Ten Creative Real Estate Financing Techniques (Updated)

July 1, 2008 · Posted in Creative Real estate Financing · Comments Off 

Do all the creative financing techniques you hear about really work? Yes, actually. They probably have all worked somewhere for someone at least once. The point isn’t if they will all work for you. The point is to know what is possible, so you can find your own creative ways to invest in real estate. Here are ten methods to get you thinking.

1. Hard money lenders. You can ask around or find these online. They specialize in short-term loans at high interest. You typically use this type of financing for a “fix and flip.” You can often get the money fast, and if you make $30,000 on a project, who cares if you paid $10,000 interest in six months.

2. No-doc and low-doc loans. No (or low) documentation of your income or credit required. Again, you can find banks that do these online now. The catch is that you will only be able to borrow up to 80% of the purchase price or property value. If you have 10% in cash, you might be able to borrow the other 10% from a friend or the seller.

3. Seller-carried second mortgages. Sometimes a bank will loan you 90%, and allow the seller to take back a second mortgage from you for 5%, leaving you needing only 5% for a downpayment. Read more

Real Estate Financing – Creative Financing Tips

December 8, 2007 · Posted in Creative Real estate Financing · Comments Off 

This year, Americans are expected to borrow $1.33 trillion in acquiring 7.4 million houses, condominiums and co-ops. Before you do any real estate financing, if you have bad credit because of consumer debt like credit cards or personal loans, you’ll want to try to eliminate or reduce this debt since it will affect your ability to qualify for a commercial or home mortgage and make the estimated monthly payment. If you have monthly obligations like car payments, credit card payments, personal loan payments, student loan payments, etc., be sure to take these into account when you are determining your bottom-line affordability figure.

If rates in the current market are high, you’ll probably get a better price with an adjustable-rate loan. A fixed-rate mortgage means that the interest rate and principal payments remain the same for the life of the loan but the taxes may change. Loan programs for down payments of 20% or less require that you purchase Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI).

Interest rates may go up if a rosy picture is painted that the economy is flourishing – like more jobs being available; this can lead to inflation which will send the rates up. You’ll also need to consider closing costs and the escrow account for your taxes and insurance. Also keep in mind when you’re financing or refinancing that most people move or refinance within seven years.

Most of all you’ll need to decide what you can afford to buy. And if a loan application isn’t approved for the first time, it can always be resubmitted after modifying it, for example, like raising the amount of the down payment. If you’re a first-time home-buyer it is possible that you may qualify for a lower down payment or lower interest rate; check with mortgage brokers, online mortgage companies, your county housing department or your employer to see if they know of any programs like this available.

Revealing a FICO credit score is not a requirement for most conventional or government loans like FHA loans or VA loans. Thirty-year fixed-rate mortgages offer consistent monthly payments for all of the 30 years you have the mortgage; if the market is good, you can benefit from locking in a lower rate for the full term of the loan. 15-year mortgages are an ideal option if you can handle the higher payments and if you’d like to have the loan paid off in a shorter period of time, for example, if you plan to retire. Read more

Creative Financing For Real Estate Investors

December 8, 2007 · Posted in Creative Real estate Financing · Comments Off 

If you’re an experienced or novice real estate investor, you have many options available for financing your properties. One widely used method is having multiple loans. This is usually a second mortgage. For example, the buyer puts up a percentage and effectively borrows the negotiated balance on a separate loan.

For many years most people financed a property with 20% down and 80% on loan. Some even put MORE down. But 20% was considered the minimum. And fortunately many things have changed over the years.

And while it’s great to use less cash for the same property, the downside isn’t limited to the higher rate on the second note. You’ll find that lenders almost always require PMI (private mortgage insurance) if the buyer doesn’t meet the standard 20% minimum. And the fees can be unattractive.

It’s “possible” to have the lender remove the PMI after a certain number of payments have been made. But it rarely happens. Here’s the theory…

Once the loan has been paid down so the LTV (loan-to-value ratio) is at the 80% mark, this is usually the combination of paying down the second mortgage and the property value appreciating, the lender will consider removing the PMI fee from your monthly payment. Read more

Creative Financing For Homeowners With Bad Credit

December 8, 2007 · Posted in Creative Real estate Financing · Comments Off 

A few creative methods can help anyone with bad credit to improve their ability to purchase a home, to refinance a home or even to use their home’s equity. There are many lenders that are willing to provide loans to those with poor credit especially when those loans are secured by the value of your home. It is essential to remember, though, that mortgage lenders are not in the business of owning homes and therefore don’t want to find that they have to foreclose on the loan that they provide.

3 Big Considerations For Bad Credit Buyers

Consider these three things while you are looking for a loan when you have less than perfect credit.

1. Don’t make mistakes or exaggerations on your income, your credit history or any other information requested. Being up front and honest with lenders will allow them to find lending options that are available to you.

2. Sub-prime lenders are available to provide homeowners with debt consolidation loans, with refinances of their current mortgages or even additional loans. Yet, you will pay for it with higher interest rates. Because they are taking on more risk, the interest rates are higher to you. Read more

80/20 Home Mortgage Loans – Creative Financing For Your Mortgage Loan (Updated)

May 8, 2007 · Posted in Creative Real estate Financing · Comments Off 

An 80/20 mortgage loan is where, for a new home loan, there are two separate loans with two separate payments. There are also two separate interest rates and the loans are usually funded by separate companies. The two loans consist of 80% of the loan amount and 20% of the loan amount.

