Diane Gerdes's (dianegerdes) Blog

Question: What is Truth In Lending? Answer: In our office it is also called the "Oh, my goodness statement!" Regulation Z or The Truth in Lending Act (TILA) of 1968 is a United States federal law designed to protect consumers in credit transactions, by requiring Clear Disclosure of key terms of t...

Arizona neighborhoods are filled with foreclosed properties touted as Bank Owned.  But that foreclosed property may be owned by Fannie Mae, not a bank.    Why is Fannie Mae responsible for some foreclosures instead of the banks? The short answer is because they lost a bet. The longer answer is a ...

All we want for Christmas, other than peace on Earth and the Cardinals to have a winning season in 2011 is for the interest rates to come back down and the economy to improve.   Except.....the two don't necessarily go together.  At the Federal Reserve meeting on Tuesday, the conversation was focu...

Question: My client purchased a house as a second home.   When he read the "second home" rider attached to the deed, he almost did not close.   He said it was nobody's business what he does with his property.  What is the big deal?  Answer: Congrats on the closing but.... Is your client  really p...

Yesterday, I went to the Bank of Just Say No to apply for a loan.   The soothsayers on the news report the institutions have more money to lend due to Quantum Easing 2 (QE2) and at a cheap interest rate.  After all, my Chihuahua, Diego needs a new fall collar and my husband is tired of painting m...

Question:  I am trying to close a short sale for my seller.  She purchased her home with an 80 percent loan to value first mortgage and a 20 percent second.   Now we are told the 20 percent second has private mortgage insurance.  How did this happen? Answer:   Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) is ...

The weapon of  mass property devaluation is finally getting shot down a notch or two. Effective September 1st, Fannie Mae (conventional loans) issued a new directive to lenders addressing concerns on today's appraisals. Fannie Mae issued announcement SEL-2010-09, "Selling Guide Updates and Additi...

FHA, home buyer's go to mortgage of choice in today's lending environment, is changing their mortgage insurance effective October 4th. FHA was formed in 1934 by the government to help stabilize the housing market during the great depression. One of the reasons for the adjustment is that year to d...

   Five Ways for Fannie Mae and the Banks to help the housing market* *without stimulus money Fannie Mae's directive to freeze out home owners for seven years, who bail on their current mortgage, brought tears to the eyes of Arizona home owners with their tender concern for current customers. If ...

Last Saturday we watched the U. S. tie England in the World Cup Soccer match at a local bar. Skill and a lot of luck enabled the Americans to play for another day. The U. S. Economy is suffering from a type of malaise. We just can't get things started. This week's Consumer Price Index report shoc...