Should I talk to a Mortgage Professional before house hunting?

Should I payoff my mortgage early?

Why might I need an appraisal? How do appraisals work?

What is private mortgage insurance?

How can I eliminate private mortgage insurance?

Should You Talk to a Mortgage Professional Before House Hunting?

Absolutely! Even if you haven't so much as picked out houses to visit yet, it's important to see your mortgage professional first. Why? What can we do for you if you haven't negotiated a price, and don't know how much you want to borrow?

When we pre-qualify you, we help you determine how much of a monthly mortgage payment you can afford, and how much we can loan you. We do this by considering your income and debts, your employment and residence situations, your available funds for down payment and required reserves, and some other things. It's short and to the point, and we keep the paperwork to a minimum!

Once you qualify, we give you what's called a Pre-Qualification Letter (your real estate agent might call it a "pre-qual"), which says that we are working with you to find the best loan to meet your needs and that we're confident you'll qualify for a loan for a certain amount.

When you find a house that catches your eye, and you decide to make an offer, being pre-qualified for a mortgage will do a couple of things. First, it lets you know how much you can offer. Your real estate agent will help you decide on an appropriate offer, but being pre-qualified gives you the confidence to know you can follow through.

More importantly, to a home seller, your being pre-qualified is like you walked into their house with a suitcase full of cash to make the deal! They won't have to wonder if they're wasting their time because you'll never qualify for a mortgage to finance the amount you're offering for the home. You have the clout of a buyer ready to make the deal right now!

You can always use the calculators available on our site to get an idea of how much mortgage you can afford -- but it's important to meet with us. For one thing, you'll need a Pre-Qualification Letter! For another thing, we may be able to find a different mortgage program that fits your needs better.

Should You Payoff Your Mortgage Early?

Even with today’s low interest rates, the total amount of interest you may pay over the life of your mortgage can seem like a staggering amount. It's one of the reasons many people set a goal to pay down their mortgages early. But pre-paying a mortgage may not be for everyone. Here are some reasons to consider it:

- Paying your mortgage off will make you completely debt free.
- You want to reduce expenses as much as possible so you can put more money  into your retirement fund.
- You live in a country, such as Canada, where you do not receive a tax break because you carry a mortgage.
- You plan to move in a few years and will need cash for your next home - for closing costs or for a down payment. Applying more money towards your mortgage balance will increase equity, which can be converted to cash if needed.
- Currently, you do not receive a tax break on your mortgage interest. If your mortgage is small, your interest may not exceed the standard deduction the IRS gives non-itemizing taxpayers. Without that tax break, the actual cost of your mortgage is higher.
- You pay private mortgage insurance (PMI). If you have less than 20 percent of equity in your home, making extra payments will build more equity sooner, allowing you to cancel your PMI. And eliminating PMI will reduce your monthly payments.

But for some people, paying your mortgage off early can hurt you more than help you. Here are reasons to forego pre-paying your mortgage:

- Your mortgage contract includes prepayment penalties.
- You have other high-cost debts. Credit card interest rates are often more than twice that of most home mortgages. Any extra cash should go toward paying off the balance of those first.
- You want more money in your pocket now.
- You are in a high tax bracket and this additional deduction would lower your income tax bracket as well as your taxes.
- You want to put money into another investment such as the stock market or real estate.

Why Might You Need an Appraisal? How Do Appraisals Work?

In many cases, lenders need a professional, independent appraisal of the property you want to buy or refinance to ensure that it is worth at least as much as they are being asked to lend on it. If you are making a smaller down payment and have a lower credit score, the lender is going to be even more interested in making sure the property that will be collateral for the loan is worth lending the amount requested.

A professional, independent appraiser will usually visit your home and inspect its interior and exterior. The appraiser doesn't want to buy your home, and isn't a visiting head of state. So whatever you do, do not postpone the appraisal until you get a chance to clean up a little. Cleaning does not make your appraised value higher! And delaying adds time to an already lengthy process.

The appraiser will form an opinion on the probable market value of the property considering sales of similar homes in the area among other factors. He or she will prepare an appraisal report explaining the conclusion. The appraisal belongs to the lender considering lending money with the home as collateral. Often, you can receive a copy of the appraisal either as a courtesy or in keeping with state law. Let us know you're interested and we'll help.

The lender wants to know first of all whether the property is worth at least as much as the loan amount. In the unlikely event the lender would have to foreclose, it wants to know it should be able to recoup at least the loan amount. But if your loan program depends on you borrowing, for example, 95 percent of the property's value and no more, the appraisal can impact your eligibility for the loan that's right for you. In a "close" case like that, the best solution is almost always to increase your down payment, or we can help find another solution such as another loan program that works.

An appraisal can cost from $200 to $500 or more for very complex properties. You as the borrower repay the lender for its cost in paying the appraisal fee upon settlement of the loan.

What is Private Mortgage Insurance?

Private Mortgage Insurance, also known as PMI, is a supplemental insurance policy you may be required to obtain in order to get a mortgage loan. PMI is provided by private (non-government) companies and is usually required when your loan-to-value ratio — the amount of your mortgage loan divided by the value of your home — is greater than 80 percent.

PMI isn't a bad thing — it allows you to make a lower down payment and still qualify for a mortgage loan. In fact without PMI, many of us would not be able to purchase our first home.

How is PMI calculated?

Your PMI premium is fixed based on plan type (loan-to-value ratio, loan type, loan term, etc.) and is not related to your particular credit history or other individual characteristics. PMI typically amounts to about one-half of one percent of your mortgage amount annually, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, and the premium payment is usually rolled into your monthly mortgage payment.  On a $200,000 mortgage, you may be paying $1,000 per year for PMI.

How Can I Eliminate Private Mortgage Insurance?

For loans made after July 1999, lenders are required by federal law to automatically cancel Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) when the loan balance falls below 78 percent of your purchase price — not when you achieve 22 percent equity, which will happen much more quickly with rising property values. (Certain "higher risk" loans are excluded.) But you have the right to cancel PMI (for loans made after July 1999) once your equity reaches 20 percent, regardless of the original purchase price.

Keep track of your principal payments.  Also keep track of what other homes are selling for in your neighborhood.  If your loan is under five years old, chances are you haven't paid down much principal — it's been mostly interest.  But property values in many parts of the country have gone through the roof lately.  And that can earn you 20 percent equity even if you haven't paid down much principal.

When you think you've reached 20 percent equity in your home, you can begin the process of freeing yourself from PMI payments!  You will need to notify your mortgage lender that you want to cancel PMI payments and you'll need to submit proof that you have at least 20 percent equity.  A state certified appraisal on the appropriate form (URAR- 1004 uniform residential appraisal report for single family homes) is the best proof there is — and most lenders require one before they'll cancel PMI.