FHFA puts off credit score overhaul
The current credit score model is outdated and not changing anytime soon.
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Tag: FICO
FICO credit score components explained
Use this video to demonstrate the myriad factors influencing buyers’ credit scores.
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5 mortgage market insights
We serve up 5 mortgage market must-knows.
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Automatic loan modifications begin. Will mods nibble at negative equity’s heel?
Yet another federal home-loan recovery program enters the stimulus mix.
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Redirecting buyers baffled by credit reports
How to guide buyers when credit reports seem to disagree.
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The votes are in: Get ready for more short sales!
Readers weigh in on topics affecting the California real estate industry.
Read MoreFARM: What to know about your credit score
Use this FREE first tuesday FARM letter copy in your marketing! Have a topic you’d like us to write about? Email editorial@firsttuesday.us and let us know! Q: How is my credit score determined? A: 35% is payment history, 30% is...
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No sugar from FICO for Frannie’s non-delinquent short sellers
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (collectively Frannie) are requiring mortgage servicers to complete short sales under one uniform approval process, called the Standard Short Sale/HAFA II. Frannie expects this streamlined process will make short sales uniform, faster, easier and clearer.
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Why shouldn’t we hate Wall Street?
This article disputes the claim that Wall Street is a vital component of a thriving economy and argues the current mortgage lending environment actually stifles the upward mobility of the middle class.
Read MoreDown payment insurance: a nice idea in Wonderland
People will begin buying homes again if the federal government protects their down payment from risk of loss, according to University of California economist, James A. Wilcox. Wilcox claims that there is a vast nationwide demand...
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New credit score info magnifies lender’s scrutiny
Lenders will soon be able to access information never before made available in financial reports....
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BofA: the wayward return of the leaseback
Should BofA and other private banks and lenders consider renting an REO property back to the...
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Strategic default smarts
This article reviews a newly-developed Fair Issac Company (FICO) analytics model which predicts a borrower’s likelihood to exercise a strategic default and revisits the financial advantages of a strategic default for a negative equity homeowner.
Read MoreShort sale or foreclosure? The naked truth for underwater homeowners
This article examines the credit score impact of a short sale versus a foreclosure, and advises a strategic default as financially advantageous for California’s negative equity homeowners.
Read MoreLenders must disclose how credit scores affect your interest rate
As of January 1, 2011, loan applicants will be informed of how their credit scores affect the mortgage rates offered from a lender. The new disclosure, to be given to borrowers before they enter into a loan, is the result of a...
Read MoreLenders desperate to lend look beyond FICO
Lenders eager to regain credit card business are issuing credit card offers to riskier borrowers with more frequency, but with lesser terms. In an effort to raise profits, many banks are classifying borrowers by other than just...
Read MoreHomebuyers shop around for everything but their mortgage
According to a survey by Lending Tree, 40% of homeowners obtained a single mortgage loan quote before buying their home and only 28% feel confident they got the best deal. Ninety-six percent said they compare prices when...
Read MoreLenders limit access to the FHA loan
In a delayed knee-jerk reaction to the mortgage meltdown and sub-prime lending crisis of 2008, lenders offering access to Federal Housing Administration (FHA) -insured loans are tightening their standards above and beyond those...
Read MoreThe truth is in the numbers: government sponsored entities acquire fewer risky loans
This article examines a recent report published by the FHFA comparing the risk characteristics and performance of government sponsored entity (GSE) loans vs. private-label mortgage-backed bond (MBB) loans in the financial crisis of late 2008.
Read MoreFHA ‘Short-Refi Program’ debt relief for underwater homeowners
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) recently launched yet another foreclosure prevention program to address the plight of underwater homeowners, called a ‘FHA Short-Refi Program,’ the ‘short’ standing for a process also...
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