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Featured Mortgage Refinance Articles

Balloon Or Reset Mortgage Loans - Understanding The Basics
A balloon mortgage, also called a reset mortgage, offers lower interest rates with the option in 5 or 7 years to pay off the balance or resent the loan. Considered more risky than an ARM since interest rates can jump significantly, it is a valid option ...

Refinancing 2nd Mortgage - Why Research Refinance Rates
Refinancing a second mortgage can reduce your monthly payments and interest rates. To get the best deal, you need to research rates. With a minimum amount of time invested, you can have peace of mind, knowing you are getting the best financing package ...

When Does it Pay-Off to Obtain a Home Mortgage?
If you are in dire need of money and don't have the financial means for a large cash transaction to buy a house, then opting for a home mortgage is worth consideration. Basically, a mortgage refers to a long-standing credit that a debtor obtains from a ...




Mortgage Loan - Understanding FICO Scores
 
Apply for a mortgage loan and you'll soon become familiar with FICO scores. Here's a primer on the infamous FICO scoring process.

FICO scores are merely a mathematical representation of your credit record. Credit records are simply a recording of your debts and assets. Credit card balances, for instance, are a debt that appears on your credit record, as do late payments, bounced checks and so on. Credit, of course, is a huge consideration in the mortgage loan process.

A "credit score" is a figure that represents an overall valuation of how you handle credit and the risk level associated with giving you more credit, to wit, a mortgage loan. The loan underwriter will review your credit report for items such as payment history on debts, debt balances and types of credit you already have. A summary of this information is represented by a figure known as you "FICO score."

FICO

You may be surprised to learn that "FICO" doesn't stand for any credit-related terms. Instead, it stands for Fair, Isaac and Company. This company developed the mathematical formula that produces the much loved or hated FICO scores. The FICO score assigned to you determines whether you love or hate the formula.

FICO scores come in a range of three digit numbers. The lowest FICO score you can get is 350. The highest FICO score is 850, a score for which bankers will bow at your feet. The higher your score, the better your credit situation and the more likely a bank is to provide you with a mortgage loan.

Most people do not have perfect credit. To this end, we find most people have FICO scores ranging from the low 600s to the high 700s. Mortgage applications typically are not rejected because of a few late payments.

If you're considering purchasing a house, you should always try to pre-qualify for a mortgage loan. Getting a reading of your FICO score should be one of the first steps.

About the author:

Dan Lewis is a mortgage broker with http://www.gwhomeloans.com - San Diego mortgage brokers providing home loans and refinances. Visit http://www.gwhomeloans.com/services.html to learn more about options for San Diego mortgages.



Mortgage Refinance News

U.S. Banks Offer Mortgage Rates Below 5% as Fed Buys Securities - Bloomberg
Jan. 8 (Bloomberg) -- The largest U.S. banks are starting to offer fixed home loans below 5 percent after the government began buying mortgage securities to bolster the housing market. JPMorgan Chase & Co. is advertising 30-year mortgages as low as 4 ...

Waco banks seeing a boom in mortgage refinance applications - Waco Tribune-Herald
With mortgage rates hitting record lows, Mary Jo Teakell is seeing a growing backlog of refinance applications. “We’re quite busy right now,” said Teakell, senior vice president at Extraco Banks, commenting on the surge in people wanting to get ...

Don't miss the refinance window - HometownAnnapolis.com
CHICAGO - Lured by low mortgage rates, many homeowners have been rushing to refinance. Interest is gaining for good reason: Eligible borrowers can lock in rates that haven't been this attractive in decades. "With interest rates hovering around 5 ...

As mortgage rates slide, applications to refinance have gone through ... - Dallas Morning News
The holidays can be slow in the mortgage business as consumers take a break to celebrate. But at Gary Akright's Addison mortgage office, the phone is ringing off the wall. The lowest loan interest rates in more than a generation have prompted ...

Mortgage Rates Drop, Owners Refinance Save Email Print - WOWT
Mortgage rates continue to drop. This week rates on 30 year mortgages fell to a record low. The lowest level since 1971. John Kortes loves his turn of the century home. He bought it in 2001. Kortes has updated his kitchen, the appliances and now he ...