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Brian C. Saviano

Federal Officials Cracking Down on Fraudulent Mortgage Modification Scams

Federal officials announced on Monday, April 62009 that they are cracking down on mortgage modification scams. This announcement came out after repeated complaints of criminal actors preying on desperate borrowers caught up in the nations housing crisis. Officials say that these scammers are seeking to take advantage of homeowners by charging them upfront fees ranging from $1,000- $3,000 in exchange for helping them modify their mortgage that rarely pay off.

Many of the scammers are using official-sounding names that sound like they are part of a government act and use those names to mislead borrowers into thinking they are getting help from President Obama’s administration. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said, “These predatory scams callously rob Americans of their savings and potentially their homes… We will shut down these fraudulent companies quickly and will target companies that would have otherwise gone under the radar.”

Over 71 companies have received letters from the Federal Trade Commission that were running misleading advertisements. Some of the companies alleged were: Federal Loan Modification Law Center LLP, Bailout.hud-gov.us and Home Assure LLC. Although many of these companies predominantly reside out in California, they are springing up all over and consumers should be on the look out for companies promising to give loan modifications.

Last month the FTC filed cases against two companies: Hope Now Modifications LLC and New Hope Modifications LLC. Meanwhile, Attorney General Eric Holder says the FBI is investigating about 2100 mortgage fraud cases, up 400 percent from just five years ago.

Consumers should be on the look out for companies who are promising to stop foreclosure or get any kind of modification. Lenders have certain guidelines that the requirements they must follow and are ultimately up to the investor holding the note’s discretion.

Other tip offs of potential scams include guarantees that they will modify your loan of stop foreclosure. Another tactic is the use of claims, particularly, 97% success rate and official –sounding names. Other dirty tactics are manipulating mail to make it look like it came directly from the lender.

It is unfortunate that people are still continuing to prey on those in vulnerable situations hoping for a magic pill being promised by a salesperson. Borrowers can go modify their loans directly through their own lenders and should be leery of anyone making false promises.

Beware of the Pitfalls with Jumbo Mortgages

(February 20, 2009)

Before the mortgage meltdown, just about anyone could get a loan with a fairly attractive rate. Lenders were offering loans from no money down to negative amortization (this is where your balance goes up, not down). Many even had programs that did not require you to prove any income documentation. All that has clearly changed over the last two years or so and home owners with jumbo loans have been trapped paying substantially higher interest rates just because their loan balance is higher then normal.

Those with jumbo mortgages are encouraged to shop around to secure the best financing available, but should be aware that not all banks offer the same programs. There are many lenders out there that really don't want to take the risk with these higher loans and are pricing them accordingly. Just today, I priced out a jumbo scenario and found out large variation of interest rates and points. Rates at more then 23 different lenders varied from 4.75% to over 8.5%. One of the same loans even required the loan to be bought down by demanding over 9 full points just to get a 7.00%.

Luckily, there are programs out there to help homeowners with jumbo loans to save substantial money on there mortgage payments with out having to pay outrageous rates and points. Homeowners with solid credit and decent equity in their homes should expect to rates to be in the low fives for their jumbo loans. Those with substantial equity built up in their loans are even being compensated by some lenders by being offered extra rate reductions.

The money saved from refinancing to a lower rate could be substantial and may end up literally saving jumbo mortgage borrowers hundreds of thousands of dollars over the life of their loans. These savings are really amazing and many pay for themselves in just a few months or less.

Over the last 24 months, program guidelines on all loans have become continuously more restrictive. With all the bail outs happening there has not been much attention to the jumbo mortgage area, which really has been neglected. It is hard to say whether there will even be any improvements for jumbo mortgage holders but one thing they do need to pay most attention to is the growing demand for increased equity requirements by lenders. This has become extremely difficult for borrowers with the recent declines in home values in the upper scale housing markets.

In some cases, borrowers are being asked to pay down their loans before lenders will even close them. This could tie up cash reserves in a bad economy and may not be the best thing for those without stable income or for self employed business owners. This could be a limiting factor for some and may not be so bad for others.

Let's compare two hypothetical borrowers:

Borrower A has their own distribution business and his business may require him to have plenty of money liquid to pay expenses or float the business while waiting for revenue from clients. Being with out surplus cash reserves to save thousands on their mortgage may not be the best use of their money, especially when their business, family and house are on the line if something goes wrong.

