HARP program

[hollypoast]

We are using the same lender. Only asked for employment info and ran credit to see if we have any delinquent accts. no pays stubs, no w-2's. said it takes up to 90 days to close

This was our experience. It was pretty quick and painless other than the equity we "lost".

 

[Kathi OD]

The HARP program is for those of us who are current on our loan and want to refi at a lower rate but now the houses are worth less than we owe. So the gov. came out with this program a year ago. The refi has to be with your current lender and if you are at 4.25% which is a pretty high rate right now, I would highly suggest doing it since rates are lower and you could cut your interest rate almost in half. We just did ours last month and went form 4.5 to 2.75. A savings of $75,000 in interest!!!!
No appraisal either!!!!

Another main criteria is that your loan has to be owned by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Unfortunately for us, neither owns our loan and so we're still paying on our 5.75% mortgage. I'd love to be able to take advantage of this program. There has been some talk about HARP 3 for people in our situation, but who knows if it will happen.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Another main criteria is that your loan has to be owned by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Unfortunately for us, neither owns our loan and so we're still paying on our 5.75% mortgage. I'd love to be able to take advantage of this program. There has been some talk about HARP 3 for people in our situation, but who knows if it will happen.

My challenge is that the lender servicing my loan is in bankruptcy so they can't do these. Have to find a new lender

 

[yankebabie]

Has anybody done this with Bank of America, that's who we going through. How much time do they give you to sign the paperwork and get it back to them?

 

[Karlzmom]

The HARP program is for those of us who are current on our loan and want to refi at a lower rate but now the houses are worth less than we owe. So the gov. came out with this program a year ago. The refi has to be with your current lender and if you are at 4.25% which is a pretty high rate right now, I would highly suggest doing it since rates are lower and you could cut your interest rate almost in half. We just did ours last month and went form 4.5 to 2.75. A savings of $75,000 in interest!!!!
No appraisal either!!!!

Doesn't your note have to be a Fannie or Freddie note? We inquired with BoA and were told tough luck...so we are stuck at our 6.5%

 

[BellePrincessBelle]

Doesn't your note have to be a Fannie or Freddie note? We inquired with BoA and were told tough luck...so we are stuck at our 6.5%

Yes, if you were stupid like us & did a conventional, 20% down, non government backed mortgage then they don't give a flying fig & won't refi you.

 

[pantherlj]

Has anybody done this with Bank of America, that's who we going through. How much time do they give you to sign the paperwork and get it back to them?

We didn't go through BOFA but Citimortgage sent a notary to our house with the paperwork. Maybe they will do the same for you?

Our process was painless. They did all the work. Only difficulty was notary showing up 45 minutes late.

We weren't even upside down our or mortgage and we were able to do it. Citimortgage sent us a fedex letter requesting that we do it. I threw it away the first time thinking it was a way for them to charge me for something

 

[Readerbug]

Quote:
Originally Posted by yankebabie
Has anybody done this with Bank of America, that's who we going through. How much time do they give you to sign the paperwork and get it back to them?

We are, we had so much leeway with time to get stuff in, like 6 weeks or more, that we took it too easy. Gave us lots of time. Now I wonder if it will close at all in time, now that Bank of America is going through selling holdings to Arvest.

We were not upside down either, but took it as our option to do the program because DH decided at Christmas time to refinance, and Santa didn't want to bother with fixing the house tip top pretty for an appraisal.

It wasn't the hard facts smartest decision, though. Going the typical way with all the docs and the appraisal, if you qualify, usually keeps more of your money in your account than the HARP program, nice as it is....

 

[horseshowmom]

Doesn't your note have to be a Fannie or Freddie note? We inquired with BoA and were told tough luck...so we are stuck at our 6.5%

Yes, and your loan had to be acquired by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac on or before May 31, 2009.

It was very easy to look up for those who are interested. Ours was after the date so it won't help us any.

 

[ccgirl]

Anybody re-fi thru this program. Just got off phone with my bank. As easy as faxing my homeowners policy and having them send my docs to sign? Is it really that simple???????

Yup. It was for us. As long as you are re-financing thru the same lender it's that easy. We did and it was super quick.

 

[MomToOne]

Yes, if you were stupid like us & did a conventional, 20% down, non government backed mortgage then they don't give a flying fig & won't refi you.

Even if you did that, you need check to see if Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac currently holds your loan before you write yourself off - they have acquired many over the last few years. I did what you did, but Freddie Mac actually holds my loan now...

