Thanks for stopping by!

The Hope for Homeowners program falls into the “not-so-real” category in my world — there are more than just a few problems with it… not the least of which is that we haven’t been able to locate an investor who is willing to buy the loans.

Here is a post of some of the “real” and “not so real” refinance options for people today:

http://www.arizonamortgageteam.com/arizona-fha-mortgagerefinance-options-which-ones-are-real/

That said — most people who are in your situation are either doing an FHA short refinance or a loan modification. My personal recommendation would be to try a loan modification first, but the truth is you have probably about as much chance of successfully getting a “mortgage that you can afford” with either one.

Since I originally wrote this post, I have written quite a few more about the current state of “what lenders are doing” regarding short refinances and loan modifications — and of course if you want even more opinion/information/recommendations on your situation, you can always call me.

Last part of your question of “how do you retire your 20% loan” — this is usually done by getting the current lender who holds your 20% loan to write it off… which is something that I have only personally heard of happening when the same lender holds the first and the 2nd loan — but in today’s world, anything is possible.

Justin

Great info for us. Thank you. Couple of questions:

If I bought my house in May of 2004 and am techincally not qualified under the guidelines listed above, are there any programs similar to the Hope for Homeowners Program that cover me?

Also, how would I “retire” my 20% loan. Not sure about what that means or how i would do that.

Thanks
Gavin

1.) Are the first and second loans combined into the 90% new value? You would have to talk with your lender who owns both mortgages. In order to participate in the H4H program, there cannot be any subordinate liens so most likely your second would be forgiven if your lender agrees to participate or they would combine the two. We have seen it handled on a case by case basis.

2.) It is my understanding that the “appreciation sharing” with FHA for the first 5 years doesn’t depend on who your lender is — so if you refinance, then you would still be on the hook for any appreciation sharing with FHA — however I reserved the right to be wrong (always) because the guidelines are not crystal clear on this as far as I could find.

Best of luck —
Justin

Also, for the amount the government is taking back, if I refin after a few years I understand they will take about 90% profit if any, but will they take after the refinance into a new company?

Thank you