Part II of a Three Part Series

In Series Number One, we reviewed the merits of the Good Faith Estimate and its value to the borrower for transparent disclosure of facts and figures.     In the Part Two, we need to address the “service” aspect of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act.

When you apply for a home mortgage, you may think that the lender, or loan originator, will service the loan until it is paid off or your house is sold. However, in today’s market mortgage, servicing rights often are bought and sold. The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) is a consumer protection statute which affords you certain disclosures and strategies for problem resolution with your mortgage and/or escrow account.

Duty of Loan Servicer to Respond to Complaints. If you have questions or problems with the servicing of your loan, the servicer is required to respond to you. Write to your servicer and call it a “qualified written request under Section 6 of RESPA.” It should be a separate letter and not mailed with your payment. The mortgage servicer must                respond to you within 60 business days of receipt.

A Sample Complaint Letter would include the following because the specifics are important:
Attention Customer Service:

Subject: [Your loan number]
[Names on loan documents]
[Property and/or mailing address]

This is a “qualified written request” under Section 6 of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA).

I am writing because:

• Describe the issue or the question you have and/or what action you believe the lender should take.
• Attach copies of any related written materials.
• Describe any conversations with customer service regarding the issue and to whom you spoke.
• Describe any previous steps you have taken or attempts to resolve the issue.
• List a day time telephone number in case a customer service representative wishes to contact you.
• I understand that under Section 6 of RESPA you are required to acknowledge my request within 20 business days and must try to resolve the issue within 60 business days.

Sincerely,

[Your name]

REMEMBER: This letter SHOULD NOT be included with your mortgage payment, but should be sent separately to the customer service address.

And, it is very important that you continue to make the required mortgage and escrow payment until the request is resolved.

Loan Transferred to New Servicer. Your loan servicer is required to notify you in writing at least 15 days before the servicing of your loan is transferred to a new servicer. The notice must include the following information:

* The effective date of the transfer, the date your current servicer will stop accepting payments and the date the new servicer will begin accepting them.
* The name, address, and toll-free or collect call telephone number for the new servicer.
* Information that tells whether you can continue any optional insurance, such as mortgage life or disability insurance, and what action, if any, you must take to maintain coverage.
* A statement that the transfer of servicing does not affect any term or condition of your mortgage documents other than the terms directly related to the servicing of the loan.

Treatment of Payments During Transfer Period. During the 60-day period beginning on the effective date of the transfer, the payment may not be treated as late if you mistakenly send it to the old mortgage servicer instead of the new one.

Escrow Account. RESPA does not require that you maintain an escrow account for the purpose of paying property taxes, hazard insurance, etc. Nor does RESPA have any jurisdiction over the decision of the lender or servicer to require or terminate an escrow account. RESPA does, however, provide you with the following protections with regard to the escrow account:

• If your lender or mortgage servicer requires you to maintain an escrow account for the purpose of paying property taxes, hazard insurance, etc., RESPA requires that the servicer pay such items by the dates due to avoid a penalty or late charge.
• RESPA sets limits on the maximum amount of money the servicer may require you to maintain and pay in the escrow account. (More information about escrow accounts, including how to calculate the maximum amount RESPA allows the lender to require in the escrow account.)

Multistate Home Lending www.multistatehomelending.com and The Manufactured Home Lending Source www.mh-lending.com are committed to full and complete disclosure. All of our loan officers are registered with the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry (Registry), a database established by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) and the American Association of Residential Mortgage Regulators to support the licensing of mortgage loan originators by the States. As part of this registration process, mortgage loan originators must furnish to the Registry background information and fingerprints for a background check. The S.A.F.E. Act generally prohibits employees of an agency-regulated institution from originating residential mortgage loans without first registering with the Registry.

Finding the right lender

Fair or unfair to manufactured home borrowers, most lenders view manufactured homes with derision. We’ve all heard the term —trailer trash—well that’s how most lenders continue to characterize the manufactured home loan. Without owning the land, the manufactured home is pigeon-holed into a high percentage rate personal property loan. Even when the home sits on real property, the stigma persists in the minds of lenders that a homeowner will pull up his 5th wheel, hitch up the home, pull up stakes, and disappear down the road in the middle of the night – leaving the investor, high and dry. Although the portrait being portrayed treads on the side of ridiculous, the real concern for the lender is not only dismissing the above stigma, but how a simple classification of titling can significantly alter an investor’s mentality from “trailer” to legitimate dwelling.

