Lead by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Mortgage lenders are continuing to take measures to limit their risks. The two government-sponsored mortgage giants are raising their loan fees on several fronts, along with rolling out a new program to cut down on abusive appraisals. For more on this, read the following article from Property Wire.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the US government-owned mortgage lenders are adding on extra fees for many loan applicants, while some lenders are going even further in tightening underwriting rules, it has been revealed.
At a time when real estate experts are highlighting the importance of getting more financing into the system mortgage industry underwriting and appraisal changes taking effect this month are putting new hurdles in the way of borrowers and loan officers.
An example is add-on fees from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for loans purchased after April 1. In some cases, applicants are being hit with extra fees of 3% to 5% because of the type of property they want to buy or refinance, their credit scores or the size of their down payment.
Claim up to $26,000 per W2 Employee
- Billions of dollars in funding available
- Funds are available to U.S. Businesses NOW
- This is not a loan. These tax credits do not need to be repaid
Some major lenders who sell loans to Fannie and Freddie are going further and tightening underwriting rules beyond what either corporation requires. For example, as of April 6, Wells Fargo, one of the country’s largest mortgage originators, imposed a new minimum FICO credit score of 720, up from the previous 620, on all conventional loans purchased through its wholesale system that have less than a 20% down payment. It also began requiring a total debt-to-income ratio maximum of 41%, down from the previous 45%.
Fannie Mae now has a mandatory fee of three-quarters of a percentage point on all condominium loans, no matter how high the applicant’s credit score. For a once popular interest only condo loan with a 20% down payment and a borrower credit score of 690, Fannie imposes one-quarter of a percentage point as an ‘adverse market’ fee, 1.5% for the below-optimal credit score, three-quarters of a percentage point for the interest only payment feature and the same again because the property is a condo. The total comes to 3.25% extra, which can be paid upfront or rolled into the loan.
On top of these extra fees, borrowers are now starting to get hit with two sets of cost-raising appraisal rule changes. Fannie and Freddie have begun requiring all appraisers to complete an extra ‘market condition’ report that includes detailed statistical analyses of local sales and pricing trends above and beyond the regular appraisal data. Many appraisers are charging an extra $45 to $50 for the time required to complete the form. Home buyers and refinancers can expect to pay the higher fees.
From May 1, Fannie and Freddie are refusing to fund loans with appraisals that do not follow a set of new rules known as the Home Valuation Code of Conduct. The changes mean that mortgage brokers no longer can order appraisals directly, but instead must allow lenders or investors to use third-party appraisal management companies to assign the job to appraisers in their networks.
Jeff Lipes, president of Family Choice Mortgage Corporation said the effect is to “squeeze some people who are creditworthy by any reasonable standard out of the market.” Even prime borrowers with 800 FICO scores and 50% down payments, Lipes said it would be by no means certain that they would get a mortgage.
John Calabria, president of Bancmortgage said the layers of add on fees are becoming a nightmare. He had a high-income client who wanted to put down 25% ($200,000) to buy an $800,000 condo as a second home but couldn’t because the minimum down payment on such a unit is now 30%.
This article has been reposted from Property Wire. View the article on Property Wire’s international real estate news website here.
