Mortgage Broker

Philadelphia is one of the best places in Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to live and work. If you would look to move anywhere within the region, then you should seek the assistance of a good moving company. Relocation includes a wide range of tasks, which can possibly increase your stress level. Packing your valuable items and getting it securely transferred to the new location can be a daunting task, if you actually don’t plan it in the right way. In such situations, finding cheap moving companies in Philadelphia is only the best thing you can do.

Professional moving companies can understand your requirement and take necessary precautions to make your transit hassle-free. There are several moving packages, which may vary depending on where you move and type of service you opt. Almost every company offers both packing and transportation services. The best part is that the customers can conveniently choose the packages that suit the budget. Some moving companies even provide the facility of storage when you go for a long distance move.

You have got a variety of options to find trustworthy moving companies in Philadelphia. Most companies have an online presence, where they provide information about their services. By reviewing the service history you will be able to know their expertise. You can also consider the suggestions of your friends and colleagues. After finalizing your search, ask for rates and estimates. Usually, Philadelphia movers quote will be based on the weight of goods you transit. For short-distance move, an hourly rate may be charged. Keep in mind to verify the mode of payment. Also find out if any hidden charges are available.

Safety of your valuable things must be ensured. It is always better to choose a company that offers insurance facility to cover the damages caused during relocation.

The basic tenents of mortgage lending are founded upon the four C’s of credit worthiness…character, capacity,collateral and credit.

Lenders examine these characteristics to determine whether a mortgage applicant has shown evidence of their ability and willingness to pay back a debt and is likely to do so in the future. To facilitate this review, lenders require those who submit a Massachusetts mortgage application to provide documentation which leads to one of the most popular questions by consumers…what do I need for a mortgage?

As you might suspect, today’s documentation requirements are considerably higher than years past due to the subprime mortgage crisis and subsequent problems in the mortgage market. As a result, lenders are now extremely risk-adverse requiring even more documentation for loan approval.  So if you have applied in the past for a mortgage, even as recent as a couple of years ago, you still will want to get acquainted with the following list of what documents you need to get a mortgage.

List of Documents You Need to Get a Mortgage

• Copy of driver’s license (required by Patriot Act)
• Copy of most recent 2 years of Federal tax returns (including ALL schedules and supporting worksheets filed with the IRS)
• Most recent 2 months of bank statements (include ALL numbered pages, even blank)
• Copy of most recent statement (include ALL numbered pages, even blank) for all other asset accounts (stocks, mutual funds, etc.)
• Most recent retirement statement (include ALL numbered pages, even blank)

If regular employee,

• Copy of most recent paystub showing a minimum 30 days of year-to-date earnings
• Copy of most recent 2 years of W2s
• Contact name and phone number of supervisor/manager

If self-employed,

• Copy of most recent 2 years of business Federal tax returns (including ALL schedules and supporting worksheets filed with the IRS) if filing other than sole proprietor
• Copy of most recent 2 years of Schedule K-1s if filing as partnership or S-corp
• Letter from accountant on letterhead stating how long you have been in business

If purchasing a home,

• Copy of the fully signed Purchase & Sale agreement
• Copy of the deposit checks for the offer and Purchase & Sale agreement as well as a bank statement or printout showing these checks clearing your bank account

If receiving a gift,

• Fully completed and signed gift letter
• Copy of the check from the donor as well as a bank statement or printout showing withdrawal from the donor’s account and subsequent deposit into account of person receiving gift

Please note that the above list is fairly comprehensive, but does not cover absolutely everyone applying for a mortgage.

If your employment or financial situation differs from the ordinary and you are wondering…What do I need for a mortgage?, please feel free to leave a comment or contact me and I’ll be happy to let you know exactly what you need for a mortgage.

Tuesday’s bond market has opened down slightly with no relevant economic data to drive trading and a relatively calm opening in stocks. The stock markets are showing small losses, but considering the volatility of recent this is of little news. The Dow is currently down 17 points while the Nasdaq has lost 7 points. The bond market is currently down 3/32, which should push this morning’s Massachusetts mortgage rates higher by approximately .125 of a discount point.

There is nothing of importance scheduled for today that is likely to influence bond trading or Massachusetts mortgage rates. This leaves the stock markets as the likely candidate to any changes in mortgage rates this afternoon. If the major stock indexes fall from current levels, I can see bond prices improving enough to revise Massachusetts mortgage rates slightly lower later today. However, if those indexes move into positive ground, the only change to mortgage pricing will probably be higher.

Tomorrow has only one report scheduled for release that is semi-relevant to Massachusetts mortgage rates. That report is February’s New Home Sales that tracks purchases of newly constructed homes. It is the sister report to yesterday’s Existing Home Sales release, but carries less importance because it tracks only approximately 15% of all home sales in the U.S. Forecasts are calling for a slight increase in sales from January’s level, but after the surprise drop in yesterday’s report I would not be surprised to see some analysts revise their estimates lower. Still, it will take a wide variance from forecasts for this report to cause much movement in Massachusetts mortgage rates. If we see a noticeable change in tomorrow’s pricing it will likely have come from new from overseas’ events.

We are at a fairly important crossroads for Massachusetts mortgage rates in my opinion. The recent stock selling push bond yields below their trading range during the time. The rebound in stocks that followed led to bond prices falling and yields moving higher, but not back to their levels before the stock selling began. This has me thinking that bond traders are expecting a pullback in stock prices in the immediate future. If stock prices are able to hold current positions (Dow is above 12,000) in the coming days or week, we could see bonds give back the rest of their flight-to-safety gains and mortgage rates move noticeably higher. However, if the major stock indexes fall from where they are now, funds will likely move back into bonds and we would see Massachusetts mortgage rates move lower.

Also worth noting is the Fed’s announcement yesterday that they will start unwinding their holdings in mortgage securities that they acquired during the financial crisis. They currently hold approximately $142 billion in mortgage-backed securities, but they are expected to sell them in smaller chunks. What does this mean for mortgage shoppers? Well, we will have to see. However, anytime more debt is available in the market it lowers demand for current offerings. That could equate to higher mortgage pricing as investors have more options available, making current debt less appealing. The bottom line is that the additional selling could cause Massachusetts mortgage rates to move higher, at least temporarily. It will be interesting to see just how much of an impact those sales will have on day-to-day mortgage rates. I am sure we will hear more about this topic in the near future.

Lock or Float Advice based on Massachusetts Mortgage Rate Trends

If I were considering purchasing or refinancing a home and predicting likely Massachusetts mortgage rates, I would…

Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days…
Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days…
Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days…
Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now…

This is only a general opinion of what I would do if I were considering whether to lock or float based on Massachusetts mortgage rate trends. Your individual situation may be different.