President HARP’s on new program to assist Homeowners

President HARP’s on new program to assist Homeowners Looking to RefinancePresident HARP’s on new program to assist Homeowners Looking to Refinance
Obama’s HARP is playing in Washington for homeowners who may be underwater with their mortgages!

The current Administration’s Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) has been designed to assist homeowners in refinancing their mortgages – even if they owe more than the home’s current value. The program allows refinancing of qualifying loans if the borrower owes up to 125 percent of the home’s value. Since its inception however, 9 out of 10 of eligible homeowners have failed to take advantage of this government program.

The HARP program will allow homeowners who have made timely mortgage payments in the last year to refinance even without the equity in their home that traditionally they would need to refinance. One important aspect of the stipulations to note is that homeowners current mortgage would have to have been sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac before May 31, 2009. The HARP program will be presented in phases with loan applications starting at December 1, 2011 or after.

The enhancements to the HARP program will include:

· Eliminating certain risk-based fees for borrowers who refinance into shorter-term mortgages and lowering fees for other borrowers;
· Removing the cap on loan-to-value (LTV) – previously set at 125 percent – to allow far more borrowers to qualify (effective sometime in the first quarter of 2012);
· Extending HARP through December 31, 2013; and
· Streamlining the process further for borrowers.

HARP generally reduces the borrowers’ monthly mortgage payment by providing a new loan at a lower interest rate, and may also be used to replace an adjustable-rate or interest-only loan with a fixed interest rate loan. To find out if you may qualify for the HARP program please contact your local Mortgage lender.