Fortunately, FHA-insured loans are improving their visibility with many mortgage brokers. In many respects, they seem to rank among the only safe-havens for the manufactured home purchaser or borrower. Furthermore, HUD has created a model that both the lender and transaction coordinator can follow. The need for this type of application stems from the confusion over the fact that manufactured homes are the only type of housing that can be classified either as personal property or real property; and worse, there has been no national consistency for neither titling nor set-up requirements. In some states, manufactured homes were overseen by a transportation agency. Yet in other states – such as California – there exists has always been an authoritative MH housing agency, where others maintain little to no oversight. While HUD has jumped into the picture and requires a national standard for new home installation since January 1, 2009, existing homes are currently in “no-man’s land.”

A primary priority to a lender is that the titling of the manufactured as real property (meaning that the home and land are conjoined as one). This provides the lender – or investor – with security interest on the home. In some states (like California), the classification for a manufactured home as real property requires that the home be installed on a permanent foundation. In other states (like Arizona), the change of titling procedure is a paper-only transaction so there is no requirement for a permanent foundation. Where this becomes a problem is when a borrower needs an FHA-insured loan because HUD requires that the home be set on a permanent foundation. Thus, a licensed engineer must certify the foundation is in compliance with FHA guidelines, or what is commonly referred to as the HUD Handbook. So this begs the question why? The borrower typically proclaims, “When I bought my home, it was approved by the building department and everything has been signed off. Of course, my home will pass otherwise the building department wouldn’t have approved it!” However, building regulations vary from city-to-city and county-to-county, so underwriters, investors and government agencies need a national standard. The approval of a licensed engineer that the home meets the standards detailed in the PERMANENT FOUNDATION GUIDE TO MANUFACTURED HOMES seems to fit the bill.

These are the basics for your home to qualify:

• The manufactured must be a HUD home, which means it must be manufactured after June 15, 1976. If there are metal plates at the rear of the home that begin with a three Alpha letters like CAL, ARZ, ORE, that’s usually a good sign. If the HUD label is missing, usually a label verification letter from the Institute for Building Technology and Safety (IBTS) www.ibts.org giving the provenance of the home will suffice.
• The foundation system must meet the guidelines published in the Permanent Foundations Guide for Manufactured Housing, dated September 1996. A certification attesting to compliance must be obtained from a licensed professional engineer.
• The manufactured home must be classified and taxed as real estate. A long-term lease may also be acceptable in certain instances. States vary on how the real estate classification is accomplished so this is another important aspect to understand.
• The axles and tongues must be removed from the chassis.
• The manufactured home must have an adequate perimeter enclosure with appropriate ventilation.
• The manufactured home must not have been installed or occupied previously at any other site or location.
• Must have a floor area of not less than 400 square feet.
• Built and remains on a permanent chassis.
• The finished grade elevation beneath the manufactured home shall be at or above the 100-year return frequency flood elevation.

If you are in the market for a manufactured home loan and you own your land, it is in your best interest to work with a loan officer that specializes only in the manufactured home loan product. And if you need a professional engineer to evaluate the foundation, you’ll need one that specializes in manufactured homes as well because the HUD Handbook consists of over 400 pages of inconsistency.

If you want a lender that specializes in manufactured homes. www.mh-lending.com

If you want a professional engineer that specializes in manufactured homes www.onthelevelcontractors.com

Reverse Mortgages are becoming popular in America. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) created one of the first. HUD’s Reverse Mortgage is a federally-insured private loan, and it’s a safe plan that can give older Americans greater financial security. Many seniors use it to supplement social security, meet unexpected medical expenses, make home improvements, and more. You can receive free information about reverse mortgages by calling AARP at: 1-800-209-8085, toll-free. Since your home is probably your largest single investment, it’s smart to know more about reverse mortgages, and decide if one is right for you!

1. What is a reverse mortgage?

A reverse mortgage is a special type of home loan that lets a homeowner convert a portion of the equity in his or her home into cash. The equity built up over years of home mortgage payments can be paid to you. But unlike a traditional home equity loan or second mortgage, no repayment is required until the borrower(s) no longer use the home as their principal residence. HUD’s reverse mortgage provides these benefits, and it is federally-insured as well.

2. Can I qualify for a HUD reverse mortgage?

To be eligible for a HUD reverse mortgage, HUD’s Federal Housing Administration (FHA) requires that the borrower is a homeowner, 62 years of age or older; own your home outright, or have a low mortgage balance that can be paid off at the closing with proceeds from the reverse loan; and must live in the home. You are further required to receive consumer information from HUD-approved counseling sources prior to obtaining the loan. You can contact the Housing Counseling Clearinghouse on 1-800-569-4287 to obtain the name and telephone number of a HUD-approved counseling agency and a list of FHA approved lenders within your area.

3. Can I apply if I didn’t buy my present house with FHA mortgage insurance?

Yes. It doesn’t matter if you didn’t buy it with an FHA-insured mortgage. Your new HUD reverse mortgage will be a new FHA-insured mortgage loan.

