Patti Shawgo's (pshawgo) Blog

The 80% Median Income limit is important to know for most down payment assistance programs.  Baltimore County's MALP (Mortgage Assistance Loan Program), Anne Arundel county's $30,000 program, other county SELP's, and the Federal Home Loan Bank grant all use these figures.Effective today, here are...

There is a little used program through CDA/the Maryland Mortgage Program (take your pick as to what you want to call it) called the Lifeline Refinance.  Little used because until last Friday, it's rate was 6.5% with mandatory 2 points.   Hot on the heels of CDA purchase loan rates changing, Maryl...

This is great, great news! I've written a lot  about about CDA, but in the last couple of months, the program has not been as useful since their rates were higher than the market rate.Today, CDA has caught up!  100% financing on one loan with 0 points is now 5.875% down from 6.75%!  You can get a...

Rates are lowest they've been in 2 1/2 years and it's a buyer's market, meaning buyer's can get some great deals on properties that sellers NEED to sell.So how much of a difference does 1% really make to the home buyer?  Let's take a closer look.About this scenario: We're going to use an FHA 30 y...

I am going to be doing a workshop on grant/loan programs for first time buyers, as well as optimizing your credit score throughout 2008.   The first workshop will be Saturday, February 2nd, 2008 at 11am, and should last about an hour and a half.These workshops are geared for both home buyers and ...

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta has a great program that I work with that gives up to $10,000 to first time home buyers.  They announced today that the program will be available once again starting January 2nd, 2008.  The great thing about this program is that is good ANYWHERE in the states...

One of the More House for Less (aka CDA) program's greatest points is that you can finance an upfront mortgage insurance premium into the loan amount on a conventional loan.  Don't know what that means? Here is how it works, we'll use a $200,000 sales price with 0 points origination for all examp...

The FHA 203k Rehab loan is a great opportunity for people looking to gain equity in a slower market.  Properties are not gaining value at the massive rates of few years ago (thank god, because there would no affordable housing left at all), but rehabbing your home allows you add more square foota...

I have heard this a few times, and I just want to make sure people understand why closing unused credit accounts can hurt your credit score. The second most important factor in your credit score is your ratio of debt used (this is your credit card balances) compared to the amount of debt availabl...

Here's the website you want to visit: http://www.optoutprescreen.com/.  Everyone, go there once you're done reading this.Did you know that when you apply for a mortgage the credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax, TransUnion, sell your name and information?  Oh yeah, there are thirsty, thirsty mortgage...