The Mortgage Files

Nationally syndicated mortgage news and advice from Senior Loan Officer Scott Sheldon.

Mortgage Comparison Shopping: How To Read The Good Faith Estimate

By Scott Sheldon / May 20, 2012

Taking out a mortgage loan requires careful consideration of all the costs associated with a purchase or refinance transaction. For many, trying to do their due diligence of mortgage comparison shopping, reading, analyzing and interpreting the good faith estimate can be somewhat of a misnomer. The revised good faith estimate goes into much greater detail…

Sonoma County Home Loan Refinance: When and How

By Scott Sheldon / May 10, 2012

There’s an old saying amongst homeowners that you shouldn’t refinance your mortgage unless you can save 1% in interest rate. So in other words, if your mortgage is 5% for example, and you can get for 4.125% on a new home loan refinance, you shouldn’t do it because you’re not saving the full 1%. This…

Get Preapproved To Buy A House: Start House Hunting!

By Scott Sheldon / April 29, 2012

Thinking about taking the plunge into the Sonoma County Real Estate Market? Summer is right around the corner and now couldn’t be a better time to get preapproved with a mortgage lender to begin the home search. What you’ll experience as a home buyer in today’s market is a lower inventory of homes for sale…

FHA Mortgage Rates Vs. Conventional Mortgage Rates

By Scott Sheldon / April 22, 2012

Searching for a home financing? If yes, consider the most common types of mortgage loans available today. The two most common types of mortgage loans are government loans and conventional loans. When we say government loans, we are referencing FHA Mortgages and USDA Mortgages. VA Mortgages also fit under this category although VA financing is…

Credit Score For Getting A Home Loan: 800 Is Not Necessary

By Scott Sheldon / April 15, 2012

Everyone wants to have good credit to secure the best interest rate for mortgage loan financing.  Credit scores range from 500 to 800, although we’ve seen credit scores as high as 820 before. Despite the fact that getting a mortgage today involves showing full income, full assets and a complete credit history, the need for…

Buying A Home Or Refinancing A Mortgage: Same Guidelines Apply

By Scott Sheldon / April 9, 2012

Lets get one thing straight… no matter what mortgage company you work with, banker, broker, direct lender all mortgage loan qualifying is the same. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and HUD have the same guidelines across the board, with small subtle differences from company to company. There is only one bond market and mortgage rates…

Mortgage Refinancing: Is Now The Right Time?

By Scott Sheldon / April 1, 2012

If you are considering refinancing a mortgage loan, you need to make sure the net tangible benefit is large enough in order to justify doing so. A last several weeks, mortgage rates have touched on a historic market lows with a 30 year fixed-rate mortgage dropping down to 3.75% for a short time. As the…

Sonoma County Home Loans: Mortgage Insurance 101

By Scott Sheldon / March 25, 2012

Mortgage Insurance is the dreaded monthly cost mortgage lenders put on borrowers looking to purchase or refinance with lower equity. Mortgage insurance, while it is an added cost, is not necessarily the evil it once was. While it is true, mortgage insurance does affect the total mortgage payment, the loan programs that contain monthly mortgage…