Nevada Real Estate >> Las Vegas Real Estate Specialist: Nevin Williams, San Diego's best mortgage pro! (First Priority Financial, San Diego jumbo & conventional )

Believe it or not there is a loan program that allows one to buy a home with no money down, little fees and no mortgage insurance.  To qualify for this loan you must be an eligible veteran.  Not all veterans are eligible to take advantage of the VA guaranteed loan. 

If you are on active duty, national guard, reserves or a veteran, watch the short video above regarding VA loan eligibility to see if you qualify. 

If you are a real estate professional, reach out to your local veteran groups like the Veterans fo Foreign Wars or a nearby military base.  A lot of veterans aren't using this important and generous Va loan benefit that will get them into a home with no money down and also get your phone ringing! 

I urge you to give to the heroes who have sacrificed so much for us by educating them on this amazing benefit and offer your services to help.  Feel free to contact us with any VA loan related questions.

Self employed borrowers applying for a mortgage loan can get frustrated because a lot of loan officers don't understand how to accurately read tax returns.

Fannie Mae is the largest purchaser of conventional mortgage loans.  Since stated income loans no longer exsist it's important to know their requirements.

Here are the guidelines from Fannie Mae:

Income from self employment is considered stable, and effective, if the borrower has been self employed for two or more years. 

Due to the high probability of failure during the first few years of a business, the requirements described below are necessary for borrowers who have been self employed for less than two years.

If the period of self employment is between one and two years:  To be eligible for a mortgage loan, the individual must have at least two years of documented previous successful employment in the line of work in which the individual is self employed, or in a related occupation.

Note: A combination of one year of employment and formal education or training in the line of work in which the individual is self employed or in a related occupation is also acceptable.  If less than one year then the income from the borrower may not be considered effective income. 

Speaking of income, the method for calculating self employed income is much different than that of a wage earner.  Not calculating income correctly can cause your loan to be denied by an underwriter.

Self employed borrowers need a company with qualified loan officers that know how to read self employed tax returns and make a determination of your eligibility before you pay for home inspections or appraisals. Since stated income loans are near impossible to find this is critical.  Look no further because we can help!

High unemployment.  Increasing food and energy prices.  Future worldwide water shortages.  Amidst all of this we still see the long line at Starbucks. Paying for a single cup of coffee what would get you a full breakfast at a diner.

People carting out new HD 3D TV's.  New cars, smartphones, ipads, ipods when they aren't needed for work.  I think It's high time we live hard times and use real estate to build wealth.

Americans are proud to be one of the most productive countries in the world.  As a result we "deserve" all of our conveniences and we make sure to indulge.  Unfortunately these conveniences can't be had by all. 

The mainstream media glorifies money and power persuading a lot of people to believe that more is better.  So those who can't afford the unrealistic lifestyle, taken in by these advertisements tend to live outside of their means. What do they spend money on?  "Things".

There's been a shift in America's consciousness about living within our means but it isn't enough.  Time to get serious America.  Get your finances in order because playing the credit card shuffle is nothing more than a pyramid scheme and the banks always win. 

Focus on building wealth instead.  Great way to do that is through real estate.  Sure you have seen home losses but for every one loss you show me I'll show you 8 with huge gains.  A lot of people lost money in the stock market March 2009 but those who held out and bought more stocks at that low, have since recovered and made huge profits.

It won't be long before you say, "Wow, I remember when that $400,000 house was only $250,000 a few years ago and rates were less than 5%.  I wish I would have..."  I wish means regret.  Don't wish and regret, act!

Opportunity only knocks once- Go get the door, your door. Now that home prices are low and interest rates low you can buy low.  In the future when you no longer need to live it that home you can sell high and take up to $250,000 profit tax free if you are single or $500,000 if you are married filing jointly tax free.  Did you catch that..TAX FREE! Learn more. Yes, there are ways to buy a home with little to no money down.  If you don't try you will never know if you can or can't.

Click here to apply for a home loan and start building wealth 

Click the red X in the top right corner to keep going nowhere

 How a fully approved loan gets denied for funding after the borrower has signed loan docs.

Underwriter views an updated credit report verifying no new activity since original approval was issued and the new debt disqualifies the buyer(s). 

Generally this won’t happen in a 30 day time-frame, but borrowers
should anticipate a new credit report being pulled if the time from an
original credit report to funding is more than 60 days.

