The Mortgage Files

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

Should you cash out refinance or take out a home equity line of credit?

Should you cash out refinance or take out a home equity line of credit?

By Scott Sheldon / August 6, 2023

So you have a situation in which you need to access cash. You have a first mortgage at 3%, lots of equity in your home and you want to cash out refinance in order to do a new improvement. What’s the best way to access that money?.. The reality of it is you pretty much…

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Should you buy a house or wait for the market to improve?

5 signs you should wait to buy a house

By Scott Sheldon / June 25, 2023

If you’re thinking about buying a home, but you’re just not sure. You’re probably better off listening to your gut. That looming credit card debt, or personal loan, that you just can’t seem to kick whatever the case may be here are five reasons you might want to think about waiting to purchase a home…

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How hourly wages impact mortgage loan approvals

Why hourly wage earners sometimes have a hard time getting a home loan

By Scott Sheldon / May 9, 2023

You’re all excited to purchase your first home, you have a good job, you have a good down payment, and you’ve got a good credit score. What could go wrong, right? Here’s an occurrence that happens pretty frequently you might not know about and more specifically what to do about it as it relates to…

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how a recession could impact your home buying

What the Federal Reserve rate increase means

By Scott Sheldon / April 24, 2022

The Federal Reserve increased the Fed funds rate by 25 points to slow down the highest inflation seen in 30 years. As a result, here’s what this means for interest rates, credit cards, and home equity lines of credit.   In short, everything is going up. Mortgage rates are also higher but not because of…

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Should you refinance with your current mortgage servicer?

Should you refinance your current mortgage?

By Scott Sheldon / March 6, 2022

People looking to refinance their homes are always looking for a good deal. It goes without saying you’ll want to do the best you can for yourself financially. Get the best combination of rate, price, and customer service. Here are some things that you should give some consideration to when choosing who to work with…

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Should you buy a single family or mobile home?

What type of mortgage lender are you looking for?

By Scott Sheldon / February 13, 2022

Not all mortgage companies are the same. What type of lender or mortgage professional you work with can make the difference between you being successful in your home-buying endeavor or not. You want a lender, or someone working on your behalf who has the “whatever it takes” approach to helping you with financing. No matter…

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Will co-signing on someone else's mortgage hurt my mortgage chances?

Will co-signing on someone else’s mortgage hurt my mortgage chances?

By Scott Sheldon / January 23, 2022

One of the most misunderstood things in the areas of mortgage finance is cosigning. What it means, what it does for the loan, and what it does to your financial future. It’s a bit murky what the reality is versus what you may hear or read. If you are thinking about cosigning, or you’ve been…

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new 2020 market adverse fee conventional mortgages

New fee for residential conventional mortgages

By Scott Sheldon / August 13, 2020

The Federal Housing Finance Agency just rolled out August 12th, 2020 new change to conventional mortgage refinances. Here’s what you need to know going forward… Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are now assessing  50 basis points loan level pricing adjustment on all refinances for conventional loans going forward. For example, a mortgage that was offered…

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