Scott Hoag

If you are trying to become a HOMEOWNER before the June 30th Tax Credit deadline, did you know that you can use your Utilities bills and rent to help you buy your next home. Banks and Brokers everywhere are tightening their criteria to qualify and if you don't have at least 3 accounts with a 12 month history on your credit report, you need to do some fast thinking or you could lose the home of your dreams. Furthermore, with home prices reaching new lows and rates near their historic lows, another opportunity like this may not ever come.

How to find good "non-traditional credit"

If you pay cash for most purchases, never finance a vehicle, or grandma told you to never ever use a credit card, then you may need our help. People that don't have at least 3 items that report to the major credit bureaus are going to get their loans turned down. But don't give up hope, there is a solution, we just need to verify some non-traditional credit. When it comes to non-traditional credit, the account must be in your name, primarily because you need to obtain a "letter of credit" from them which lists your name and often the credit vendor (the company that the credit report is ordered from) needs to do an independent verification with that non-traditional creditor to be able to add it as a supplement to the original credit report (often something that lenders want). The account must be current, although closed accounts can further support the 3 current non-traditional trade lines. As far as the rent you pay, must be documented by cancelled checks or bank statements with the exact amount being withdrawn on/around the same day each month.

Some credit is better than others

There are basically two groups, group I credit is weighed much more heavily than group II credit, although group II credit is still accepted by some lenders today.

Group I - rental housing payments (subject to independent verification if the borrower is a renter), utility company reference (if not included in the rental housing payment), including gas, electricity, water, land-line home telephone service, cable TV. If the borrower is renting from a family member, request independent documents to prove regularity of payments, such as cancelled checks.

Group II - insurance coverage, i.e., medical, auto, life, renter's insurance (not payroll deducted); payment to child care providers - made to a business providing such services; school tuition; retail stores - department, furniture, appliance stores, specialty stores; rent to own - i.e., furniture, appliances; payment of that part of medical bills not covered by insurance; Internet/cell phone services; a documented 12 month history of saving by regular deposits (at least quarterly/non-payroll deducted/no NSF checks reflected), resulting in an increasing balance to the account; automobile leases, or a personal loan from an individual with repayment terms in writing and supported by cancelled checks to document the payments.

Scott Hoag
Licensed Mortgage Broker
Gulf & Southern Mortgage
5521 38th Ave N
Saint Petersburg, Florida 33710
Office Phone- 727-344-3995
Cell Phone- 727-644-3656
scott@livinginstpete.com

Many clients that want to buy a home are not able to meet the requirements of Underwriting because they do not have ANY credit or NOT ENOUGH crediit. I can show you how you can build a credit report and help you get financed to buy that home you want.

What is a "thin credit file"?

Quite simply, thin credit file means you do not have 3 items on your credit report that are open and active and have a 12 month payment history. Some people pay for everything with cash because it keeps them from over spending, or they don't want to pay interest or fees to finance something. While those are effective ways to save money, you can't buy a home with a mortgage if you can't prove that you can borrow money and pay it back consistently.

Where can I find out what my credit looks like?

Everyone is entitled to a FREE credit report once per year (http://www.annualcreditreport.com ). You NEED to do that every year to make sure everything is accurate. When you do a loan pre-qualification, we need to run the credit report and we can also view it that way. The problem with waiting until your loan pre-qualification for a credit pull is once you have that pulled, most errors take 30-45 days to get removed.

HOW do I build BETTER and/or NEW credit?

When I get your loan application, and have determined that we need to work on credit score OR ifyou have a thin credit we have a 4 step plan:

1. ANALYZE- I will usually run our ONLINE Credit Analyzer with you that runs an infinite number of hypothetical scenarios to help you determine which items that need your attention are.
2. PAY You may be asked to pay down the credit cards and
3. NEGOTIATE- if you have older non-medicalnegotiate the older collection accounts WITHOUT paying.
4. BUILD- Remember to keep building new GOOD credit.
   1. Adding to a mother or family members account is good.
   2. Getting more good credit in BOTH names if possible is GREAT!

