Brad Hunter, chief economist for the real-estate-research firm Metro-study Inc., originated the idea that potential Florida home mortgage seekers were suffering from four F’s.
Palm State Mortgage liked his concept, and decided to add our own details and commentary to each “F.”  We invite you to read more of Brad Hunter’s ideas at this convenient source. “F” is for fear. The four economic fears (“F”s) faced by mortgage seeking Floridians are:

1. Fiscal Fear…(In a changing economy, fears of unemployment, recession, taxation and fraud are only a few of the terrors that can attack a mortgage seeker. )

2. Financing Process…(Please refer to our most recent blog and discover why the very meticulous process of assembling documentation can cause great anxiety, and sometimes go awry.)

3. Falling home prices…(It is ironic that the very financial factor that puts the “new” house in the reach of the buyer’s budget, also influences the difficulty of getting rid of his “old” house in a sluggish market.) See Number 4!

4. Finding a buyer for the “old” house!

Brad Hunter concluded, “These four factors are keeping people from buying homes at a faster pace, despite low prices and low mortgages, plus, depending on your circumstances, finance rates.”

If these “Four F’s” are implicit in all of today’s Florida mortgage seekers, imagine how much more difficult it must be for those who are just emerging from 2008-9 foreclosures and short sales situations. Only the future will reveal if these victims will be able to overcome the Four F’s and accomplish their dreams of home ownership, becoming victors instead of victims in a changing economy.  You can find more in depth information about the legalities of the “short sale,” at this source.

The bottom line here at Palm State Mortgage is that buying or selling a “short sale” property should be approached with caution, and with the expert help of a financial advisor.

Blog Bonus! Recent Mortgage News and Views

HUD has just released some adjustments of special interest to those of you contemplating a refinance loan. These adjustments go into effect as of June 11, so you might note that you can overcome the F’s explained above with the new program. Although we want these statistics to bring you encouragement about refinancing your mortgage, we must caution you that every loan situation is unique.
Be careful of the promises you find about points and percentages, in mortgage company advertisements.  Every program simply does not apply to every situation.With this in mind, you might be among the millions of home owners who could save up to $3,000.00 per year, according to the FHA Acting Commissioner Carol Galante.Here’s the official announcement: “Acting Federal Housing (FHA) Commissioner Carol Galante announced significant price cuts to FHA’s Streamline Refinance Program that could benefit millions of borrowers whose mortgages are currently insured by FHA.”

The HUD press release additionally explained, “Beginning June 11, 2012, FHA will lower its Upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium (UFMIP) to just .01 percent and reduce its annual premium to .55 percent for certain FHA borrowers.”

They noted that, to qualify, borrowers must be current on existing FHA-insured mortgages which were endorsed by May 31, 2009, or previous to that date. Read more of the HUD press release by clicking here.

In the same announcement, the FHA also said, “it will increase its upfront premiums on most other loans by 75 basis points to 1.75 percent. In addition, FHA will raise annual premiums 10 basis points and 35 basis points on mortgages higher than $625,500.”

To understand what this all means to you as an individual mortgage seeker, we respectfully recommend that you contact Palm State Mortgage, your Florida mortgage professional. We thank you for reading our blog and we hope you will share our information on Facebook. Simply click on our little button at the bottom of the page and help us spread the word about Florida mortgages in a recovering economy.