Archive for category: News

Correction: or rather addition, to last week’s question and answer about using assets for qualifying income. An important factor I did not mention is that many lenders require you have at minimum of at least $500,000 in assets in order to use assets for qualifying income.

Question: Why is the cost for a loan with 20% down more expensive than a loan with 10% down?

Answer: Doesn’t make sense does it?

It does if you are a mortgage lender, or Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac who is backing those 80% and 90% loan-to-value mortgages. Because if you are Fannie or Freddie you want to make money not loose money and one part of achieving that objective is to mitigate risk.

But isn’t it more likely that someone who puts 20% down less likely to walk away from their home and create a foreclosure than someone who puts 10% down? Yes, the person with more down payment is less likely to let their home go into foreclosure. However, as we saw during the housing crisis many families who lost their homes had purchased with 20% down, or more. Because of the cost of foreclosure to a lender, typically greater than 30% of the loan amount, the losses to a lender for a loan that originated as an 80% mortgage are greater than the losses for a loan that originated with a 90% mortgage.

Why? Mortgage insurance.

If your mortgage has a loan-to-value of 80.01% or greater the lender will require mortgage insurance. The purpose of mortgage insurance? Reimburse the lender a certain percentage of the loan amount should you go into foreclosure—that reimbursement is typically to 65% of the original loan balance.

Let’s say that Fred and Barney are purchasing homes next door to each other for $400,000. Fred is putting 20% down for a $320,000 mortgage and Barney is putting 10% down for a $360,000 mortgage. Barney is required to have mortgage insurance that adds $132 per month to his payment, but covers the lender for 25% of the original mortgage ($90,000).

Most studies show that a foreclosure costs a lender approximately 30% of the loan amount. In the above example the cost to the lender should Fred be foreclosed on is about $96,000. Add the cost of the foreclosure to the loan balance and the total is $416,000. Even if the loan balance has decreased and the home value has increased there is very little room for the lender to get out of the transaction at a break even. Should Barney go into foreclosure the cost to the lender will be about $108,000—but the lender will get a check for $90,000 and the lender will lose $18,000. But this is if Barney defaults on the first day of the loan and there is no change in property value.

Most foreclosures occur because there is not enough equity for the borrower to sell the property and pay off the loan. In the above example let’s assume that the biggest employer in town where Fred and Barney both work, Slate Rock and Gravel, shuts down. Thousands of residents in Bedrock have lost their jobs and unable to make mortgage payments. Prices fall 10% on Fred and Barney’s homes and each of them have paid down about $10,000 on their mortgages as the closing comes a few years after they bought homes and became neighbors.

Now Fred and Barney’s homes are worth $360,000, Fred owes $310,000 and Barney owes $350,000. Fred’s foreclosure costs the lender $93,000, plus his loan balance of $310,000 and the total cost to the lender is $403,000 on a home worth $360,000—the lender is looking at losing $43,000.

Barney’s loan balance is $350,000 and the foreclosure cost to the lender is $105,000, total for the lender is $455,000. The lender gets a check from the mortgage insurance company for $90,000 (25% of original balance), lender is now into the loan and foreclosure for $365,000, the lender is losing $5000 on the value of $360,000.

Why is the cost of the 90% loan less than the 80% loan? Because the loss exposure to the lender is less due to mortgage insurance. The lower the risk the lower the cost of the loan.

[email protected]

Remember, with Dennis it’s not just a mortgage, it’s your complete financial picture.

Lots of rate moving information this week. On the data side we had reports on the Producer Price Index, Consumer Price Index and Retail Sales for January. The big number for PPI was higher than expected and supports higher inflation, up 0.6%. However the support is a bit eroded when the numbers are dug into as the bulk of the increase was a spike in energy prices in January (up 4.7%). The year over year PPI growth remains steady at 1.6%. The Consumer Price Index data also exceeded estimates, also increasing 0.6%–also pulled up by energy costs. The big news in the CPI data is the year over year number showing price increases of 2.5%, above the Fed’s target of 2.0%. Retail sales in January were very strong, up 0.4%, despite a drop in auto sales. The retail sales jump is reflecting higher consumer confidence. Adding strength to the retail sales report was a very large revision upward in December sales to 1.0% growth for the month. The three reports provide very strong support to the Fed to raise its Fed Funds rate at its March meeting, and following the releases of the reports on Tuesday and Wednesday we saw a strong drop in Mortgage Backed Security (MBS) prices—which means rates increase.