 

[yankebabie]

Spoke with loan officer on saturday at Bank of America. He said that I had to fax him homeowners ins policy and that I will be recieving a welcome package in the mail with all the paperwork to sign. Should I expect to receive that package this week. I forgot to ask him how long it would take to receive.

 

[BellePrincessBelle]

Even if you did that, you need check to see if Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac currently holds your loan before you write yourself off - they have acquired many over the last few years. I did what you did, but Freddie Mac actually holds my loan now...

Nope, mine has never been sold off.

 

[MomToOne]

Nope, mine has never been sold off.

I get yours hasn't been sold. And I am sorry you can't take advantage of the program, truly. But I am trying to point out to others to not assume that just because they took out a conventional mortgage with no government backing at the time, that Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae doesn't hold the mortgage now. I was never notified my loan was sold to Freddie Mac, and given the paperwork I get every month from Chase I would never had known. Everyone should check to see and not just assume their mortgage isn't held by one of those two agencies. It takes just a few seconds to check.

Here are the links:
Fannie Mae Mortgage Lookup: https://www.knowyouroptions.com/loanlookup
Freddie Mac Mortgage Lookup: https://ww3.freddiemac.com/corporate/

Just be careful to enter information exactly as asked for - any simple mix up such as reversing first/last names will result in the mortgage finder telling you they don't hold the mortgage, even if they do...

 

[si-am]

We should be qualified: we have a mortgage owned by Fannie Mae, we are upside down in the house, we have good credit and have never missed a payment. It for some reason, we have talked to 3 different lenders (including our own) and no one will offer us a refi. Very frustrating!

 

[DisneyEater]

Yes, if you were stupid like us & did a conventional, 20% down, non government backed mortgage then they don't give a flying fig & won't refi you.

For the record, Fannie and Freddie buy conforming, conventional loans.

 

[Kellydelly]

Has anybody done this with Bank of America, that's who we going through. How much time do they give you to sign the paperwork and get it back to them?

We are in the final stage of processing our HARP refi with BOA. We signed the inital paperwork December 31st, where we brought proof of homeowners insurance to the meeting. Couple weeks of chasing documents (which were already in their hands from that initial meeting , such as previous addresses we had lived at and proof of closure of home equity line of credit) and then another couple weeks of phone tag regarding title transfer (loan processor was not familiar with changing names on title to add spouse), then another couple weeks of phone tag regarding the bank "comping" the title transfer fee (bank loan officer said the bank would eat the fee for us) and finally our paperwork is in for final review. We have been dealing with what I consider an incompetent loan processor . We might close next week (a week and a half ago our processor wanted to close on the 19th, so this is getting really annoying that it's not done a week later). All our documents were in place within 3 wks (actually sooner but they didn't see them), it has been the processor dragging her feet and being confused that has made the process long. A lot of phone tag, the last time we re-fied 10 yrs ago there were no phone calls besides to set the closing date and time. I am so over it I can't wait to sign on the dotted line and stop getting calls from the processor. We went from a 30 yr 5.75% rate to a 15 yr 3% rate, saving $42 a month and around $40,000 in interest. There was a $1000 closing fee which was rolled into the new loan, so advertising it as "free" seems a bit wrong, but that is what made us first look at doing the HARP.

 

[MomToOne]

We should be qualified: we have a mortgage owned by Fannie Mae, we are upside down in the house, we have good credit and have never missed a payment. It for some reason, we have talked to 3 different lenders (including our own) and no one will offer us a refi. Very frustrating!

You loan must have been taken over by Fannie or Freddie before May 31, 2009. Also, not all lenders are participating in HARP - you need to find a lender that is. And those lenders can impose additional criteria - I think if your LTV ratio is too high (over 150%?) that may still disqualify you from a HARP refinance, but I'm not sure. There are other programs, however, that may be available.

The full list of rules is here:
http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/programs/lower-rates/Pages/harp.aspx

 

[Kellydelly]

Spoke with loan officer on saturday at Bank of America. He said that I had to fax him homeowners ins policy and that I will be recieving a welcome package in the mail with all the paperwork to sign. Should I expect to receive that package this week. I forgot to ask him how long it would take to receive.

Probably within two days . Our first meeting was December 31st and the welcome packet is postmarked January 2nd.

 

[Kellydelly]

Yes, if you were stupid like us & did a conventional, 20% down, non government backed mortgage then they don't give a flying fig & won't refi you.

We had a conventional loan with a down payment. We are not upside down in our mortgage at this point, either. Your comment makes it sound like you think only people with shady loans are being helped with the HARP program.