Borrower B is the Vice President of a growing medical care facility for seniors and has a very high income. He has some money on the side but not enough to pay down his mortgage enough to qualify for his loan. Borrower B, with the high salary and stable employment, may borrow money from his 401K and use some of his current savings to pay down his principle to qualify for the refinance. Since he will be skipping at least one mortgage payment, he will then have a lower loan balance and will also be drastically reducing his monthly mortgage payments. This in turn will enable the borrower to reestablish his cash position and pay the loan back to his 401K without really changing his regular contributions and end up saving him several hundreds of thousands of dollars over the life of his loan.

As you can see it can be very advantageous for some borrowers to make a substantial investment in their home because in time, this investment will by far pay for itself. Another option for those who are coming up with a substantial principle payment can opt for an interest only mortgage. This does two things. First allows the borrower to save as much money as possible on their payment since they just pulled out a large portion of their savings and gives them the chance to rebuild. The second benefit for those who opt for the interest only mortgage is to maintain the maximum allowable income tax deduction on their mortgage. This works good for some, because they have just made a large principle payment and now have the chance to build their savings back up or pay down other debt.

The biggest pitfall borrower's face is that home prices may continue their decline and homeowners may not be given this chance again. While it is possible for some relief to come into the market, but it is highly unlikely to come into the jumbo market sector. That being said, this is a good time to take advantage of these new low rates for jumbo mortgages review your finances. If rates or programs do get better, you can always take advantage of them when they come out. If they don't, you could be left kicking yourself for not jumping when the opportunity presented itself and may find it nearly impossible to refinance down the road.

In conclusion, the rates are the lowest they have been in years for jumbo mortgages and it is important to take advantage of these low rates while they last. Just this week, one of the lenders offering the government sponsored FHA streamline refinance for borrowers with low credit scores just went out of business. Unfortunately, we had to tell some borrowers they could not be helped because the program no longer existed. It is also most important that the refinance makes sense for your personal position and will save you a substantial amount of money.

Jumbo Mortgage Holders Can Now a Save Substantial Amount of Money on their Mortgages with this Inside Secret from Brian Saviano

"Those with jumbo mortgages may be well advised to split up their home loans to have a lower interest rate and to save several  thousands of dollars."

Oak Brook, IL February 7, 2008- The recent rise in foreclosures has caused many banks to go out of business and cost some home-owners more money then others.  Those with jumbo mortgages (loans over $417,000.00) typically pay about 5/8ths to 7/8ths more on their interest rate then conventional loans.  This may cost them several thousands of dollars each year and may not even be on a fixed rate.

 "Many home-owners with jumbo mortgages should consider refinancing their homes to split up their loan and take advantage of a creative concept," says Brian Saviano a local mortgage expert with Elite Financial Investments based in Oak Brook, Illinois.  This concept involves splitting up your existing mortgage into two mortgages.  One on a conventional fixed rate mortgage and the other on a home equity line of credit that offers the ability to lock in on a fixed rate.  Saviano said, "We are helping our clients get rates on their second loan with a lower rate then their first mortgage and saving them several thousands of dollars in the process."

Consider the homeowner with a note of $700,000.  If they were to apply this principal, not only would they would begin saving money immediately, but they could also end up saving well over $50,000 in the next ten years or well over $150,000 over the life of their loan.  Saviano said, "Why not take that same money you might be throwing away on your mortgage and use that to fund your children's college fund or plan for you retirement."  Many of Saviano's clients are doctors, traders and small business owners and have been saving money with Brian for several years now to his outside the box way of thinking.

While it is still uncertain that the new housing bill will come to our rescue, home owners may be well rewarded by acting now, while the interest rates are still low.  Saviano urges those to seek out advice from a reputable licensed mortgage loan advisor and is offering a free initial consultation for the month of February to help those with higher interest rate mortgages.

For Your FREE Report, "How to Save a TON of Money on Your Jumbo Mortgage REGARDLESS of What Your Banker Says" Please send a blank email to freereport@ido-mortgages.com No sales people will call you.

 

Brian Saviano is a local mortgage consultant with Elite Financial Investments.  Elite Financial Investments is an Equal Housing Lender and Illinois Residential Mortgage Licensee.

To schedule your private consultation with Brian, please call 224-392-9000 or you may visit his website  http://www.chicagomortgagesecrets.com for more information.

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