Adding to the higher rate momentum was Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s tour of Senate and House committees giving testimony and answering questions. Her comments were about as close as a Fed Chair will come to saying “we are raising rates at our next meeting” as well she indicated the data appears to support multiple rate increases from the Fed this year. Ordinarily this would pop rates up, however we saw a Fed rate increase priced into the market during the rate run-up in November and December.

Rates for Friday February 17, 2017: Week to week stability remains the norm as we are unchanged for the third straight week as MBS rally on Thursday and Friday following the mid-week drop. The low prices in MBS (higher rates) on Tuesday and Wednesday equaled lows for the past six weeks and are showing as a point of resistance, we are in a tight range for rates so there is no advantage to floating and trying to beat the market at this point—lock when you can.

FIXED RATE MORTGAGES AT COST OF 1.25 POINTS
30 year conforming 4.00% Flat
30 year high-balance conforming 4.125% Flat
30 year FHA 3.50% Flat
30 year FHA high-balance 4.00% Flat

Please note that these are base rates and adjustments may be added for condominiums, refinances, credit scores, loan to value, no impound account and period rate is locked. Rates are based on 20% down (3.5% for FHA) with 740 FICO score for purchase mortgages.

We got lucky with our French exchange student as we toured LA last weekend in perfect weather—she was Snapchatting and Instagramming to her friends in cold, wet France beautiful sunny beaches in Venice and Santa Monica and pictures showing the ocean and snow capped mountains from the top of the ferris wheel at the pier. This weekend, her last as she leaves for home Sunday, she is feeling a bit more at home with the weather.

Big storms are something I have always liked, and this weekend it appears I will be liking a lot. A reminder that with all the rain and storms this weekend and early next week, if you are thinking about buying a new home in the near future this is the time to look. Next weekend appears to be somewhat dry but in looking at homes you will find evidence of how they weathered the storms, any leaks, evidence of water coming onto the property or not draining properly around the house. Take advantage of the inclement weather to spot possible flaws in a home you may be considering to buy.

Enjoy being cozy with old movies and a fire this weekend as Mother Nature does what she does!

Have a great week,

Dennis

Question: Should I get a Home Equity Line of Credit, if so how does it work?

Answer: This question has come up frequently in the last few months, usually as part of a bigger question regarding remodeling your home and how to pay for it. Last January I discussed options for paying for a remodel of your current home, and encouraged you to weigh going through the remodel against buying the home you desire.

Those options are still there: new cash out mortgage, a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) or paying cash, or a combination.

Of the available options the most mysterious to many homeowners is the HELOC, what is it, how does it work? When looking for a HELOC what are the factors I should consider?

A HELOC works very much like a credit card. You are approved for a credit limit and you can use and pay down, and use and pay down and use…through what is known as the “draw period.” During this period your minimum payment is typically interest only. Interest is calculated by taking the published Prime Rate (lender will let you know which bank’s or publication’s Prime Rate it is using to establish your rate) and to the Prime Rate a margin will be added. If the draw period is not equal to the term of the credit line then when the draw period is up the ability to obtain funds from the HELOC is no more and the lender will generally fully amortize your payments for the remainder of the loan.

Let’s put some numbers to the explanation and make it a bit clearer for you:

You apply for and are approved for $100,000 HELOC. The lender says the terms are Prime + 1, the draw period if for ten years during which you must pay interest only on any outstanding balance and the total period of the loan is twenty years.

Currently the Prime Rate is 3.75% so the rate on any outstanding HELOC balance is 4.75%, until the Prime Rate changes at which point your rate will decrease (unlikely in short/medium term) or increase (very likely short/medium term).

You want to put in a new garage door and add cabinets to the garage, the cost is $10,000 and you decide to use your HELOC to pay for the work. After you take the funds out you get your statement for the first month and it shows you have a $10,000 balance and $90,000 still available for use. The rate is 4.75% on $10,000 so the interest due for the month is $39.58 (10,000 x 0.0475 = $475 for 12 month period, or $39.58 for the month) which is your minimum payment.

Having some additional funds you pay the interest plus another thousand dollars for a total of $1039.58. You do not use any more funds in the coming month so your statement shows a balance of $9,000, but right at the billing cycle the Federal Reserve raised their Fed Funds rate by 0.25%, as a result the Prime Rate also increased so your rate is now 5% (Prime = 4% + margin of 1%). Your account has accrued interest of $37.50 which is the minimum payment due and you have available credit of $91,000. You pay just the interest this month as you use additional funds you have for the month on fixtures, etc for the refinished garage.

