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FHA Approved Condos In West Chester Ohio

January 6, 2013 by Eric Lowry Leave a Comment

FHA Approved Condos In West Chester Ohio

What is an FHA approved condo? Being FHA approved for a condo community means simply that the condos available for sale in the particular community can be financed using FHA insured mortgage loans.

How do I know if a particular condo community is approved for FHA mortgage

What happens if a condo community is not FHA approved? Mortgage financing can still be obtained for almost any condo regardless of whether or not it is FHA approved. If a community is not approved it simply means that FHA financing cannot be used. Conventional mortgage financing is still possible and obviously cash purchases are not affected.

Can a condo community be approved for FHA financing if it is not currently? Condo communities and their homeowner association boards can always attempt to get FHA approved, although recent history shows that this is difficult to obtain.

Searching for condos for sale in West Chester Ohio? You can start your search right here >>Condos for Sale In West Chester Ohio

Other recent articles you may be interested in:

This Month In Real Estate – January 2013

West Chester Ohio Home Values

West Chester & Mason Ohio Homebuyers To Face Higher FHA Mortgage Insurance Costs

March 7, 2012 by Eric Lowry Leave a Comment

West Chester & Mason Ohio Homebuyers To Face Higher FHA Mortgage Insurance Costs

Homebuying is about to get quite a bit more expensive for many home buyers in West Chester & Mason Ohio, not just first time homebuyers. No, interest rates are not on the rise (yet). It’s the cost of mortgage insurance that is going up. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) which backs mortgages that allow for smaller down payments has announced that it is increasing the cost on two types of fees that homebuyers must pay.

The increase in the mortgage insurance costs is two fold for FHA backed mortgages. (1) the FHA has announced that it will increase it’s annual mortgage insurance premium by .10 of a percentage point for loans under $625,000, which will now cost 1.25% of the loan amount. This increase takes effect on April 1st. (2) the second fee being raised is the upfront mortgage premium. It is being raised by .75 of a percentage point, making the premium 1.75% of the loan amount. This fee is often rolled into the mortgage.

Moral of the story… you may want to get a home under contract to purchase and a mortgage loan application submitted before April 1st if you would like to avoid these higher costs of obtaining a mortgage. All of this assumes of course that you are obtaining an FHA backed mortgage. If you are using a conventional mortgage to buy a home this increase does not effect you.

FHA Mortgage Loan Limits Changing – Does It Matter?

June 27, 2011 by Eric Lowry Leave a Comment

FHA Loan Limits Maybe Changing In West Chester, Liberty Township & Mason Ohio

FHA loan limits may be changing this fall in Butler & Warren Counties, including places like West Chester, Liberty Township & Mason Ohio. The question is, does it really matter to the housing market? On the face of it, it would seem to be a big deal. Having the FHA mortgage loan limit changing from a current level of $337,500 to a smaller loan limit of $271,050 in Butler & Warren County is a big change, actually almost a 20% drop in the loan limit. So that is big.

But, as I said before, does it really matter? A look inside the housing numbers for areas in Butler County like West Chester, Liberty Township and Mason OH indicates it may not be that big of a deal. So far in 2011, there have been 50 closed sales in the $280,000 – $350,000 price range (the range that would be eliminated by the loan limit reduction) in West Chester & Liberty Township. Of those 50 closed sales, 8 of the buyers used FHA financing which is 16% of the sales. In Mason, there were also 50 closed sales in that range in 2011 and just 6 of those buyers used FHA financing which is of course 12% of the sales. (Disclaimer: the sales data referenced here came from the Greater Cincinnati Multiple Listing Service).

So, will the housing market be negatively impacted by the change that is set to occur. The housing sale numbers in West Chester, Liberty Township & Mason would seem to indicate that they would not be. The fact is some of the homebuyers that did use FHA financing in this price range, may have done so because they could use this lower down payment mortgage program (3.5% down payment) not because they needed to. It is very likely that at least some of these homebuyers could have made a larger downpayment if they would have needed to.

