Mortgage Funding Group
Offers DU Refi Plus
to Streamline Mortgage
Refinancing for Homeowners
As a broker and a lender, Mortgage Funding Group is looking forward to the opportunity to assist our clients by lowering their mortgage rate and their monthly mortgage payments with the help of the recently released DU Refi Plus Program. The Program is expected to reignite the housing industry by loosening underwriting guidelines and allowing LTVs up to 100%. By offering this program we recognize that the combination of reduced documentation requirements, decreased credit score acceptability and historically low interest rates have created the perfect opportunity to benefit hard-working homeowners who continually pay their mortgages on time and want to keep their homes, while continuing to realize the American dream.
DU Refi Plus will help homeowners by lowering their monthly mortgage payments, or by alleviating the possibility of foreclosure altogether. The simplified approach to underwriting greatly reduces the required documentation, enabling lenders to generate additional mortgage refinancing. Coupled with historically low mortgage rates this program will benefit American homeowners with this once-in-a-lifetime mortgage refinancing opportunity.
While encouraged to reduce the monthly principal and interest payments for existing homeowners, lenders are also obligated to make an effort to provide a more permanent product for their borrowers, such as replacing an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) with a fixed-rate mortgage. Furthermore, by providing additional liquidity in the housing market through unconventional underwriting assessments, the objective of this program is to overcome the barrier facing Americans hoping to refinance. This program demonstrates Fannie Mae's effort and contribution to stabilize the housing industry through mortgage refinancing. As a lender and a broker, Mortgage Funding Group is committed to this effort, as well.
one of the most crucial aspects of this program is that it does not mandate mortgage insurance on refinance loans if the existing mortgage loan does not require it. This will make a huge impact on the housing industry by saving American homeowners millions of dollars.
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DU REFINANCE PLUS
Part of the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan is a refinance program for existing Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loans. Fannie Mae is offering two different programs:
1. The Refi Plus Program that requires the servicer of the loan to be the originating lender.
2. The DU Refi Plus Program (DU is the Automated Underwriting System for Fannie Mae) that allows any lender/broker using DU to originate the loan as long as the existing loan is a Fannie Mae loan. In my opinion this is the best scenario as I am able to shop multiple lenders to find you the lowest rate as opposed to just the rate the current lender is willing to offer. This is one of the main reasons and benefits of working with a mortgage broker.
Some specifics of the program are:
- Existing mortgage must currently be a Fannie or Freddie loan.
- Existing loan may not be considered ineligible (must get an Approved/Eligible from DU). Ineligible loans include existing mortgage loans that received a DU Expanded approval (EA).
- The new loan must be a fixed rate mortgage.
- Maximum LTV for 1-2 unit properties is 100% and require an appraisal.
- 97% LTV for 2nd Homes.
- 95% for non-owner occupied (Rentals).
- No maximum CLTV.
- Existing mortgage must be current and have acceptable mortgage payment history. FICO score of at least 620 is required. Borrower must meet bankruptcy and foreclosure requirements. In addition, borrower must demonstrate credit worthiness.
- Rate and term refinance only (No Cash Out) - purchase money seconds MAY Not be included.
- Loan level price adjustments (points) will apply (determined by credit score on credit report)
- No MI Required.
- DU Refi Plus must receive Approve/Eligible and will not be available until April 4. Income and employment verification is still required. The broker and lender must determine that the borrower has a reasonable ability to repay the mortgage.