Having finished the garage you realize that the exterior paint doesn’t look as good as it did before the new garage door so you hire a painter to paint and patch your home and the cost is $18,000 which you put on your equity line.

Your monthly statement comes and it shows you have an outstanding balance of $27,000, the Fed raised rates again by 0.25% so your rate is 5.25%, the interest you have accrued for the month is $118.13 which is the minimum payment due. You have available credit of $73,000.

And so it goes for the ten year draw period. You borrow the money on the HELOC, make your minimum interest payments some months and others when you have more funds available make payments to lower the principal balance. During the period rates fluctuate up and down and your monthly interest rate adjusts accordingly.

At the end of the ten year period you have a balance of $62,000 on the HELOC and the Prime Rate is 6.25%, your interest rate is Prime + 1 so your rate is 7.25%. The bank has informed you sixty days before that your draw period is coming to an end and in two months you loan will become fully amortized for the remaining ten years of the loan.

To amortize the loan the lender will take your outstanding balance, the number of months left on the HELOC and the current interest rate and calculate what the payment would need to be to make the same payment every month so at the end of 120 monthly payments your balance will be zero.

With $62,000 balance and a 7.25% rate your monthly payment the first month of no longer having the interest only option is $727.89, of which $374.58 is interest and $353.30 is principal. You make the minimum payment.

Coincidentally once again, the Feds raise the rate on the same day of your billing cycle to 6.5%, you HELOC rate is 7.5% and your balance is now $61,646.70 and you have 119 months left to pay off the balance. Your payment for the month is $735.89, a bit higher due to the rate increase.

For the next ten years your payment will adjust depending on the Prime Rate and your outstanding balance and the number of months you have left on your HELOC before it is to be paid in full.

Even if we were not coming off years of historically low interest rates, when getting any type of adjustable loan you should assume your interest rate will go up during the life of the loan. What may be a comfortable payment today may not be next month, year or in five years. As well since the rate is adjustable you should pay down the principal as much as you can as soon as you can to mitigate future rate increases.

Most banks and credit unions offer HELOCs, so what factors should you consider when looking for a HELOC and considering where to apply?

The primary factor is what is the margin over the Prime Rate for the interest rate you will be paying? Does the margin vary depending on how much you apply for, i.e. is the rate lower for $150,000 credit line as opposed to $75,000? Does the margin vary if the combined total of my current mortgage and my new HELOC exceeds a certain percentage of my home’s value, i.e. is the rate higher if the combined totals of the loans exceeds 80% of the value of my home?

Next what are the terms of repayment? Is the draw period short or long? After the draw period is up is the remaining balance amortized or can you still pay interest only? How long is the period the loan may be amortized?

Finally, what is the cost up front for the HELOC and what, if any, is the annual maintenance fee?

For many clients calling over the past few years inquiring about HELOCs I have suggested they contact their credit union instead of a major bank. While Stratis Financial does have some equity lines available I find the terms for many/most credit unions are better than what we can offer, and better than any of the major banks in the region. Particularly in the amount they will lend as a percentage of the value of your home and typically with the margin over Prime as well. If you don’t belong to a credit union research them anyway as these days many credit unions allow members beyond what their traditional charter called for—for instance I have accounts with a credit union that used to be exclusively for tele-communications workers, and in the past have had accounts with local teachers credit union, even though I have never been either.

I think equity lines are a very good financial tool to have handy if used wisely. They provide access to relatively cheap funds and due to their nature you can control your balances within your financial abilities.

My biggest piece of advice with having a Home Equity Line of Credit is to concentrate on paying down principal as soon as you are able so you are not caught in a difficult financial position many years down the road.

Finally, if you do have a HELOC and sell your home it must be paid off with proceeds from the sale, a lender will not let you carry it to your next home. As well if you are refinancing your current primary mortgage the total loan limit of the HELOC will be a factor in determining ability to qualify and possibly your interest.

[email protected]

Remember, with Dennis it’s not just a mortgage, it’s your complete financial picture.