Where Can I Start a NEW credit account with little to no credit

It's never too late to build credit. If you only got 1 or 2, try to do another today!

Capital One

Easy and fast are Capital One, they do NOT offer secured cards, but they have the Classic card...link below. http://www.capitalone.com/creditcards/products/details/?sol=11170&tc=17&credit=3&linkid=WWW_0608_CARD_TGUNS01_CCBRWALL_C3_02_T_CP17017LW

OR
http://www.orchardbank.com here is a link to Orchard Bank secured card
http://www.landing.orchardbank.com/1/2/media/disclosure?cmd_lpage=&indicator=OB088&media=O5IS102DAX0805000601HPHHX&WT.ac=CRS_IM000601

We often receive frantic calls from homeowners because they've called the bank after having been served with a foreclosure lawsuit, only to hear from the bank's representative that "Your foreclosure sale is December 22, 2009." "How can that be?" the borrower thinks, "The lawsuit was first filed on November 12, and I've received nothing by mail from my lender." In this blog, we will explain why this happens and what borrowers can do about it.

When the bank refers a case to its attorney, they require that attorney to stay within certain timelines. The speed and efficiency within which the plaintiff foreclosure firm can complete the foreclosure action, or the average time within which they can complete all cases referred to them, determines how many cases will get referred to that firm above their competitor plaintiff firms.

Although all lenders have their own internal timelines, one example is:

Pursuant to this timeline, the lenders expect that the foreclosure will be complete between 140 and 150 days. Further, the lender automatically creates this timeline upon referral of the case to its counsel so that they can track and monitor their attorneys' speed and efficiency. Accordingly, the lender knows that if the file is referred on January 1, 2010, then the foreclosure sale should be on May 5, and all occupants evicted by May 21.

The problem is that each individual foreclosure action will vary in length based upon a number of factors: the judges' or courts' calendars (given the volume of foreclosures today, some judges have a wait time of between 3 and 4 months to get time on their hearing calendar); the number of defendants and their ease in being found (the more defendants or defendants who live out of the county where the case is pending may increase the time needed for service of process); foreclosure sale dates granted by the judge of 60 days or longer; and attorneys who file motions to challenge the lender's foreclosure action on any number of legal grounds. When the actual timeline varies from the lender's anticipated timeline, conversations like the one described above occur between lender and borrower because the lender's computer system shows the anticipated timeline rather than the actual timeline.

What can borrowers do about this? First, do not panic. Second, consult with an attorney who is familiar with the foreclosure timeline and the lenders' practices to come up with a plan to either save your home, or get rid of the house with minimal liability owed to the lender. Finally, inquire with an attorney as to whether this practice by the lender is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) or Florida's Consumer Collection Practices Act (FCCPA). Pursuant to those two laws, it is improper for the lender to misrepresent any facts about your debt in furtherance of the collection of a debt. Clearly, telling a borrower that their foreclosure sale is set for a date certain that is physically impossible given the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure would violate both the FDCPA and FCCPA. However, as these types of cases are very fact specific, you should consult with an attorney before coming to any conclusion that the lender's actions violate either of those two laws.

If you know someone who is facing foreclosure, and they contact the lender for information and the lender gives them a "foreclosure sale" date that seems unreasonable, it likely is based on an anticipated rather than actual timeline. That homeowner should follow up with the Clerk of Court, or a Florida licensed attorney before jumping to the often inaccurate conclusion that the sheriff is going to take their house away sooner than Florida Law allows.

-Shawn M. Yesner, Esq.
Yesner & Boss, P.L.

A VA Home Loan is one of the best loan options for home buyers, especially those that have not purchased before.

If you were waiting to buy a home because you were having trouble saving money, the VA Home Loan has a solution. They still offer a $0 Down Payment home loan.

