Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
But I think we can all agree, FHA is a good program!!! Whether or not you buy 1 or 100 houses.
No, it’s a pretty horrible program that allows homeowners who aren’t in a position to prudently own an asset to expose themselves to higher financial risk. Some people can do it, but being overleveraged or having a home with little equity and a high monthly payment IS risky. That’s without question. Some can manage it and not have financial difficulties move them into default, but others really end up hurt by that financial decision because their income wavers or drops, the market sinks for a bit, they have to move before equity has been gained, etc.
Your opinion. I can name a lot of my buddies who took the same route I did, all you need is half a brain. Maybe that's the problem for those that fail.
No, it’s a pretty horrible program that allows homeowners who aren’t in a position to prudently own an asset to expose themselves to higher financial risk. Some people can do it, but being overleveraged or having a home with little equity and a high monthly payment IS risky. That’s without question. Some can manage it and not have financial difficulties move them into default, but others really end up hurt by that financial decision because their income wavers or drops, the market sinks for a bit, they have to move before equity has been gained, etc.
Those people would have failed with a conventional loan too. Now banks are offering competing products similar to FHA with 3% down but only mortgage insurance until you are at 20%.
Also it used to be that way, but now they are much stricter on who qualifies, and they are some of the safest loans that are resold to banks as a reliable investment.
So in no way is it a horrible program. It's an entry into home ownership instead of throwing the same or higher payment on rent.
They jacked up the MIP rate after the crash. Why should the industry have to suffer for the mistakes they made? Better to just suck it out of consumers while the industry continues to cash in.
They jacked up the MIP rate after the crash. Why should the industry have to suffer for the mistakes they made? Better to just suck it out of consumers while the industry continues to cash in.
yeah it was as high as 1.75% upfront and 1.35 yearly which is crazy, the good thing is rates went down and you could always try to refinance to a lower rate.
I got my loan through my credit union and put down very little but have no PMI. If you search around there are products that don't require the mortgage insurance.
When my husband and I bought our house 7 1/2 years ago, we didn't have sufficient money saved for a 20% down payment. We were not irresponsible with money - we just hadn't had the means and opportunities to save that amount of money. By using this program, we were able to purchase our house and still have money in savings to fund maintenance and any emergency repairs.
As I stated upthread, once we reached the 80/20 LTV ratio, we refinanced to drop the PMI and lower our payments. We plan to live in this house for years to come, but if we were to sell it now, there is more than sufficient equity to use as a down payment on our next house.
Even when our payment was at the higher interest rate and included the PMI, it was on par with rents for similar properties in my neighborhood. And once we refinanced, our mortgage payment is significantly lower than rents for similar properties.
I don't get why we're denigrated for using this program. While the balance of our mortgage is steadily decreasing, the market value of our house has increased, our salaries have increased, our savings has increased. We're sitting on a pretty healthy nest egg and continuing to watch it grow in part because of these no/low down payment programs.
When my husband and I bought our house 7 1/2 years ago, we didn't have sufficient money saved for a 20% down payment. We were not irresponsible with money - we just hadn't had the means and opportunities to save that amount of money. By using this program, we were able to purchase our house and still have money in savings to fund maintenance and any emergency repairs.
As I stated upthread, once we reached the 80/20 LTV ratio, we refinanced to drop the PMI and lower our payments. We plan to live in this house for years to come, but if we were to sell it now, there is more than sufficient equity to use as a down payment on our next house.
Even when our payment was at the higher interest rate and included the PMI, it was on par with rents for similar properties in my neighborhood. And once we refinanced, our mortgage payment is significantly lower than rents for similar properties.
I don't get why we're denigrated for using this program. While the balance of our mortgage is steadily decreasing, the market value of our house has increased, our salaries have increased, our savings has increased. We're sitting on a pretty healthy nest egg and continuing to watch it grow in part because of these no/low down payment programs.
What upsets me the most is the people who say if you can't save up 20% you don't deserve to buy a house.
And not only do you need 20% you need closing costs and inspection and appraisal costs plus other miscellaneous costs
I buy rentals with hard money, and upon conventional refinance, my hard money lender increases the payoff by the amount of my down payment, and then we re-use that original down payment $$ toward the next deal. So I literally walk into them with net-zero down.
Yes, it's legal, but it's fun to make curmudgeons' heads spin.
What upsets me the most is the people who say if you can't save up 20% you don't deserve to buy a house.
And not only do you need 20% you need closing costs and inspection and appraisal costs plus other miscellaneous costs
Home ownership is not a right; it is a privilege. To deserve that privilege takes planning, responsibility, and resources.
If you cannot put money down, you better have at least a years worth of living expenses saved, pristine credit, no other debt, and a stable job. Otherwise, I wouldn’t loan you a dollar, let alone hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
