We work with some great lenders.  Every lender out there offers the standard 20% down, good credit, conventional loan but each lender also has unique or favorite products that they can offer.  I asked our lenders what loan products they like best.  ***Disclaimer: every loan is unique and not everybody will  qualify for a given product or interest rate.  These are examples only start to show the myriad of loan products that are available.

Shane Musselwhite – Mortgage Professional, Northwest Mortgage Group,Inc.,  , 503-908-7116, NMLS # 249862 / MLO249862 |  Corp. #40562 / CL 40562

Condominium Financing is very complex, and can be a source of great frustration when dealing with a lender unfamiliar with intricate agency guidelines.  Not only does Northwest Mortgage Group, Inc. have extensive experience in knowing what to look for up front, we also have the ability to perform full condominium project review “in house” from our corporate office in Portland and grant approval for  many of those condominium projects that don’t meet agency limited review guidelines.  Full project review at large banks can take weeks, or even months to complete, and can be a faceless process where reaching someone capable of answering a question or making a decision is virtually impossible.  This is just one more example of why trusting your transaction to a proven, local professional can be one of the most important choices you make when purchasing a home.

Liz Marre NMLS 118575 & Amanda Good NMLS 298019—Green Mortgage Northwest MLO 106–1739—503-568-1285

Our favorite loan product is our Agency Direct product. Because of the size of our company, we have the ability to sell our conforming loans directly to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Mortgage lending has become a pretty rigid system, but our in-depth knowledge of guidelines help us create flexibility for those borrower’s that may not otherwise be approved. The below list is an example of how a Fannie/Freddie direct loan helps us approve more home buyers:

-The ability to finance up to 10 properties with conforming loans (most lenders only allow 4 financed properties).
-No occupancy restrictions for condominiums in an established project when the client is obtaining a loan for an owner occupied or second home (a lot of lenders require the project be at least 51% owner occupied).
-No minimum borrower contribution when using gifted funds on a 95% conforming loan (most lenders require the borrower be liquid for 5% of sales price before receiving a gift of less than 20%).
-The ability to use business funds for down payment or reserves (some lenders may allow this, but always with a lot of red-tape).
-Higher than 45% debt to income ratio allowed with an ‘accept’ on Freddie Mac’s underwriting software (many lenders will not go above a 45% debt ratio).
-1 year’s tax returns only for self-employed borrower’s when we receive an ‘accept’ through Freddie Mac (most lender’s require 2 years tax returns for self-employed borrowers with no exceptions).

Drew Lovern, Mortgage Loan Officer, Umpqua Bank,  503-219-6174, NMLS # 650099

One of my favorite programs would have to be the Mortgage Credit Certificate (MCC). A homeowner is able to get 20% of their interest paid on their mortgage loan back as a tax credit at the end of the year. What is even better, we can take that 20% you will get back and add it to your income, thus increasing the amount of home you can afford. Unlike most programs that have very low income limits and restrictive qualifications, MCC allows solutions for a wide range of buyers. It was just announced that the new annual income limit is $69,400 for 1-2 person households, or $79,810 for 3 or more person households. MCC can be paired with a purchase using a Conventional, FHA, or VA Loan. With just a little extra paperwork, you save a lot of money, and could afford a better home.

Thanks to these great lenders for taking the time to write these up.