How do they do $0 down home loans

This year the VA Home Loan program will receive $6 Billion in funding. This funding creates one of the only options left for a $0 down payment home loan, which is why each month, thousands of families take advantage of their VA Home Loan Benefits.

Since the government subsidizes your home loan, it provides a variety of benefits such as:

• Eliminate Mortgage Insurance
• Purchase with $0 Down
• $8,000 Tax Credit for First Time Buyers
• Lower Monthly Payments and Sometimes Lower Interest Rates
• Easier Qualification Standards
  

Why Does VA Home Loan have lower payments?

When we calculate the monthly cost of a VA loan and compare it to our FHA loan there is a large benefit for veterans. FHA Home Loans require payments of as much as .55% per year and those payments must be included with the monthly payment for five years. For example, for a $100,000 loan, a buyer would be charged an additional $550 per year. With the VA Home Loan, the monthly fee is $0. That saves Veterans $2750!

First Time Buyers Get an $8000 Tax Credit until June 30, 2010

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 authorizes a tax credit of up to $8,000 for qualified first time buyers who purchase a home in 2009. A VA Loan Specialist from our office will be able to help you determine your eligibility for this tax credit.

The advantages are real. A lower monthly payment, easier qualification guidelines and the ability to purchase with $0 down make a VA Loan the best option for first time home buyers that qualify.

HOME BUYER LOANS

Gulf and Southern Mortgage offers loans to qualified applicants who wish to purchase and occupy new or existing homes within the St Petersburg, FL city limits. Home buyer assistance loans can be used for down payment, closing costs and / or interest rate buy down. These loans are offered at 0% interest and are either repaid at 0% interest up to 10 years or deferred for 30 years. Repayment determination is based on the applicant's median family income (MFI), as define by HUD. (see below)

Eligible housing includes single family homes, condominiums or town homes with a maximum purchase price that does not exceed $215,555 for new or existing homes.

**** Before of February 1, 2010, the amount of the city's home buyer assistance loans is based on the MFI of the applicant's household as follows:

An additional $10,000 is available to borrowers who purchase homes located in the City's Special Assistance Areas (see attached SAP_Map.pdf)

**** After of February 1, 2010 those numbers are going to change to

And NO additional money will be available to the City's Special Assistance Areas. (see attached SAP_Map.pdf)

FISCAL YEAR 2009-Effective March 19, 2009

HOME BUYER GRANT PROCESSING PROCEDURES

Homebuyer loan processing and underwriting procedures have been modified to assist you in servicing our customers faster. To assure timely loan closing, it is essential that all required information listed on the attached REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION be provided with OUR loan package for grant consideration. If these procedures are followed, you can expect to close the loans within three weeks from the date that the FULL and COMPLETE application package has been received by our office.

SUBMISSION PROCEDURES:

•$ Application Addendum must be fully completed, signed and submitted with the Gulf and Southern loan application package,

•$ All loan packages will be required to include an appraisal, and a home inspection completed by appropriately certified individuals or company.

•$ The Rehabilitation Officer will review the appraisal and home inspection report, included in your loan application package, for deteriorated painted surfaces and housing quality standards. If the appraisal and/or the home inspection report indicates ANY deteriorated painted surfaces or if the loan includes any modifications, repairs or replacements of a painted surface, and if the home was built prior to 1978, then a lead inspection will be required if the loan goes forward. Our grant policy demands the elimination of any lead hazard from homes funded by our grant. If the buyer or seller declines the lead inspection, we cannot assist in any way.

HOME BUYER GRANT DOCUMENT CHECKLIST

Prior to closing or as soon as we can obtain them, we will also need:

Scott Hoag
Licensed Mortgage Broker

Gulf & Southern Mortgage
5521 38^th Ave N
Saint Petersburg, Florida 33710

Cell Phone- 727-644-3656

scott@livinginstpete.com