December saw moderate gains in personal wages and salaries, increasing 0.3% after being flat in November. While wages had a moderate increase personal consumption so a more robust increase of 0.5% from November, mostly for durable goods—especially autos. With higher consumption increasing more than wages it is not surprise that the personal savings rate dropped for the month. For the year the personal price index increased a modest 1.6%, well below the target for the Federal Reserve. Overall the news is neutral for mortgage rates.

The monthly employment data for January was released today and new jobs for the month strongly exceeded expectations, with 227,000 jobs added for the month. The total exceed the monthly average of 187,000 for 2016. The best news in the report was that the private sector added 237,000—which means government employment decreased—and the participation rate increased. Hourly earnings increased only 0.1% for the month and the unemployment rate increased 0.1% to 4.8% as more people sought work. The news is somewhat mixed in that the number of new hires is good news but not keeping up with new job seekers tempers the positive. Overall the news is somewhat positive for rates as the data would suggest the Fed may not increase the Fed Funds rate at its March meeting.

Rates for Friday February 3, 2017: Still some inter-day instability in rates as investors try to process all the information and possible ramifications coming out of Washington, but a little less than in prior week(s). Week to week we are flat from last Friday as rates show resistance at the 4.125% level we have bounced off of three times in the past seven weeks. Looking ahead I maintain my advice to lock in your rate when you can through your rate period.

FIXED RATE MORTGAGES AT COST OF 1.25 POINTS
30 year conforming 4.00% Flat
30 year high-balance conforming 4.125% Flat
30 year FHA 3.50% Flat
30 year FHA high-balance 4.00% Flat

Please note that these are base rates and adjustments may be added for condominiums, refinances, credit scores, loan to value, no impound account and period rate is locked. Rates are based on 20% down (3.5% for FHA) with 740 FICO score for purchase mortgages.

Very busy weekend for the Smith family that should be a lot of fun. As many of you know our family moved to Brussels, Belgium after my freshman year in high school and I spent my sophomore through senior years in Belgium graduating from the International School of Brussels. Tonight Leslie and I are hosting a gathering of other ISB alumni in the Southern California region. We are expecting to have Mr.Vantieghen, the Belgian Consul General in Los Angeles make an appreance along with ISB Raiders who attended the school from the 1960s to more recent years. We have plenty of excellent Belgian beer on ice and look for to reminiscing about our years in Brussels.

Tomorrow we welcome to our home a student from a town outside of Paris who will be with us for the next two weeks. Our French visitor is about the same age as our oldest daughter, and no surprise they have been texting and Snapchatting each other with regularity. We look forward to sharing our home, city and region with her and learning about her life in France—as well as dusting off our French vocabulary and ability to coherently communicate.

Our Super Bowl will be a teenage affair as our daughters have invited several friends to our home to ostensibly watch the game, but more importantly to meet Mallory so she is more comfortable when she starts walking the halls of Poly High on Monday. No word yet on whether she is a Patriots or Falcons fan!

So the Super Bowl will be a bit of a background component to our Sunday, and not having any significant affinity for either team that is just fine by me.

I hope you have a great weekend and are entertained as much as you desire by the game on Sunday. My predictions have not been great so I’ll make one more—the Patriots in a very high scoring game (over 70 total points) and covering the 3 point spread Vegas has put out.

Have a great week,

Dennis

Question: How different is your job when helping a client with a refinance versus a purchase?

Answer: This question came up in conversation with some real estate agents who find themselves subject to greatly increased solicitation from lender representatives in the past several weeks looking for referrals.

Why the increase in solicitations? Because interest rates have increased slowing down the volume of mortgage refinance applications causing many lenders who have been answering phones taking refinances having phones that are not ringing. A great source of business for mortgage originators is real estate agents, the foundation for my business as well as many other “old timers,” so with a drop in refinance business….

Back to our question, how different is my job when working with a client refinancing a current home as opposed to working with a client purchasing a home?

Very different. Very, very, very different.

At the basics there is little difference. Collect personal and financial information on client, make sure the guidelines are met, process, submit, approve and fund the mortgage.

Where the differences start to appear however is all the variables that have to be considered, managed and solved for when working with a client purchasing a property.

Before you purchase a home we will want to make sure you can afford it and be able to successfully close the transaction. Are there items on your credit report that will require additional work that may delay an escrow? Are you funds for down payment and closing costs available and in the bank? Did you have large non-work related deposit(s) we need to account for? Is your income verifiable and eligible for consideration, especially if self-employed or have significant overtime or bonuses? Do you own a home now? Does it have to be sold for you to purchase your new home? This is part of what gets us through the pre-approval process.