Why is this change in the FHA loan limits set to take place at the end of September? To get the federal government out of the mortgage business is the answer. They want the mortgage market to move back towards private investors buying mortgages and reduce the overly large percentage that are now being bought by the federal government. The long term impact of this policy change may very well be higher interest rates, but then, those are inevitable anyway!

This isn’t to say that other areas of Ohio and our country may be more directly impacted by this change, but the impact in West Chester, Liberty Township and Mason, Ohio should be very small.

You comments and questions are always welcome!

Is it time for you to buy a home? Start your search for a new home in West Chester, Liberty Township or Mason Ohio Here!

West Chester & Liberty Township OH Real Estate: Don’t Worry If You Missed Out On The Home Buyer Tax Credit

August 31, 2010 by Eric Lowry

The home buyer tax credit may be gone, but don’t worry. You may have missed out on the first time homebuyer tax credit of $8000, but the opportunities presented by today’s historically low interest rates are even better than they were this spring. For instance… If you buy a home right now at today’s low interest rates, you can save ten’s of thousand’s of dollars!

Interest Rates Are Low! A $200,000 30 year mortgage at the current rate of 4.60%* can save you ten’s of thousand’s of dollars over the life of the loan versus the same loan with the 5.50% rate from earlier this year!

Buy a home now and gain so much more than what was possible with the $8000 tax credit. You really don’t want to miss out on this savings and opportunity. On top of the great savings the low interest rates present, there is another opportunity.

The inventory of homes for sale right now is really great and the prices on many of these homes are really good. To start your home search contact us today at (513) 874-1830 or visit our website, www.LowryTeam.com. Buying a foreclosed / bank owned home or a short sale can be a great investment opportunity under the right circumstances. If you would like to receive a FREE list of foreclosures & short sale homes for sale you can request a list using our Foreclosure Finder Service

You can also start your Search Homes For Sale right here!

Thinking of buying a home in West Chester, Beckett Ridge or Liberty Township, Fairfield Township, Monroe or Mason Ohio?

Search the entire MLS here! Wondering what your home is worth in today’s real estate market? Request a market analysis here!

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West Chester & Liberty Township OH Real Estate: FHA Loans

July 12, 2010 by Eric Lowry Leave a Comment

1. FHA loans are not only for first time homebuyers.

Many people believe FHA loans are available only to first-time home buyers, but this is not true. While it’s true many home buyers are buying their first home using an FHA loan, but a large number of move up/repeat home buyers are also utilizing the opportunity of the FHA loans as a home financing option.

2. FHA loans are not only for lower-income homebuyers.

FHA loans are available to everyone. There are many homebuyers in West Chester and Liberty Township Ohio using FHA financing. There are no income restrictions tied to FHA loans. Just as with conventional mortgage financing, home buyers do need to qualify for a mortgage based on their income, monthly debt obligations and credit scores.

3. FHA loans are not just for small mortgages.

Currently in Butler County, Warren County and Hamilton County, Ohio the FHA loan limits are $337,500. Keep in mind that this is the loan limit. So, as an example, someone buying a home with a 3.5% down payment could buy a home for as much as a $350,000 purchase price. Which leads to my last point on FHA mortgage lending.

4. FHA loans are often more affordable than conventional financing. FHA loans offer very competitive interest rates when compared to other loans. Home buyers also benefit from a much lower down payment, as I mentioned above. The down payment required to buy a home can be as low as 3.50%. And also the mortgage insurance premium may be lower on the FHA financing when compared to the conventional mortgage insurance for loans with less that 20% down.

For more information on FHA financing or for a referral to a terrific mortgage loan consultant please call Eric Lowry at (513) 874-1830 or visit our website, LowryTeam.com.

Click Here To Search The Entire Cincinnati MLS Database Of Homes For Sale! Wondering what your home is worth in today’s real estate market? Request a market analysis here!

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