Mortgage loan programs.

All mortgage plans can be divided into categories in two different
ways. Firstly, conventional and government loans. Secondly, all
the various mortgage programs may be classified as fixed rate
loans, adjustable rate loans and their combinations.

Conventional and Government Loans.

Any mortgage loan other than an FHA, VA or an RHS loan is
conventional one.

FHA Loans.

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA), which is part of the
U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD),
administers various mortgage loan programs. FHA loans have
lower down payment requirements and are easier to qualify than
conventional loans. FHA loans cannot exceed the statutory limit.

VA loans are guaranteed by U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs. The
guaranty allows veterans and service persons to obtain home
loans with favorable loan terms, usually without a down payment.
In addition, it is easier to qualify for a VA loan than a conventional
loan. Lenders generally limit the maximum VA loan to $203,000.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs does not make loans, it
guarantees loans made by lenders. VA determines your eligibility
and, if you are qualified, VA will issue you a certificate of eligibility
to be used in applying for a VA loan. VA-guaranteed loans are
obtained by making application to private lending institutions.
If you are interesting in obtaining a VA-guaranteed loan see
pamphlets published by VA.

RHS Loan Programs

The Rural Housing Service (RHS) of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture
guarantees loans for rural residents with minimal closing costs and
no downpayment. Visit our page RHS programs for details.

Ginnie Mae which is part of HUD guarantees securities backed by
pools of mortgage loans insured by these three federal agencies -
FHA, or VA, or RHS. Securities are sold through financial
institutions that trade government securities.

State and Local Housing Programs

Many states, counties and cities provide low to moderate housing
finance programs, down payment assistance programs, or
programs tailored specifically for a first time buyer. These
programs are typically more lenient on the qualification guidelines
and often designed with lower upfront fees. Also, there are often
loan assistance programs offered at the local or state level such as
MCC (Mortgage Credit Certificate) which allows you a tax credit
for part of your interest payment. Most of these programs are
fixed rate mortgages and have interest rates lower than the current
market.

Conforming Loans

Conventional loans may be conforming and non-conforming.
Conforming loans have terms and conditions that follow the
guidelines set forth by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. These two
stockholder-owned corporations purchase mortgage loans
complying with the guidelines from mortgage lending institutions,
packages the mortgages into securities and sell the securities to
investors. By doing so, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, like Ginnie
Mae, provide a continuous flow of affordable funds for home
financing that results in the availability of mortgage credit for
Americans.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guidelines establish the maximum
loan amount, borrower credit and income requirements, down
payment, and suitable properties. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
announces new loan limits every year. The 1999 conforming loan
limits for first mortgages are:

These loan limits are increased by 50% for loans made in Alaska,
Hawaiii, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Properties with five or
more units are considered commercial properties and are handled
under different rules.

Jumbo Loans

Loans above the maximum loan amount established by Fannie
Mae and Freddie Mac are known as 'jumbo' loans. Because
jumbo loans are bought and sold on a much smaller scale, they
often have a little higher interest rate than conforming, but the
spread between the two varies with the economy.

B/C Loans

Loans that do not meet the borrower credit requirements of Fannie
Mae and Freddie Mac are called 'B','C' and 'D' paper loans vs. 'A'
paper conforming loans. B/C loans are offered to borrowers that
may have recently filed for bankruptcy, foreclosure, or have had
late payments on their credit reports. Their purpose is to offer
temporary financing to these applicants until they can qualify for
conforming "A" financing. The interest rates and programs vary,
based upon many factors of the borrower's financial situation and
credit history.

Fixed Rate Mortgages

With fixed rate mortgage (FRM) loan the interest rate and your
mortgage monthly payments remain fixed for the period of the
loan. Fixed-rate mortgages are available for 30, 25, 20, 15 years
and 10 years. Generally, the shorter the term of a loan, the lower
the interest rate you could get.

The most popular mortgage terms are 30 and 15 years. With the
traditional 30-year fixed rate mortgage your monthly payments are
lower than they would be on a shorter term loan. But if you can
afford higher monthly payments a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage
allows you to repay your loan twice as faster and save more than
half the total interest costs of a 30-year loan.

The payments on fixed rate fully amortizing loans are calculated so
that at the end of the term the mortgage loan is paid in full. During
the early amortization period, a large percentage of the monthly
payment is used for paying the interest. As the loan is paid down,
more of the monthly payment is applied to principal.

