how much equity you actually have, here are a few options you may want to consider: Reinvest your equity back into your home. Remodeling your home

Andy Emanuel from Omega Financial Inc., a mortgage brokerage in Norwood, MA, answers mortgage FAQs. Although having to pay a small tax bill may not affect your credit, other tax situations—specifically how you pay or don't pay your tax bill—can indeed affect your credit and can lower your overall credit score. For 25 years, Omega Financial has been serving mortgage clients in Massachusetts. Our brokers have more than 60 years in the mortgage business. You always will receive

You do have a choice when it comes to down payments of less than 20%. Although not all lenders offer all types of loans, the following are a few of the options that may be available to you: FHA Loans. One of the more popular no- or low-down-payment loans, an FHA loan is designed for first-time or moderate-income buyers and offers a low down payment of 3.5%. It does require mortgage insurance and a premium, however. VA Loans. These loans that have no down payment and no mortga