Features of President Obama’s mortgage refinancing program

It is possible to refinance a home loan and avail new home loan facilities through Obama mortgage refinance plan, and benefit with better interest rates, terms, and conditions. The main advantage, or highlight of the refinancing plan is that the loan facility availed can exceed 80% of the actual home evaluation value. As per older guidelines and working, it was not possible for a home loan to be approved for refinancing, if the credit facility to be availed would be for more than 80% of the home evaluation. Real estate and homes have dropped in prices, and mortgage interest rates too have reduced, giving a clear indication that opting for refinancing is a good option.

Qualifying for Obama’s mortgage refinance program

Certain criteria or conditions need to be met, or fulfilled to qualify for the refinancing program advantages offered by the president. The conditions can be briefly narrated as:

• The home to be refinanced should be lived in by the owner. It is the main prerequisite for availing the home refinance program.

• It is possible to qualify if the loan or mortgage is either insured, or owned by Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac.

• The loan amount to be availed should be in excess of 105% of the actual or current valuation of the home, as carried out by any federal or state government recognized evaluation agencies. It is required to get mortgage refinance credit facilities.

• The existing mortgage status and condition must be up to date. From the monthly payments point of view, no payments within the past 12 months should be late, or over 30 days overdue, or not paid altogether. The actual monthly mortgage payments are officially limited to just 31% of the gross monthly income of the borrower. In addition, the total sum of credit payments should not be more than 55% of the calculated pretax income of the borrower.

• The home loan value should be between 80%-105% of the current or market value of the home. This value is also referred to as the LTV ratio, or the "Loan to Value" ratio.

• The previous rule stating that while applying for the loan modification or refinance facility, the applicant needs to own at least 20% equity of the current home value has been written off. The gesture is to make home mortgage refinance affordable.

• The government has declared a $1000 cash benefit or incentives for all banks and mortgage establishments for every loan modification or refinances application. This creates an impetus, and encourages banks to help out the applicants.

• It’s possible to seek professional help from HUD appointed representatives and counselors. They basically function as the applicant’s representatives for all dealings to be carried out with the bank, and represent the applicant’s case in the best possible manner to the bankers. They do not charge for their efforts and work, since they are on the Federal Government’s payroll.