With bi-weekly mortgage plan you pay half of the monthly
mortgage payment every 2 weeks. It allows you to repay a loan
much faster. For example, a 30 year loan can be paid off within 18
to 19 years.

Balloon loans

Balloon loans are short-term fixed rate loans that have fixed
monthly payments based usually upon a 30-year fully amortizing
schedule and a lump sum payment at the end of its term. Usually
they have terms of 3, 5, and 7 years.

The advantage of this type of loan is that the interest rate on
balloon loans is generally lower than 30- and 15- year mortgages
resulting in lower monthly payments. The disadvantage is that at
the end of the term you will have to come up with a lump sum to
pay off your lender, either through a refinance or from your own
savings.

Balloon loans with refinancing option allow borrowers to convert
the mortgage at the end of the balloon period to a fixed rate loan
-- based upon the outstanding principal balance -- if certain
conditions are met. If you refinance the loan at maturity you need
not be requalified, nor the property reapproved. The interest rate
on the new loan is a current rate at the time of conversion. There
might be a minimal processing fee to obtain the new loan. The
most popular terms are 5/25 Balloon, and 7/23 Balloon.

Adjustable Rate Mortgages

Variable or adjustable loan is loan whose interest rate, and
accordingly monthly payments, fluctuate over the period of the
loan. With this type of mortgage, periodic adjustments based on
changes in a defined index are made to the interest rate. The index
for your particular loan is established at the time of application.

Well known indices include :

1. Treasury Security Indexes -- Yields on United
States Treasury Securities adjusted to constant
maturities. When using Treasury Securities, the ARM's
adjustment period is usually the same as the security's
constant maturity.
2. Treasury Bills -- Commonly called T-bills they come
in denominations of 3 months, 6 months and 1 year.
Depending on which three of these security index
schedules you choose, the interest rate on your

Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) will adjust once every
six months, once each year, or once every three years.
3. London Inter Bank Offering Rates (LIBOR) --
Interest rates at which international banks lend and
borrow funds in the London interbank market.
4. Certificate of Deposit Indexes -- Average rates that
you get when you invest in a 1- , 3- or 6-month CD.
5. 11th District Cost of Funds Index (COFI) -- This
index reflects the weighted-average interest rate paid by
11th Federal Home Loan Bank District savings
institutions for savings accounts and other sources of
funds. ARMs based on this index can adjust every
month, every six months, or every year.
6. Prime Rate -- An interest rate offered to banks best
customers.

Historical and current values for some ARM's indexes are available
on our site. You can also find values of indexes in the H15 Federal
Reserve statistical release and in business newspapers.

The margin is fixed percentage points added to the index to
compute the interest rate. The result will then be rounded to the
nearest one-eighth of a percent.

The margins remain fixed for the term of the loan and are not
impacted by the financial markets and movement of interest rates.
Lenders use a variety of margins depending upon the loan
program and adjustment periods.

Most ARMs have an interest rate caps to protect you from
enormous increases in monthly payments. A lifetime cap limits
the  interest rate increase over the life of the loan. A periodic or
adjustment cap limits how much your interest rate can rise at one
time.

Your mortgage disclosure will tell you the exact index, to be used,
whether the weekly or monthly value applies, the lead time for
your index, the margin, and any caps.

Negatively amortizing loans

Some types of ARMs offer payment caps rather than interst rate
caps, which limit the amount the monthly payment can increase.
If a loan has payment cap but has no periodic interest rate cap,
then the loan may become negatively amortized: if the interest rates
rise to the point that the monthly mortgage payment does not
cover the interest due, any unpaid interest will get added to the
loan balance, so the loan balance increases. However, you always
have the option to pay the minimum monthly payment, or the fully
amortized amount due.

The advantage of negatively amortizing loans is that you can
control cash flow (relatively stable payment), take advantage of
low interest rates relative to the market at any given time, and pay
back the money borrowed today at a depreciated value years
from now (because of natural inflation). This makes such loans a
great tool for homeowners as long as you understand the
mechanics of what's going on.

With most ARMs, the interest rate can adjust every six months,
once a year, every three years, or every five years. The interest
rate on negatively amortized loans can adjust monthly. A loan with
an adjustment period of 6 months is called a 6-month ARM, with
an adjustment period of 1 year is called a 1-year ARM, and so on.

