*waves small American flag*

This is the best time to buy a house. A realtor told me that so it must be true.

TNel: This is the best time to buy a house.

It is if you have the money. Low interest rates and recessed housing prices makes for a pretty good opportunity.

The problem:

Excellent credit ratings? Perfect payment record? Stable employment record? 70% MTMV? None of these seem to matter, as we have them all and still can't refinance. We aren't underwater, our total debt service is less than 15% of gross. None of it matters. The banks are not lending.

dartben: natazha: Excellent credit ratings? Perfect payment record? Stable employment record? 70% MTMV? None of these seem to matter, as we have them all and still can't refinance. We aren't underwater, our total debt service is less than 15% of gross. None of it matters. The banks are not lending.

And yet somehow my wife and I got a mortgage with relatively little hassle back in first part of this year, despite a lack of recent job history (due to law school), only somewhat above average credit (~720 FICO scores) and only ~12% down (hurray for FHA loans).

Either your credit isn't that excellent, or you don't have as much equity in your house as you're claiming.

720 is not "average","The best number to have is 720 or above. If your score is 720, there's really no need to try and raise it because lenders lump you in the same category as folks with a score of say 800 or 820."

Average is 683.

Mortgages for none. Miserable financial conditions for all, except for Goldman Sachs will mysteriously beat the odds and profit from others' misery.

FTFY, subby.

dartben: natazha: Excellent credit ratings? Perfect payment record? Stable employment record? 70% MTMV? None of these seem to matter, as we have them all and still can't refinance. We aren't underwater, our total debt service is less than 15% of gross. None of it matters. The banks are not lending.

And yet somehow my wife and I got a mortgage with relatively little hassle back in first part of this year, despite a lack of recent job history (due to law school), only somewhat above average credit (~720 FICO scores) and only ~12% down (hurray for FHA loans).

Either your credit isn't that excellent, or you don't have as much equity in your house as you're claiming.

This. With a credit score above 680 and low debt you can get a refi in today's market within 15 days. You do a streamline FHA refi within 7 days if you find a broker that is a hard worker that is motivated to close the deal.

natazha: Excellent credit ratings? Perfect payment record? Stable employment record? 70% MTMV? None of these seem to matter, as we have them all and still can't refinance. We aren't underwater, our total debt service is less than 15% of gross. None of it matters. The banks are not lending.

Smells like BS to me. If you really had all those things, banks would be beating down your door trying to get your business.

Wow, the comment section there is full of people screaming that homes are going to go back to 1980's prices. As someone that's currently pre-approved and working with a Realtor on buying my first home after years nearly a decade of waiting for the market to cool down, that's a bit unsettling...

natazha: Excellent credit ratings? Perfect payment record? Stable employment record? 70% MTMV? None of these seem to matter, as we have them all and still can't refinance. We aren't underwater, our total debt service is less than 15% of gross. None of it matters. The banks are not lending.

self employed?

If they gave everybody the same anal probe I was given in 1997 to get a mortgage, we wouldn't be in the mess we are now.

The mortgage company even made me justify expense reimbursements from my employer.

But at least it is paid off now.

King Something: *waves small American flag*

Done in one.

No problem at this end... Approved two weeks ago by my CU for a $520,000.00 thirty year fixed loan, ZERO down payment.



/life ain't always bad

HeadLever: It is if you have the money. Low interest rates and recessed housing prices makes for a pretty good opportunity.

Recessed from insanity doesn't equal opportunity, and low rates only provide temporary buyer leverage/affordability which will cause prices to fall when it reverts upward.

natazha: Excellent credit ratings? Perfect payment record? Stable employment record? 70% MTMV? None of these seem to matter, as we have them all and still can't refinance. We aren't underwater, our total debt service is less than 15% of gross. None of it matters. The banks are not lending.

The only way you wouldn't be approved is if you lied to them when purchasing, have turned it into a rental, have an unstable income source, or you're underwater.

Of course they are lending. Why do people repeat this kind of garbage? Lending standards today are lower today than they ever were pre-bubble. Apparently some people won't be happy until we return to neg-am liar loan 110% LTV madness of the housing bubble.

TheGreatGazoo: If they gave everybody the same anal probe I was given in 1997 to get a mortgage, we wouldn't be in the mess we are now.

THIS

People crying about the presence of lending standards need to wake the fark up. This isn't 2005, pay attention to recent history people.