FHA loans used to evoke lots of negative connotations, a few of which were; lots of extra requirements, much longer time to process, and stringent and difficult home inspection standards. … According to the most recent REALTORS® Confidence Index, 39 percent of recent buyers purchased a home with a Federal Housing Administration-insured loan. REALTORS® who took part in the November survey also reported that the number of first-time home buyers continued to climb to 51 percent. “FHA helps provide affordable mortgage financing to home owners, particularly first-time home buyers who are so important in drawing down inventory to help stabilize the current housing market,” said NAR President Vicki Cox Golder. “These recent survey results reaffirm that, despite its current challenges, FHA is a critical part of the American housing fabric.” —NAR [From REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-4 out of 10 Recent Buyers Used FHA Loans ]

I have spoken to many of my clients about this previously, when saying that often a 1/4 point increase in interest rate can result in a higher monthly mortgage payment than would a 5% increase in sales price. What this means, is that the buyers out there who are waiting for the market to “hit bottom” may end up finding that their dream home becomes more expensive, even as the price drops. … Second, the last time the long-term trends reversed from low to high, it took more than 20 years (1970 to 1992) for the rate to get back to where it was, and 30 years to actually start trending below the 1970 low. … While different in each region, for the sake of simplicity, let’s assume that the average person is putting $40,000 down and borrowing $200,000 to pay the price of a typical home nationwide.

…If you could use a recommendation to a good local lender, who can walk you through all of the stipulations of your financing and help you determine if now is the right time for you to buy, please don’t hesitate to call.