A compromise has been reached on easing the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac portfolio limits, with Democrats in the House and Senate agreeing to okay legislation that would allow the government-sponsored enterprises to boost mortgage holdings by 10 percent for a period of six months.

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) who will introduce the bill in the House believes large-scale reform efforts will not be impeded by a temporary lifting of the portfolio caps. Of the combined $148 billion increase in mortgage holdings, $125 billion would be devoted to assisting sub-prime borrowers in refinancing out of costly adjustable-rate loans.

Posted: October 22nd, 2007 under Politics, Legal, Mortgage Industry.
Comments: none

How would you feel if you bought a home that seemed perfect, only to find out you couldn’t use the property like you thought you could? One buyer bought a home with a good-sized yard that he thought would be perfect for his large dogs to roam free.

Soon after the sale closed, he hired a contractor to construct a fence around the property. The day the work started, a neighbor showed up to inform the new homeowner that he couldn’t completely fence the property because of an easement that ran across his property. An easement grants property rights to someone other than the property owner.

Common easements are for ingress and egress, utilities and sewers. Easements must be kept unencumbered. In the case above, the easement provided the neighbors access to their property. A fence could not be built over the easement because it would deny the neighbor their rights to access.The property owner had to revise his fence design, which was disappointing. But, easements can be even more problematic, particularly if you assume there is an easement in favor of your property but there isn’t.

HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Make sure you have a clear understanding of the title issues affecting a property before you buy it. Title companies check the record and issue a title report that includes such things as the recorded owner and liens, easements and encumbrances affecting the property. Buyers should hire attorneys to search the title record and produce a report.

Posted: October 16th, 2007 under Legal, Mortgage Industry.
Comments: none