John Thompson

Has anyone looked at a recent appraisal? Apparently; the appraisal community has now come up with a "coding system" for things like quality of construction and condition. Like "Good", "Average" and "Above average" were things we could not understand and without a codebook, I don't know how Q2 or C2 relates to any of the old words.

I am hoping an appraiser out there will comment and give me some insight.

It also seems as if some appraisals are being skewed a bit by this new coding system, it could just be old cynical me but, I don't think so.

It also appears that the number of comparables has increased as well. Used to be 3 or 4 would do and now I am seeing 5 or 6 when they can find them. Unfortunately; in this market when you get up to 5 or 6 they are usually lower sales prices that have to be adjusted upward and in most cases not enough. This brings the lower bracket down and the value of the subject suffers.

Again, appraisers please comment as these are just my observations and I have no idea what rules and regulations have been imposed upon you but, I am sure some have.

The phrase "The road to ruin is paved with good intentions" can be applied in whole to the regulations that have been imposed upon our industry.

A Homepath is a great type of mortgage brought to you by our good friends at Fannie Mae!

Homepath is Fannie's way of trying to sell off homes that they own and they make a pretty sweet deal, at least through October 21st any way.

Here's the deal, with at least a 660 mid FICO score you can:

Purchase one of their homes for just 3% down.

No Mortgage insurance.

No formal appraisal.

Through October 21st they will give you up to 3.5% of the sale price in closing costs.

The down side: You will get an interest rate approximately 1% over market. If you do the math it still works in your favor.

So ask your Realtor about Homepath homes in your price range and geographic area, you could find a great deal.

There is a certain State of mind that is being pasted into our collective psyche that goes something like this: "I can't buy a home now, I don't know if I'll have my job tomorrow." What? Can you repeat that please and this time really listen to the words and apply them to your current situation. If you are currently renting and you lose your job and can't pay the rent, what happens? Your Landlord evicts you, that's what happens and probably faster than a mortgage company can foreclose on you!

Yet that's what we hear in the media day after day, people are afraid to buy because of the economy. Oh whoa is us!

Don't get me wrong I know there are plenty of people out there that can't buy a home for lots of rational reasons that prevent them from qualifying but, the economy isn't one of them. Let's put on those "common sense" glasses for a moment and look at things through them. If you are renting a good size apartment, townhouse, condo or even a single family home, you are most likely paying around $1,000.00/month. Now for that same approximate monthly outlay you can purchase a $150,000 home using FHA financing.

What do you have to do different than what you're doing now? You need a downpayment of 3.5% or $5,250.00 which can come all from you or partly from you, gifted to you in total or in part from Mom or Dad, Grandma, or Uncle Joe. Your credit score needs to be 600+ and your revolving and installment debt when added to the proposed mortgage payment generally shouldn't exceed 45% of your gross(before taxes) monthly income. How many of you have I lost? I'll bet not many.

Now let's keep those glasses on and look at the market place. You would be amazed at how many good homes you can buy today for $150,000 in the Kansas City market! And there isn't a real estate agent worth their salt that couldn't get you that property with the seller paying your closing costs.

So while you still have those glasses on, call me at 816.820.4471 or go to my website at www.kcmortgage1.com and click appy now. It's all free, no obligation.