Just waived contingencies and looking like I’ll be a homeowner next week.

I went to five lenders. Our initial quotes were 6.50-6.75% for 7/6 ARM. All fixed 30 year 7.25-7.375% as of last week.

Two lenders then battled back and forth and we ended up at 6.125% for 7/6 ARM with .25% origination/processing fee.

I didn’t realize lenders could just drop their rate when in a competitive process?

So we’re closing on a home at the end of the month and negotiated with the sellers after the inspection. They’re paying $6500 of our closings costs (basically to cover items found during the inspection.)

Our closing costs + downpayment (20%) was to be $81,500. With their part of closing costs, the total I’ll be paying out on closing day is $75,000. However, because I didn’t assume anything, I have the full $81,500 ready to go.

Should I see if I can pay the full amount at closing to the lender? (Would that be like paying greater than 20% down?)
Should I use that money to make a first month mortgage payment and ask for it to be made directly to the principal?

I don’t know if one of these make a huge impact to the bottom line over the other, but I’m just trying to strategize the best savings for the long term.

still house hunting for a first home. Does it makes sense to do 7/6 arm to get lower payment with no pmi knowing that in early 2027 I'll have an additional 60k to do a lump sum payment since the potential lender allows it. And then continue to make smaller additional payments. It would be over 1.4% lower than most 30 yr fixed. making sure to buy below what I can afford. So in 7 years I should be able to afford that possible max rate jump if im still in the house. But could also refi around year 5 if it made sense. Figuring out the best way to get my foot in the door. I do also have two decent emergencies funds as a worst case back up

Does anyone know of mortgage discounts better than Schwab? They provide a .5 interest rate discount for 1-5M and I was wondering if anyone found something better.

As a first time home buyer never go to rocket. They not only taken advantage of me and not knowing much what to do, but somehow managed to mess up my credit because they told me a soft pull was happening but did a hard pull. Such a scam arrest company and unfair. Never ever go to rocket, you will lose money and get out into financial crisis.

been running numbers every night after my shift. we can swing 10% down on the houses in our range. that leaves PMI. or we wait another year and hit 20%. my wife says PMI is just burning money. i keep thinking the equity we build in that extra year might offset it. plus rent keeps climbing. my spreadsheet is a mess of conflicting scenarios. the thing I keep getting stuck on is whether PMI drops off automatically or if we have to refinance. heard both stories. also heard some loans let you buy it out upfront. i do not even know if that is a real thing or something a lender made up to sound good. anyone here done the math on this? did you go lower down payment and eat the PMI? did you wait? what changed your mind? i need to stop spinning my wheels and pick a path

I am currently behind on my FHA mortgage due to loss of income in the amount of around $14k. I have went through loss mitigation (after a forbearance) and was offered a loan modification/partial claim option. But the trial payment is an increase of $1,550 to $1,845. The paperwork also states that if I agree my interest rate will increase from 4.25% to 7.75%, nothing said about extending the loan and I don't want to assume this is implied. I can not currently make a payment of $1845 (3 months starting 11/1) and I really don't want the interest rate increase. I don't want to say I can and then put myself in a situation where I can't make the payments or they try to continue payments at that same amount. I guess my question is are TPP payments supposed to be higher than regular mortgage payments? How can I get my same payment or lower? What happens if I call and tell then I cannot afford the TPP payment amount? I am going to request the waterfall workout to see if perhaps there was something done incorrectly. I'd also like to get more information on the amount of the partial claim and the future monthly payment would be. Would they not have that information?

The paperwork also states that I was not eligible for a standalone partial claim because it exceeds 30% but how can that be if my unpaid principal is $180k? A payment supplement was also not reviewed because it was approved for the modification/partial claim which is a step above that. But what if that's a better option? I have not agreed to the current offer as I'm hoping to get another waterfall review. Is that even a good idea?

I'm just looking to stay in my home with a reasonable payment and without the increase in interest rate. I want to make the best informed decision. Thank you for your help.

What is a minimum down payment on a conventional home loan for say a $300k home? Is 5k accepted. I know it’s based on what I’d want the monthly payments to be exc. but I’m just trying to see if 5k would be accepted as a minimum or if I should save more. Thank you

To explain briefly, we know little to nothing about mortgages. We know the house has 400k-ish left on the loan. We know it's managed through Rosegate, on that website it states it's a conventional 30yr Freddie Mac loan with a 4.5 rate.

Are we (my wife and I) able to assume this loan? One parent passed that was the primary caretaker of the 2nd parent. Second parent is on the mortgage but lacks the mental capability to handle finances. The surviving parent could payoff mortgage or continue payments but we are dealing with some issues that may not allow that. Placing house in a trust likely not an option as well. We are capable of paying the mortgage but would not like to make payments if the house is not under our name/ownership.

Thanks for any info/advice!

Would you celebrate your mortgage tipping point, which is the point at which most of your payment starts going towards your principal instead of the interest? I just realized I’m getting closer and feel like making some improvements to my humble abode to celebrate. 🥳🏡

Standard housing is far more than I can afford right now in my area, but looking at potentially moving in with the parents on their property and taking out a mortgage for an in-law suite, if the parents are on board with this. Moving to a different state or area is not in the cards unfortunately.

I've read that the mortgage would have to be under their name since it's their property. The plan would be to eventually pay off both the mortgage loan on the in-law suite, then the main house, at which point we would own the property.

For those that have gone through this, are there any crash courses or recommended resources for dummies that you would suggest I go to first before attempting to tackle all the big worded jargon that banks and companies will throw at me?

Thank you in advance for any resources or advice!

Edit for extra info: The in-law suite has not been built yet, their mortgage is around $700/month, we currently rent at $1500/month, and a house under 300k would cost us $2800/month and this is in a LCOL area for my location.

Does anyone know roughly how long it takes to find out whether you’re approved or denied?

Initially my wife and I were planning to buy a new home slightly bigger than what we currently have but after looking at interest rates, there’s no way were selling the house we live at the moment anyway. Just looking at the numbers makes me sick to my stomach.

So my wife and I decided to apply for a FHA Type 1 loan to do some remodeling to our current home. We submitted everything the bank needed on 10/1 but haven’t heard anything back as of yet.