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UPBEAT TIMES, INC. • January 2017 • 19 Cha Cha Changes! Ways To Cope JOKES & Humor # 6 by Barry O'Meara • barryo@stearns.com


SANTA ROSA, CA. ~ Win- ter’s chill has endeared itself to us with its frosty vistas. Once again, our morning rituals of defrosting the car before we em- bark on our daily routines is in full swing. Winter is here!


the turning of passing year and the beginning of a new year. Time for change and time for new commitments.


Winter marks


home. For High Balance loans, the new Limit is $595,700 up from $550,400 in 2016. What makes this new con- forming loan limit so great, is what


about the hous- ing market. Val- ues are real and sustainable. Fan- nie and Freddie only adjust the conforming limit when the trend of median prices is going up.


How well we hold to those resolutions is the test of time. 2017 marks the beginning of the new conforming loan limits. Conforming limits are the highest loan amounts that Government


terprise (GSE) will purchase. T ese GSEs are more com- monly known as Fannie Mae and Fred- die Mac.


Mae was cre- ated during the Great Depres- sion in 1938, add-


Fannie


liquidity to the banks and free- ing up funds to help home- owners and builders grow the economy. T is created Mort- gage Back Securities (MBS) that would be sold on the sec- ondary market, expanding ac- cess to funds that could not be achieved using local Sav- ings and Loans; much like the classic movie “It’s a Wonderful Life”. Fannie Mae went public in


1968 and two years later Fred- die Mac was created. T ese two mortgage giants estab- lished the basic guidelines for what we consider Conforming Loans. Part of this conform- ing platform was to establish loan size limit.


when the conforming limit was $93,750, the loan limit has consistently gone up each year. In 2006, $417,000 was set as the maximum loan limit. Starting in 2017, the new maximum conforming loan limit will be $424,100 for a single-family


Since 1980, ing Sponsored En-


cial crisis hit, they were consid- ering lowering the conforming limit.


when the fi nan- In fact,


Stimulus Act of 2008 created the High Balance Limit and kept the $417,000 limit the same. T is created


Part of the Economic it tells us


Underwriting System (AUS). Basically, this is a program that crunches numbers and deter- mines if you are a good credit risk. Fannie Mae uses Desktop Underwriter (DU) and Fred- die Mac uses Loan Prospector (LP). Both analyze your credit score, loan-to-value, property type and loan purpose.


meet the guidelines set by ei- ther of


your loan will be approved. T e


overlays, and quicker approv- als. High Balance loans ex- tend that conforming limit to a higher loan amount. Now with the High Balance conforming limit at $595,700 loan origina- tors will be able to qualify buy- ers more


easily.


loans, are loan amounts


we know, many more stimulus programs such as HARP and HAMP were needed. T is has been a long road but recovery is here. For those not familiar with


loan sizes and what they mean, conforming loans are under- written through an Automated


off the housing meltdown. As ity and helped stave more liquid-


the investor. Oſt en these inves- tors add additional conditions that make these loans diffi cult to close in a timely escrow. As we enter the new year


hope the warm spring weather brings us more inventory and trouble free homebuyers.


Let’s ten per the guidelines set by loans are underwrit- limits. T ese Jumbo


greater than the High Balance


essential point


these loan programs, is: Less


If you ... continued from page 18


they need to be replenished daily so I take a good Stress B-complex.


There are many


herbs that calm the nervous system such as chamomile, skullcap, hops, lavender, clary sage, rosemary, valerian Cali- fornia poppy, passionfl ower and more. Many are available, individually or in a combina- tion, as a tea and some, like lavender for example, may be used as an essential oil in aro- ma therapy.


Many of these herbs can


help with anxiety-induced in- somnia. As a sleep aid, I take a tincture that is a combination of skullcap, hops, California pop- py, passionfl ower, and valerian.


My friend Kimberly announced that she had started a diet to lose some pounds she had put on recently.


“Good!” I exclaimed. “I’m ready to start a diet too. We can be dieting buddies and help each other out. When I feel the urge to drive out and get a burger and fries, I ’ll call you fi rst.”


“Great!” she replied. “I’ll ride with you.”


“Only that day dawns to which we are awake. T ere is more day to dawn. T e sun is but a morning star.” Henry David Thoreau


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It is our business to


provide for the needs of our


customers and to strive for 100%


satisfaction, in our


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THE MORTGAGE COACH


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