Smart Borrower Blog

Archive for February, 2010

Obama Has New Housing Plan to Combat High Foreclosure Rates

The national foreclosure rate actually declined in the last quarter of 2009 to 9.47 percent, down from 9.64 percent in the third quarter, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. If you’re feeling optimistic, this may be a sign that things in the housing market are slowly starting to turn around. Yet […]

SBA Stimulus Money Runs Out for a Second Time

Once again, the Small Business Association (SBA) is reporting that the government funding has run out for two of their lending programs. Last year the government in an effort to help small businesses, and in hopes of simulating the downed economy, encouraged lenders that issue SBA loans to make more funding available to small businesses. Government funds were made available to reduce SBA loan fees and to offer a 90% guarantee to banks that made the loans.

Have We Reached the Bottom of Credit Card Delinquencies?

Things may very soon start looking up for American consumers. New data from the lending market shows that credit card delinquencies are leveling out as of January. Four of the six largest credit card lenders reported delinquency rates that barely moved last month while the other two actually had declining rates. Bank of America’s credit […]

Lobbyists Stop Student Loan Reform in its Tracks

Lobbyists this week marched on Washington, threatening an Obama administration bill that would overhaul the student loan industry. This effort could not be at a worse time for college students as well as colleges and universities throughout the country that were depending on the bill to help ease financial burden.

FHA Increases Upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium for Buyers

If you’re looking for a house, and thinking about getting an FHA loan, you might want to apply before April 5, 2010. That’s the date the FHA is raising its upfront mortgage insurance premium (UFMIP) on all FHA loans and your FHA case number will have to be assigned before that date in order to […]

Big Banks Driving Some Consumers to Small Lenders

Big banks are still in business, no doubt about it. But according to a CNN article today, their practices may be starting to alienate a portion of their customers. In fact, a recent survey from the Forrester Research company found that the nation’s largest banks like Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase are “among the […]

Credit Card Payments Now Trump Mortgage Payments

Time for mortgage lenders to totally rethink their business. A new survey from credit bureau TransUnion shows that the old rules and assumptions about the average American homeowner have been thrown out the window. The recent survey found that Americans, in record numbers, are now paying off their credit card bills before they try to […]

Small Business Loans are Needed to Drive the U.S. Economy

Small businesses could play a major role in the recovery our fallen economy, that is if they could get the funding they need to operate and expand. Small businesses tend to hire new employees, provide new ideas and often develop into large companies that are a force within the business world.