The pre-approval information and any challenges we will be keeping an eye on must be communicated to your real estate agent so s/he will be aware and we can properly strategize not only price and loan amount but also timing.

When you find a home you wish to buy you will write an offer and naturally want it accepted. This will require a strong pre-approval package and the ability to communicate to the agent representing the seller (the listing agent) confidence in our ability to close your mortgage and therefore a successful close to escrow.

Once your offer is accepted we now have a firm deadline to meet which means managing timing for appraisal, loan processing, submission and approval. Coordinating final conditions and communicating timing to the agents, escrow and title companies to name just a few.

This is all if everything goes well. What if the seller has an issue on the home they are buying and we face a possible delay in closing? The appraiser discovers a problem with the property that will need to be repaired before we close? Could this have been prevented with proper questioning of the agents before we order the appraisal and corrective measures taken? What if there is language in the offer or counter-offer that could trigger more conditions from an underwriter? What if your buyer falls out of escrow delaying your closing? What if a tax lien pops up through title during escrow?

There are hundreds of “what-if” scenarios that can come up during a purchase transaction, many we have not yet seen but most we have seen and successfully handled through the years based on thousands and thousands of purchase transactions.

At the foundation for the differences between a refinance and purchase transaction is the communication. For starters we go from communicating primarily with our client and escrow to adding at a minimum two real estate agents, possibly more if there are other homes up or down stream from our transaction. That may not seem like much, however the communication between ourselves and the agents is critical to a smooth transaction and ability to solve problems that may pop up later in escrow as everyone has built a level of trust and confidence.

On paper it may not seem like there is a lot of difference, but experienced agents will let you know there is a tremendous difference in working with a lender who has experience with purchase mortgage transactions versus one who does not.

Whenever we get a call from a buyer in escrow who is having challenges closing their transaction with their lender it pains me that they have gone through the process and expense and not being able to get to closing. Had they called us before they started they could have avoided the headaches, frustration, stress and potential costs.

Buying a home is not the time to “try him out,” there is too much at stake for you and the seller. Make a call to someone who has experience and proven ability to assist you with your purchase transactions. (By the way, coming up on my 30th anniversary being licensed I have just a bit of that experience!)

[email protected]

Remember, with Dennis it’s not just a mortgage, it’s your complete financial picture.

The big news in residential real estate this week was the reduction of the annual Mortgage Insurance Premium (MIP) for FHA mortgages that close on or after January 27, 2017. The MIP for loans under $625,500 with minimum down has dropped from 0.85 points (0.85% or 85 basis points) to 0.55 points (on $400,000 FHA loan the monthly payment drops from $283 per month to $183 per month, $100 per month or $1200 per year). For loans over $625,500 the MIP drops from 1.05 points to 0.60 points ($500,000 the monthly MIP drops from $438 to $250, a savings of $188 per month, or about $2250 per year). The Upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium remains at 1.75% of the loan amount that is usually financed and added to the loan amount (for $400,000 this amount is $7000, for $500,000 it is $8750).

The final data for Producer Prices in 2016 were released this week and the news is mixed. Prices for wholesalers rose 0.3% from November and were up 1.6% from December 2015. Both numbers fairly benign and below what the Fed would like to see for economic growth. Food and energy were both very volatile in 2015. Food prices increased 0.7% in December but were down 1.1% from the prior year. Energy prices overall were up 2.6% in December, led by a 7.8% spike in gasoline, year over year energy prices climbed 5.9%. With overall prices under 2% growth the data is neutral for mortgage rates and gives little support to inflation in the near future.

How was your holiday shopping season? If you were a national retailer it wasn’t very great. Retail sales in December were a pretty decent 0.6% gain from November’s sales, however…take out auto sales and December holiday sales were only 0.2% above November’s take away autos and gas and there was no increase. This news is somewhat friendly for mortgage rates as it shows a slow-down in expected consumer spending (accounts for approximately 65-70% of economy) for what should be the busiest retails sales month of the year.

Rates for Friday January 13, 2017: Let’s hear it for stability! After a bit of a dip earlier in the week and rebound yesterday rates end the week at the same place they did on the last Friday of 2016. After the run up from the election to mid-December a few weeks of no change is quite welcome. Looking ahead we should stay in a tight range around the current rates for the near term.

