How Does Dave Ramsey’s Advice on Mortgages Pencil Out?

Last month I wrote about advice I’ve been seeing popping up in my Facebook feed from Dave Ramsey on mortgages. There are several points that I just don’t find realistic for the average person who wants to buy a home, such as only using a 15 year amortized mortgage with 20% down payment and limiting your mortgage payment to 25% of your take home pay. I promised that I would share a follow up post where I review different scenarios comparing his advise to real life scenarios. [Read more…]

Income Limits increased for Home Advantage with Down Payment Assistance

Hot off the press! Washington State Housing Finance Commission has just announced that income limits for the Home Advantage program are being increased to $160,000 effective July 2, 2021. Click here for current mortgage rates for your scenario. [Read more…]

A First Time Home Buyer’s Story

I’m so excited for some clients I helped buy their first home a couple of years ago. I thought I’d share their story – at least the Readers Digest version! 🙂

This couple attended a home buyers class that I was teaching back in 2014. They purchased their first home in Seattle in 2014 using a down payment assistance program we offer through the Washington State Housing Finance Commission. [Read more…]

BREAKING NEWS: Higher Income Limits for Down Payment Assistance Mortgages

The Washington State Housing Finance Commission has just announced they are increasing the income limits on all of their Home Advantage mortgage programs. The income limits are being increased effective immediately from $97,000 to $145,000! [Read more…]

Common Misconceptions about FHA and Conventional Mortgages

I just received a newsletter from a local real estate agent which had an article about whether buyers should opt for a conventional or FHA loan. I’m pretty certain the real estate agent didn’t write the article, however the author, whoever they are, got a lot of things wrong regarding these two mortgage programs. Many of the items that were wrong are what I think are fairly common misconceptions with these two popular mortgage programs. So I thought this was a grand opportunity to write a post to correct them…I’ll skip the fine hairs 😉 [Read more…]

Want to stop your rent from increasing? Buy a home.

It’s no secret that rents, along with home prices, in the greater Seattle area have been trending higher. Rent Jungle reports that as of March 2015, the average rent for a 2 bedroom apartment within a 10 mile radius of Seattle is $1907. This is up 4% in the last six months.

[Read more…]

Conforming Mortgages set to Reduce Minimum Down Payment

Mel_WattAt the MBA Annual Convention this week, Mel Watt, Director of the FHFA announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be reducing the minimum down payment.

From his prepared speech:

“To increase access for creditworthy but lower-wealth borrowers, FHFA is also working with the Enterprises to develop sensible and responsible guidelines for mortgages with loan-to-value ratios between 95 and 97 percent. [Read more…]

Home Advantage Mortgage with or without Points

2013-03-07_0746The Washington State Housing Finance Commission has recently offered more pricing options with their Home Advantage first mortgage program.  Originally, all Home Advantage products were priced with 1 point.  One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount and is paid at closing. This closing cost cuts into the down payment assistance that many home buyers are hoping to utilize when they are using the Home Advantage Mortgage program.

[Read more…]