Many homes on the market today need a few repairs: a new roof, more efficient windows, some paint or other minor work. And in a market with lots of foreclosures in distressed condition, sometimes fixtures and appliances are stripped from the house by the previous owner.

What is a potential home buyer supposed to do in this situation if all they saved up for was their down payment and closing costs?

Enter the FHA Renovation Mortgage. This loan product, created and insured by the Federal Government through HUD is the solution.

And unlike other government programs offered lately, this one has been around for a while and actually works the way it’s supposed to!

It’s pretty much the same as buying a home with a regular FHA loan with the added benefit of of receiving up to $35,000 for basic repairs, fixtures and appliances. And here’s something more — you might even qualify for an additional $8,000 for upgrading to more energy efficient windows.

And guess what… If your existing home needs renovating, you can even use this loan to refinance and get the money to perform the repairs, even if you have only 4% equity in your home.

This loan is not offered by every lender and even the lenders who do offer this product require loan officers to be certified to originate one for you.

If you think this might be the solution you’re looking for, read more about the Renovation Mortgage at HUD’s website or give me a call to discuss how you can qualify.

If you’re like many people, you dream about getting a great deal on your real estate.

After all, real estate is a great way to build wealth (yes, it still is, even post-credit crisis) and what if you could pick it up priced even more competitively than other houses in the same neighborhood.

Well, enter the HomePath program from Fannie Mae.

Fannie Mae is the largest purchaser of the Mortgage Backed Security. Simply put, they manage and coordinate most of the mortgage paper in the U.S. This means that when someone can’t make their mortgage payment and the lender forecloses, Fannie Mae is left holding the property.

The benefits of the HomePath Program include:

• A very low down payment
• Flexible mortgage terms (including fixed-rate, adjustable-rate, or interest-only)
• Loans are available to owner occupied buyers and investment buyers
• Down payments can be funded by your savings, gifts, grants, loans from nonprofit organizations, government grants or even your employer
• There’s no mortgage insurance (What’s Mortgage Insurance?)
• There’s no appraisal required

You can search for HomePath properties here on the official website.

First Choice Financial in Whittier is eligible to lend on HomePath properties — not true of all lenders — so give me a call if you’d like to learn more about how to qualify for this mortgage product.