FIXED RATE MORTGAGES AT COST OF 1.25 POINTS
30 year conforming 4.00% Flat
30 year high-balance conforming 4.125% Flat
30 year FHA 3.50% Flat
30 year FHA high-balance 4.00% Flat

Please note that these are base rates and adjustments may be added for condominiums, refinances, credit scores, loan to value, no impound account and period rate is locked. Rates are based on 20% down (3.5% for FHA) with 740 FICO score for purchase mortgages.

An interesting week coming up. On Monday we celebrate Martin Luther King’s birthday and his contributions to our nation, on Friday we celebrate the peaceful transition of power for the 45th time in our nation’s history. After a contentious, ugly, divisive atmosphere in the media, on social media and at many family dinner tables perhaps everyone can take this week to reflect on Dr. King’s message and from where our nation has come from his historic speech on The Mall in Washington D.C. in August 1963.

As I do every year on the Friday Weekly Rate & Market Update before Martin Luther King Day I encourage everyone to take about twenty minutes out of your schedule to watch Dr. King’s most famous speech. Watch as he goes from somewhat hesitant and stilted into a beautiful oratory rhythm that has moved millions since that hot summer day.

Click here for “I Have A Dream” and please share with other.

Have a great week,

Dennis

Question: What were the highs and lows of mortgage rates in 2016?

Answer: As you can see by the chart below we are ending 2016 with interest rates just below the highest rates we saw all year.

The year started with conforming rates starting to fall from near 2015 highs, dropping from 3.875% to 3.75% (using criteria I have used for my chart quotes for over 15 years as described below) in six weeks. After a brief pop up into March rates remained very steady through June before hitting the lows of 2016 in July at 3.25%. From July until election week rates were either 3.25% or 3.375%. Post-election rates quickly climbed to their highs of the year, reached two weeks ago at 4.125%.

We end 2016 with the conforming fixed rate only 0.125% higher than it was on January 1st, but 0.75% higher than our lowest rates of the year. We end 2016 with the 30 year fixed rate at its highest since September 2014.

If I had to use one word to characterize mortgage rates in 2016 I would use “stable.” Absent eight weeks when we saw rates drop steadily (five weeks at start of year) or increase steadily (three weeks in November) rates held steady within a quarter-percent range from February to November.

If I have to use a word to characterize what I think rates will do in 2017 I will use “inconsistent.” With a transition of leadership in Washington that includes not just the President but the heads of every regulatory agency, one party control of the legislative and executive branches, international turmoil through the transition period with tensions increased in the Middle East and with Russia, an economy that appears to be strengthening amidst an international economy that is struggling, I see little that would create an environment for “stable” rates.

Instability in the economy, global relations and politics generally means lower interest rates as investors flee to the safety of fixed return investments like mortgages. However positive economic outlooks lead to higher rates. Rates will be effected by whether investors see more of a threat from external forces than positive economic impacts from policies and regulations.
[email protected]

Remember, with Dennis it’s not just a mortgage, it’s your complete financial picture.

Rates for Friday December 30, 2016: We close 2016 with rates dropping for the first Friday September 23rd when rates had their last day on the low for the year. Flight to safety is the primary cause for the drop. There was scant economic news to impact rates this week, but plenty of political and international relations issues that did have an impact. With tensions ramped up between the United States and Israel and the United States and Russia investors have been moving from stocks to bonds to end the year. I see no lessening of the tensions for several weeks or more which could lead to lower rates—“could.”

FIXED RATE MORTGAGES AT COST OF 1.25 POINTS
30 year conforming 4.00% Down 0.125%
30 year high-balance conforming 4.125% Down 0.125%
30 year FHA 3.50% Flat
30 year FHA high-balance 4.00% Flat

Please note that these are base rates and adjustments may be added for condominiums, refinances, credit scores, loan to value, no impound account and period rate is locked. Rates are based on 20% down (3.5% for FHA) with 740 FICO score for purchase mortgages.

Thank you to everyone who helped make 2016 another great year at Stratis Financial. We are very grateful for the opportunity to help so many families with their mortgage needs. For those who put their own reputation on the line by referring us to family, friends, co-workers, clients, etc we are extremely thankful for your trust and confidence.

We are into our eighteenth year at Stratis Financial and we know we would not be without the support of our wonderful clients and business partners who continue to return for their mortgage needs and refer others we can assist with our expertise and service.

Cheers to a wonderful 2017 to you and your family,

Dennis