Purchases involving short sales or foreclosures tend to drag on for several months, so this approval / denial scenario is common.

It’s An Ugly Cycle

1. First Time Home Buyer receives loan approval and thinks everything is done so makes a credit impacting decision (applies for a loan on a new car, furniture or runs up credit card balance.  Loan documents are signed and the funder gets new credit report sees any of these scenarios and denies the loan.

In the hopes of stemming the senseless slaughter of perfectly acceptable approvals, we’ve developed a “Ten credit do’s and don’ts” list to help ensure a smoother loan process.

These tips don’t encompass everything a borrower can do prior to and after the Pre approval process, however they’re a good representation of the things most likely to help and hurt an approval.

DO continue making your mortgage or rent payments

Remember, you’re trying to buy or refinance your home – one of the first things a lender looks for is responsible payment patterns on your current housing situation.

Even if you plan on closing in the middle of the month or have already given notice, continue paying that rent until you’ve signed your final loan documents

DO stay current on all accounts

Much like the first item, the same goes for your other types of accounts (student loans, credit cards, etc).

Nothing can derail a loan approval faster than a late payment coming in the middle of the loan process.

DON’T make a major purchase (car, boat, big-screen TV, etc…)

This one gets borrowers in trouble more than any other item.

A simple tip: wait until the loan is closed before buying that new car, boat, or TV.

DON’T buy any furniture

This is similar to the previous, but deserves it’s own category as it gets many borrowers in trouble (especially First Time Home Buyers). Remember, you’ll have plenty of time to decorate your new home (or spend on your line of credit) AFTER the loan closes.

DON’T open a new credit card

Opening a new credit card dings your credit by adding an
additional inquiry to your score, and it may change the mix of credit
types within your report (i.e. credit cards, student loans, etc).

Both of these can have a negative impact on your score, and could result in a denial if things are already tight.

DON’T close any credit card accounts

The reverse of the previous item is also true. Closing
accounts can have a negative impact on your score (for one – it
decreases your capacity which accounts for 30% of your score).

DON’T open a new cell phone account

Cell phone companies pull your credit when you open a new
account. If you’re on the border credit-wise, that inquiry could drop
your score enough to impact your rate or cause a denial.

DON’T consolidate your debt onto 1 or 2 cards

We’ve already established that additional credit inquiries will hurt your score, but consolidating your credit will also diminish your capacity (the amount of credit you have available) resulting in another hit to your credit.

DON’T pay off collections

Sometimes a lender will require you to pay of a collection prior to closing your loan; other times they will not.  Pay off collections when necessary to ensure a loan approval. Otherwise, needlessly paying off collections could have a negative impact on your score.  Consult your loan professional prior to paying off any accounts.

DON’T take out a new loan

This goes for car loans, student loans, additional credit cards, lines of credit, and any other type of loan.  Taking out a new loan can have a negative impact on your credit, but also looks bad to underwriters and investors alike.

Follow these Do’s and Don’ts for a smoother mortgage approval and funding process.

Remember the simple tip: wait until AFTER the loan closes for any major purchases, loans, consolidations, and new accounts.

Rarely do I rant but I must say, Chase Bank is stupid.  Well, at least their CEO is stupid.  On second thought, perhaps he isn't stupid just underhanded.  Okay, benefit of the doubt, clueless. Legal Disclaimer:  These are not facts but rather my opinions based on my past experiences with Chase Bank. 

In 2005 I had 12 mortgage loans locked with Chase Bank.  The next day, mortgage rates went up substantially.  Good thing I had enough sense to convince my customers to lock their rate before they soared, right?  Nope.

I submitted complete loan files (back then we faxed them) and Chase said they didn't get them.  I re submitted the complete files and had fax confirmation that they were received and Chase still denied they received them.  So I overnighted the files signature required. The Chase rep said they didn't get a full file.

I told the Chase rep that I would be stopping at his house to drop them off in person.  Knowing I was serious the account representative told me, "Don't do that!  Don't you understand?! They are trying to make these locked loans go away!" Only one out of 12 of these loans funded with Chase and it took them a long time.

To keep a good reputation I lost a lot of money paying out of my pocket to honor the rates I promised my customers by using another lender with higher rates and buying them down.  This was my experience with Chase so these recent comments by their CEO doesn't surprise me.