Most ARMs offer an initial lower interest rate than the fully
indexed rate (index plus margin) during the initial period of the
loan, which could be one month or a year or more. It is also
known as teaser rate.

All ARMs are available with 30-year terms and some with 15-year
terms.
Adjustable rate mortgages generally have a lower initial interest rate
than fixed rate loans.

Combined (Hibrid) Loans

Hibrid loans, a combination of fixed and ARM loans, come in different varieties:

Fixed-period ARMs

With fixed-period ARMs homeowners can enjoy from three to ten
years of fixed payments before the initial interest rate change. At the end of the fixed period, the interest rate will adjust annually. Fixed-period ARMs -- 30/3/1, 30/5/1, 30/7/1 and 30/10/1 -- are generally tied to the one-year Treasury securities index. ARMs   with an initial fixed period beside of lifetime and adjustment caps usually have also first adjustment cap. It limits the interest rate you will pay the first time your rate is adjusted. First adjustment caps vary with type of loan program.

The advantage of these loans is that the interest rate is lower than for a 30-year fixed (the lender is not locked in for as long so their risk is lower and they can charge less) but you still get the advantage of a fixed rate for a period of time.

Two-Step Mortgage

Two-Step mortgages have a fixed rate for a certain time, most often 5 or 7 years, and then interest rate changes to a current market rate. After that adjustment the mortgage maintains new fixed rate for the remaining 23 or 25 years.

Convertible ARMs

Some ARMs come with option to convert them to a fixed-rate mortgage at designated times (usually during the first five years on the adjustment date), if you see interest rates starting to rise. The new rate is established at the current market rate for fixed-rate mortgages.

The conversion is typically done for a nominal fee and requires almost no paperwork. The disadvantage is that the conversion interest rate is typically a little higher than the market rate at that time.

The other kind of convertible mortgage is a fixed rate loan with rate reduction option. If rates had dropped since the time of closing it allows you, under some prescribed conditions, for small conversion fee to adjust your mortgage to going market rate. Generally the interest rate or discount points may be a little higher for a convertible loan.

Graduated Payment Mortgages (GPMs)

Graduated payment mortgages have payments that start low and gradually increase at predetermined times. A lower initial payments allow you to qualify for a larger loan amount. The monthly  payments will eventually be higher in order to catch up from the lower payments. In fact, your loan will be negatively amortizing during the early years of the loan, then pay off the principal at an accelerated pace through the later years.

Lenders offer different GPM payment plans, which vary in the rate of payment increases and the number of years over which the payments will increase. The greater the rate of increase or the longer the period of increase, the lower the mortgage payments in the early years.

Example

The following table compares the monthly payment schedule of a 30 year fixed rate loan with the most frequently used GPM plan. In this plan payments increase 7.5 percent each year for 5 years before leveling off.

The example uses a mortgage with a loan amount of $60,000 and an interest rate of 10 percent.

Buydown Mortgage

A temporary buydown is the type of loan with an initially discounted interest rate which gradually increases to an agreed-upon fixed rate usually within one to three years. An initially discounted rate allows you to qualify for more house with the same income and gives you the advantage of lower initial monthly payments for the first years of the loan when extra money may be needed for furnishings or home improvements.To reduce your monthly payments during the first few years of a mortgage you make an initial lump sum payment to the lender. If you do not have the cash to pay for the buydown, the lender can pay this fee if you agree on a little higher interest rate.

With a variety of different loan programs available, it is important to choose the type of loan that will best suit your needs.

The right type of mortgage chiefly depends on how long you plan on staying in the house and the amount of monthly payment you can comfortably afford.

If you don't plan to stay in your house for at least 5 to 7 years, it will be reasonable to consider an Adjustable Rate Mortgage, Balloon Mortgage or Two-Step Mortgage. ARMs traditionally offer lower interest rates during the early years of the loan than fixed-rate loans. A Two-Step Mortgage will give you a lower interest rate than a 30-year mortgage for the first five or seven years. A Balloon Mortgage offers lower interest rates for shorter term financing, usually five or seven years. Because of a lower interest rate it is easy to qualify for these type of mortgages. However don't accept the ARM unless you can afford the maximum possible monthly payment.

Generally, you can start to consider 15 or 30 year fixed rate mortgages if you plan to stay in your home for more than seven years.