4. What types of homes are eligible?

Your home must be a single family dwelling or a two-to-four unit property that you own and occupy. Townhouses, detached homes, units in condominiums and some manufactured homes are eligible. Condominiums must be FHA-approved. It is possible for individual condominiums units to qualify under the Spot Loan program.

5. What’s the difference between a reverse mortgage and a bank home equity loan?

With a traditional second mortgage, or a home equity line of credit, you must have sufficient income versus debt ratio to qualify for the loan, and you are required to make monthly mortgage payments. The reverse mortgage is different in that it pays you, and is available regardless of your current income. The amount you can borrow depends on your age, the current interest rate, and the appraised value of your home or FHA’s mortgage limits for your area, whichever is less. Generally, the more valuable your home is, the older you are, the lower the interest, the more you can borrow. You don’t make payments, because the loan is not due as long as the house is your principal residence. Like all homeowners, you still are required to pay your real estate taxes and other conventional payments like utilities, but with an FHA-insured HUD Reverse Mortgage, you cannot be foreclosed or forced to vacate your house because you “missed your mortgage payment.”

6. Can the lender take my home away if I outlive the loan?

No! You do not need to repay the loan as long as you or one of the borrowers continues to live in the house and keeps the taxes and insurance current. You can never owe more than your home’s value.

7. Will I still have an estate that I can leave to my heirs?

When you sell your home or no longer use it for your primary residence, you or your estate will repay the cash you received from the reverse mortgage, plus interest and other fees, to the lender. The remaining equity in your home, if any, belongs to you or to your heirs. None of your other assets will be affected by HUD’s reverse mortgage loan. This debt will never be passed along to the estate or heirs.

8. How much money can I get from my home?

The amount you can borrow depends on your age, the current interest rate, and the appraised value of your home or FHA’s mortgage limits for your area, whichever is less. Generally, the more valuable your home is, the older you are, the lower the interest, the more you can borrow.

9. Should I use an estate planning service to find a reverse mortgage?

I’ve been contacted by a firm that will give me the name of a lender for a “small percentage” of the loan? HUD does NOT recommend using an estate planning service, or any service that charges a fee just for referring a borrower to a lender! HUD provides this information without cost, and HUD-approved housing counseling agencies are available for free, or at minimal cost, to provide information, counseling, and free referral to a list of HUD-approved lenders. Call 1-800-569-4287, toll-free, for the name and location of a HUD-approved housing counseling agency near you.

10. How do I receive my payments?

You have five options:

* Tenure – equal monthly payments as long as at least one borrower lives and continues to occupy the property as a principal residence.
* Term – equal monthly payments for a fixed period of months selected.
* Line of Credit – unscheduled payments or in installments, at times and in amounts of borrower’s choosing until the line of credit is exhausted.
* Modified Tenure – combination of line of credit with monthly payments for as long as the borrower remains in the home.
* Modified Term – combination of line of credit with monthly payments for a fixed period of months selected by the borrower.

Source: http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hecm/rmtopten.cfm

Reverse Mortgage

Senior Mobile Home OwnersHere is a great solution for Seniors who own manufactured/mobile homes and are having financial difficulty, looking for way to combat the increasing cost of living, or for those who would just like to have some additional resources to enjoy retirement, the Reverse Mortgage is a product that could be an advantage.

A Reverse Mortgage is a loan that is guaranteed by the FHA for manufactured homes, but is different from a standard equity line in that:

* The age of the youngest borrower must be at least 62 or above.

* There is never a monthly payment as long as you live in the home. The loan is repaid from the proceeds of the sale of the manufactured or mobile home, or through other means, but only when the home is no longer the primary residence of the homeowner. Heirs or beneficiaries are never responsible for the loan.

* There are no income, medical, or credit requirements.

For manufactured homes, the borrower is required to have their home on a permanent foundation system. The requirements can vary state by state. For instance, in California, in addition to meeting the HUD PERMANENT FOUNDATION GUIDE FOR MANUFACTURED HOMES, 1996 and being certified by an engineer, the home must also have a recorded 433A, showing that the home also meets the State requirements. On The Level www.onthelevelcontractors.com can assist both in the retrofit and engineer’s certification process nationwide with some exceptions.

OnTheLevel, specializes in servicing, repairing and upgrading manufactured home foundations as well as expediting engineer’s certifications for FHA-insured loans. From the recalibration of the home’s existing structural support units to more comprehensive foundation retrofitting when enhanced design criteria are needed to meet wind, seismic, weight and snow load requirements to satisfy either the building department or lending requirements, OnTheLevel offers turn-key solutions.