Creative Financing 101 » interest rates

Mortgage Rates Climbing

Jamie Beck — Fri, 15 May 2009 08:46:55 +0000

Mortgage rates have been slowly increasing, recently rising for the second week in a row.

” The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage was 4.86% this week, up from 4.84% last week, mortgage company Freddie Mac said.

A 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.52%, up just slightly from 4.51% last week.”

Average rates are still extremely low. However, they may not stay that way for long. Borrowers who can qualify to refinance have been applying. But, unfortunately, stricter lending policies have led banks to turn many away.

See Also:

FHA Mortgage Guide

Mortgage Rates Fall to All-Time Low

Jamie Beck — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 00:36:17 +0000

National 30-year mortgage rates just fell to 4.85% – the lowest rate since weekly survey records began in 1971.

Bloomberg News reports:

“The Federal Reserve said March 18 it will purchase up to an additional $750 billion of mortgage-backed securities from Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae to support home lending. The Fed is trying to lower rates by reducing the supply of outstanding mortgage bonds, boosting their price and lowering yields. That would allow banks to reduce the rates on new mortgages and still sell mortgage securities at a profit.

“The move by the Fed was especially aggressive,” said Donald Rissmiller, chief economist at New York-based Strategas Research Partners.”

Those who can qualify for the tough standards now set by banks will benefit from extremely low rates on these fixed loans. If you’re looking for creative financing ideas (other than FHA loans), your rate will probably be quite a bit higher than the 4.85%. However, you should benefit as seller financers and others try to compete in the market.

See Also:

FHA Mortgage Guide

Mortgage Rates to Fall Below 5%

Jamie Beck — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 22:24:21 +0000

Rates on traditional mortgages are expected to fall below 5%, and some lenders are already lowering their rates today.

Mercury News reports:

“The Federal Reserve threw more than a trillion dollars at the gridlocked credit and housing markets Wednesday, sending a key interest rate down by a historic amount. Mortgage rates, already low, were expected to drop well below 5 percent in response. Mortgage brokers were elated. Economists said the move could buoy the California housing market by encouraging purchases and refinance activity, possibly hastening recovery from one of its worst slumps ever.”

While most borrowers seeking creative financing won’t get the lowest rates, there are some ways to take advantage of sub-5% rates without taking out a traditional loan.

Rates on low-downpayment FHA loans should fall along with traditional bank loans. You may also be able to convince property owners offering seller financing to lower their interest to a more competitive rate.