Some of the benefits to having an 80/20 mortgage loan are:

1. No PMI – Private mortgage insurance is a monthly payment that every borrower needs to pay when they purchase a home with less than 20% down. PMI is insurance for the lender to protect the lender against losses should the borrower default on their loan. PMI does not insure the borrower in any way. When you split your mortgage into two loans, one loan is for 80% of the loan amount and the other is for 20% of the loan amount. So, PMI is not necessary for the first mortgage.

2. Qualify for 100% Financing on Your Mortgage – Many times a borrower might not be able to qualify for 100% financing on their mortgage loan unless they do the 80/20 setup with their loan. Read more

Creative Home Financing – What is Creative Financing (Updated)

April 8, 2007 · Posted in Creative Real estate Financing · Comments Off 

Creative financing refers to a way to own real estate outside of conventional means such as traditional mortgage loans. Traditional mortgage loans are not always the best option for every circumstance, and this is where creative financing techniques can help home buyers get in to a home. Creative financing can help people with less than perfect credit own a home.

Creative financing techniques are also commonly used by investors in order to gain control of properties with the least possible out of pocket expense.

As the name suggests, there are numerous options for creative financing. Before you choose to use any method of creative financing, it is best if you research all of your options and become familiar with how it all works.

Here are several common methods of creative financing that are used…

Rent to Own / Seller Financed Mortgage

In a rent to own situation or a seller financed mortgage, the current owner of the property holds back the mortgage on the property. Typically, in a rent to own, a portion of your monthly rent goes towards a future down payment. This has advantages over renting because you rent is not going to “waste” so to speak. If you decide to purchase the property at a future date, you can use the down payment portion to help you qualify for a traditional mortgage.

In the case of a seller financed mortgage, the seller acts in the same capacity as the bank and holds the mortgage on the property that you then pay back with interest. Typically, arrangements like these are more common in times when the real estate market is moving more slowly. Both sellers and buyers can benefit from such a situation as the buyer gets in to the home and the seller is able to sell the home as well as collect interest on the deal.

80/20 Home Mortgage

An 80/20 home mortgage is actually two mortgages, a primary mortgage an a second mortgage. The concept and idea of an 80/20 home mortgage is to reduce the amount of liability towards any single lender, finance 100% of the purchase price and avoid paying PMI.

You have several options that pertain to the 20% part of an 80/20 mortgage. The second mortgage can either be fixed or a line of credit. The benefit of choosing a line of credit over a fixed rate in this situation is that the interest rates can often be 2 – 5 percent lower than a fixed rate. Read more

Ways To Use Creative Financing To Buy a Home

March 8, 2007 · Posted in Creative Real estate Financing · Comments Off 

Creative financing allows people, who might not otherwise qualify for a mortgage, buy a home. It can also be used to secure lower payments, which can save you money if you plan to sell or refinance soon. With creative home loans, it still is important that you shop lenders to get the best deal.

What Is Creative Financing?

Creative financing is any non-conventional loan term used to finance a house. Conventional loans are sold to such companies as Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. They will only buy loans if the borrower qualified with prime credit, the loan is under a certain amount, and there was a down payment. Non-conventional loans, which account for 25% of mortgages in 2006, can have creative financing terms, such as a balloon payment or interest-only payments for a short period. You can also finance a home over this amount with a jumbo loan. And those with poor credit can also receive a sub prime loan.

Ways To Use Creative Financing

Creative financing is used to solve problems. For instance, if you don’t have a down payment, you could finance your home with two mortgages from different lenders. One covers 80% of the home price, the other for 20%. This spreads the risk between financial companies and allows you to avoid paying for private mortgage insurance.

Or maybe you want to purchase a home that is above the conventional mortgage cap – in 2006 the limit was $417,000 for a single-family home. Then you could apply for a jumbo loan with fixed or adjustable rates. Read more

8 Ways To Use Creative Financing To Buy a Home

March 8, 2007 · Posted in Creative Real estate Financing · Comments Off 

Creative financing techniques really do work for people. Once you know your options, you will be able to discern your own creative way to invest in real estate. The following are several options that will help you become creative with your real estate financing.

Research Online

First, research online, industry publications or by word of mouth for hard money lenders. Hard money lenders are specialists in short-term loans with high interest. You may also want to look into no-doc or low-doc loans. These types of loans require minimal if any, documentation regarding your income or credit. The only draw back to these loans is that you will only be able to borrow up to 80 percent of the purchase price or property value.

Seller Financing

Seller financing is another creative option. Sometimes a bank will loan up to 90 percent and allow a seller to take back a second mortgage from you for 5 percent, leaving you with needing only 5 percent for a down payment.

Land Contracts

Land contracts or “contracts for sale” is another option. This is when the seller lets you make payments and delivers the title upon payment in full.

Use Your Credit Card

You may want to look into using your credit cards for assistance when financing. This is a good idea if you have a low APR rate or are looking to have the real estate for a short period of time, less than six months.

Tap Into Retirement Accounts

People can tap into their retirement accounts to help finance for real estate investments. It is important that if you consider this option that you speak with a tax accountant and/or attorney because the laws are rather complex in this area. Read more

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