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Reuters – Six former top executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were sued by U.S. regulators on charges of misleading investors about the mortgage finance companies’ exposure to risky home loans in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis.

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Reuters – Regulators are close to an agreement with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to settle a case over disclosing their exposure to risky subprime loans, The New York Times reported on Thursday.

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Reuters – A top executive at mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac received a “Wells Notice” from the Securities and Exchange Commission that the agency was considering filing an enforcement action against him, according to an SEC filing released on Thursday.

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Reuters – A top Freddie Mac executive received notice the government may file charges against him for allegedly violating securities laws in the years leading up to the housing bust, according to a regulatory filing released on Thursday.

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The new housing plan announced by President Obama last week has two main parts.  First, there is a $75 billion loan modification plan and, second, there is a program that helps borrowers who are not in danger of defaulting refinance their mortgage.  

These are some of the key questions to ask to determine if you can benefit from the plan:

Do I have to fall behind on my loan payments to be eligible for a loan modification?
No.  Borrowers must simply demonstrate that they are in danger of falling behind on their mortgage and that they don’t have sufficient income to make future mortgage payments.  Borrowers with ballooning mortgage payments or interest rates that are resetting may benefit from the new plan.

What are the loan modification requirements?
To be eligible for modification under the plan, the loan must be a first mortgage on the borrower’s primary residence.  Borrowers must currently be paying more than 31% of their monthly gross income toward mortgage payments. Jumbo loans that exceed Fannie or Freddie loan limits are not eligible. Ultimately, your eligibility will be determined by your mortgage lender.

What if I am “under water” and my mortgage is more than the value of my property?

As long as the amount owed on a first mortgage does not exceed 105% of the home’s current value, borrowers with limited equity can refinance into a 30-year or 15-year fixed-rate mortgage.  This refinance option is open to only to borrowers with conforming loans that are owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.  Borrowers must show that they are current on mortgage payments and that they will be able to meet the new mortgage payments.

How do I know if my mortgage is owned or guaranteed by Fannie or Freddie?
The White House will release full eligibility details on March 4, when the program begins, and it is recommended that borrowers contact their lender at that time to see if their mortgage is owned or guaranteed by Fannie or Freddie.

Does my lender HAVE to participate in the program?
No. Participation by lenders is voluntary, but the government provides subsidies to encourage lenders to modify loans. For example, mortgage servicers receive $1,000 for each loan modification and can also get another $1,000 annually for three years if the borrower stays current on the loan.

To learn more about loan modification options, visit www.loanmodificationhelpcenter.org

A jumbo mortgages is a home loan that exceeds the limits set by Fannie

Mae and Freddie Mac.

How are jumbo loans different?

What differentiates jumbo mortgage loans is the loan amount. At present, loan amounts that are higher than $417,000 are usually deemed jumbo mortgages. This determination is made by comparing industry standards for average housing loans as governed by the two biggest secondary mortgage lenders, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac set industry standards for ‘conforming loans’; Home loans beyond those maximums are regarded as jumbo mortgages. These two agencies cap the dollar figure for loans that they will buy (that’s where the $417,000 figure comes from). Larger loan amounts are funded by other investors such as banks and insurance companies. Note that the dollar figure set to qualify jumbo mortgages differs by locale, so the limit is higher in Hawaii and Alaska (and in some other states). In the majority of the U.S., jumbo mortgages are those larger than $417K.

Available Terms – 15 Year Fixed, 30 Year Fixed, or Variable 30 Year

Jumbo Mortgage

The terms for jumbo mortgages vary similarly to other types of housing loans. Buyers can choose between variable rates, like 3/1 or 5/1 ARMs, for a 15-30 year jumbo mortgage, or a 15 or 30 year fixed jumbo mortgagerate.

Whether a 15 or 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage or an adjustable rate is best for you will depend on your plans and situation.

A 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage is better for those whole plan to own the home for a very long time. With this type of mortgage, the rate will not go up but it will never go down, either – it stays the same for the life of the loan. This is good because the payment is predictable, and cannot rise sharply if interest rates do. On the downside, the 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage rate is higher since lenders know they can never charge more than the original rate.

The lowest jumbo mortgage rate is usually an adjustable 30 year jumbo mortgage rate. Lenders understand their potential to benefit from increases in rates over time, so they are willing to lend at a lower rate in the beginning. Although, the lower rate won’t last. A variable 30 year jumbo mortgage rate will be fixed for 3 to 5 years, and then will adjust annually according to an index. Even small increases could mean significantly larger monthly mortgage payments.

Going with an adjustable 30 year jumbo mortgage rate works well when a buyer plans to move within the 3 to 5 year fixed period. For a buyer more concerned with smaller initial payments, or who will likely refinance in the near future, the variable 30 year jumbo mortgage rate is better than the 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage. Why pay the higher fixed rate when the buyer knows this isn’t their long-term plan?

All jumbo mortgage products – 15 year, variable 30 year, or the 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage – have their benefits. A trustworthy mortgage lender with experience financing jumbo mortgages is a buyer’s best resource for determining which product is right for them.

Freddie Mac Acting Chief Financial Officer David Kellermann, 41, was found dead early today in the basement of his home in a Washington suburb, police said.

According to poice, the death is still under investigation. Early reports indicated Kellermann’s wife reported a suicide. The medical examiner’s office said it’s conducting an autopsy, and the results may be released as soon as today.

David Kellermann was named acting chief financial officer in September 2008. As acting chief financial officer, Kellermann is responsible for the company’s financial controls, financial reporting, tax, capital oversight, and compliance with the requirements of Sarbanes-Oxley. He also oversees the company’s annual budgeting and financial planning processes.

The global market is having serious problem because of mortgage crisis. Watch your investment carefully. There are many bad news in the US market and around the world:

• On March 14 2008, JPMorgan Chase, in conjunction with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, provided a 28-day emergency loan to Bear Stearns in order to prevent the potential market crash that would result from Bear Stearns becoming insolvent. Two days later, Bear Stearns signed a merger agreement with JP Morgan Chase in a stock swap worth $2 a share or less than 10 percent of Bear Stearns’ market value.
• The federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac refers to the placing into conservatorship of government sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by the US Treasury in September 2008.
• Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., the fourth-largest U.S. investment bank, filed a Chapter 11 petition with U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan today. Lehman was forced into bankruptcy after Barclays Plc and Bank of America Corp. abandoned takeover talks yesterday.
• Bank of America Corp., the biggest U.S. consumer bank, agreed to acquire Merrill Lynch & Co. for about $50 billion as the credit crisis claimed another of America’s oldest financial companies. This news is good for the market. But this also tells us that current subprime mortgage crisis is far from over.
• On the evening of September 16, 2008, the Federal Reserve Bank’s Board of Governors announced that the Federal Reserve Bank of New York had been authorized to create a 24-month credit-liquidity facility from which AIG may draw up to $85 billion. The loan is collateralized by the assets of AIG.
• Washington Mutual Inc. became the nation’s biggest bank to collapse after U.S. government regulators seized the Seattle- based bank on Sept. 25. JPMorgan Chase & Co. agreed to acquire WaMu’s deposits and branches for $1.9 billion.
• Fortis, the largest Belgian financial-services firm, received an 11.2 billion-euro ($16.3 billion) rescue from Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg after investor confidence in the bank evaporated.
• Citigroup Inc., the biggest U.S. bank by assets, will acquire the banking operations of Wachovia Corp., rescuing the Charlotte, North Carolina-based lender beset by mortgage losses for more than $2 billion in stock.

Stocks tumbled worldwide, the dollar fell and U.S. Treasuries surged after the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. drove investors to the safety of government debt.