Tag: pmi

Down Payment Advice

It’s always best to put 20% (or more) down on a mortgage when you are buying a home. The main reason for this is so that you can avoid private mortgage insurance (PMI) payments. PMI costs you a percentage of your mortgage depending on how close your down payment was to 20%.

It’s always best to put 20% (or more) down on a mortgage when you are buying a home.  The main reason for this is so that you can avoid private mortgage insurance (PMI) payments.  PMI costs you a percentage of your mortgage depending on how close your down payment was to 20%.  At first glance it might not sound like much, but over the course of a year PMI could cost you between $500-1500 or more depending on the sale price of your home and how much you put down.  In addition to saving on PMI, putting 20% down can help you negotiate better loan terms and rates.  Without putting a sizable down payment into your mortgage you will not be building equity in your home for a long time.  If you can’t save 20%, saving as much as possible is definitely the best route.

Thinking of buying or selling a home in Sussex County?  Give us a call at Cooper Realty Associates and put us to work for you – 302-644-2266.

Types of Mortgages

If you’re in the market for a home, chances are high that you are not paying cash for it which means you will need to get a mortgage. There are two basic types of mortgages, conventional and government sponsored.

If you’re in the market for a home, chances are high that you are not paying cash for it which means you will need to get a mortgage.  There are two basic types of mortgages, conventional and government sponsored.

Conventional mortgages are come in two basic varieties, fixed rate mortgages (FRM) and Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARM).  As the name suggests, fixed-rate mortgages have a set interest rate that stays the same throughout the length of the loan.  Usually fixed-rate loans are paid off over either 15 or 30 years.  These tend to be the most popular home loans.

In an adjustable rate mortgage the interest rate rises and falls throughout the length of the loan.  Typically, adjustable rate mortgages have a lower interest rate than fixed-rate mortgages, especially for the first year or so, but they can be risky, depending on the market and how long you plan to stay in your home.

With conventional mortgages, you are typically required to make a down payment of twenty percent.  Buyers who aren’t able to put that much down are required by their lenders to pay for private mortgage insurance (PMI) until you’ve paid down a full twenty percent of the home’s value.  PMI increases the monthly payment, and should usually be avoided if at all possible.

The other type of mortgage is though loan programs sponsored by the government.  These include Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans, Veteran’s Administration (VA) programs for veterans, and Rural Housing Service (RHS) programs for families living in rural areas.  Government sponsored loans are intended for homebuyers with low income.  Most of these programs require low down payments and have more lenient qualification terms than conventional loans.  To finance a home through any government sponsored loan program, you still have to go through traditional banks or mortgage lenders to get your money.  In these cases, the government does not actually lend the money, they just guarantee the loans.

Thinking of buying of selling a home in Sussex County? Give us a call at Cooper Realty Associates and put us to work for you – 302-644-2266.