http://sfmortgage.com/blog Insider's Guide to Mortgages Wed, 12 Dec 2007 23:51:14 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The blog at taxloopholes.com is reporting that the IRS is challenging real estate agents who deduct their real estate losses from their ordinary income. The full-time real estate agents believe that they are 'real estate professionals' in the eyes of the IRS. The IRS doesn't always seem to share that ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=15 The housing market is like a bird with two broken wings, supply (increasing) and demand (falling). New housing that was in the pipeline and is now being completed is one part of the supply problem; the other part is the surge of foreclosed properties hitting the market. Demand is ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=14 Testifying before Congress on Thursday, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke suggested that the government work with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to insure jumbo loans up to $1 million. This would effectively, in terms of underwriting and pricing, make these loans very much like conforming loans. This would be a tremendous ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=13 You are already aware of some of the problems in the mortgage market. I want to address how what has happened in the last week affects the Marin and San Francisco markets. All of the problems in the last week involve jumbo mortgages - those over $417,000. For reasons I ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=11 Most mortgage loans are not held by the lenders who get you the loan, or collect your monthly payment. The loans are separated into different 'pieces' aggregated into large pools and sold as securities on Wall Street. When the sub-prime loans that were originated in the last couple of years ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=12 Well, not exactly pillow talk, but I was at lunch last week with a small group that included a prominent economist who is a former governor of the Federal Reserve Board. When the talk turned to real estate - doesn't it always? - there seemed to be a consensus that ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=10 In the new lending environment these are some things that listing agents need to know to protect their sellers, and buyer’s agents need to be aware of to better serve their clients. Even if you have been working with a buyer, and that buyer’s lender, for some time, you should speak ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=9 The collapse of the sub-prime lending market is reverberating throughout the mortgage industry. While many of the sub-prime loan products are simply no longer available at all, underwriting standards are being toughened for many other loan programs, not just sub-prime.� These loan qualification guidelines have been changing rapidly, dramatically, ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=8 One of the most profound recent changes in the mortgage lending environment is the increasing emphasis on credit score for stated-income borrowers. As the sub-prime meltdown continues, the investors in all mortgage-backed securities - not just sub-prime - are looking for greater security. The simplest bone that can ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=6 If you are considering a price reduction on a property that you have listed for sale there is an alternative to consider - an interest rate buy-down.� This can be a win for both the buyer and the seller.� Let me give you an example of how a ... http://sfmortgage.com/blog/?p=4