FHA Loan Info

From the Superpages.com

Answering the question of what is an FHA loan can be very important to first time homebuyers, nontraditional buyers, or those buyers with poor credit seeking to buy a home. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insures mortgages, making it easier for families that would normally be excluded from purchasing a home to purchase a home. FHA helps to make home buying during a recession easier for people. It also has programs to finance military housing and homes for veterans.

Common FHA Loans

The fixed rate mortgage is the most common FHA program. The FHA fixed mortgage is open to anyone using the property as a primary residence. FHA will not finance investors. The fixed mortgage program protects lenders against buyer default. A lender underwrites a loan, requiring the buyer to meet certain criteria defined by FHA. If the borrower can meet these requirements, the FHA insures the loan that the lender issued.

Benefits of an FHA Loan

FHA fixed mortgage loans often require lower down payments than conventional mortgages – as low as 3 percent, compared to as much as 10 or 20 percent for conventional mortgages. This means you can borrow as much as 97% of the cost of the property.

If there is enough equity in the home at the time of purchase, the FHA will also allow the borrower to finance many of the closing costs associated with purchasing the home. Closing costs can range from 2 to 10 percent of the purchase price of the home, depending on the lender, so having the option to defer these payments and pay them off over time makes it easier for buyers to purchase homes.

Lender fees are also limited in FHA fixed mortgage loans. For example, the loan origination fee- generally one of the largest fees associated with a mortgage- is capped. If a borrower selects an FHA loan, the lender may not charge more than 1 percent of the amount of mortgage for the origination fee.

Who Can Use an FHA Loan?

HUD sets limits on the maximum amount you can borrow under an FHA loan. These limits vary by state and can be found at FHA Loan.com. The limits ensure that FHA loan programs serve families with low to moderate incomes. Borrowers must also meet certain other qualifications. For example, borrowers must have a maximum of 29 percent debt to income ratio to qualify for an FHA loan. This figure is calculated by dividing the total amount you will pay on your mortgage each month by your gross monthly household income. If the result is larger than 29 percent, you cannot qualify for an FHA loan.

FHA loans also require that the borrower pay mortgage insurance, since most borrowers put down a low down payment. FHA loans charge .5 percent of the total loan amount each year for mortgage insurance. Once you have established enough equity in the home that the loan value is 78 percent or less of the total worth of the home, as long as you have paid the premiums for five years, you will no longer need to pay this additional insurance.

Qualifying for an FHA Home Loan

Once you have researched what is an FHA loan and determined it is right for you, you can apply for an FHA loan through an FHA approved lending institution.

Neil Patrick Harris Packing Up ‘Magic Man Cave,’ Selling Valley Home

AUTHOR:EMILY HEFFTER
ZILLOW

Here’s a quick check-up on the former Dr. Doogie Howser: Neil Patrick Harris has listed his home in the Valley for sale for $2.995 million, seeking a tidy profit on the real estate venture. He bought it four years ago for $2.1 million.

The actor, who recently announced that he is publishing a choose-your-own-adventure autobiography, has been choosing his own adventures in real estate for the past several years — moving to Sherman Oaks from Studio City with his partner, David Burtka, and their twins in 2010, and buying a Harlem brownstone to live on the East Coast.

Harris’ Broadway performance in Hedwig and the Angry Inch is coming to a close, but it could be that the actor needs to spend more time in New York these days.

This latest real estate move means Harris will have to find a new place to store his magic tricks. In a tour of the Sherman Oaks home with Oprah Winfrey, Harris revealed a hidden room with dramatic red wallpaper where he kept all his magic stuff. He called it his “magic man cave.”

The listing describes his Sherman Oaks-area mansion at 3946 Stone Canyon Ave as a “celebrity compound,” and the traditional-style home meets all the celeb-home requirements: gated driveway, a screening room and a kitchen suitable for his partner, a chef — double Wolf ovens and Sub-Zero fridge. The backyard features a pool, a pizza oven and outdoor shower.

The listing is held by Monty Iceman of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties.

Fix Lawn Spots - Problem: Fairy Ring

By the DIY experts of The Family Handyman Magazine

An ounce of prevention

Aeration will help with fairy rings, but maintaining a healthy lawn with a balanced fertilization program is essential. Apply three doses:

1. Apply 1/2 lb. per 1,000 sq. ft. in late April or early May to give the overwintering grass roots a bit of a boost.

2. Add no more than 1/2 lb. per 1,000 sq. ft. at the end of June or in early July when temperatures are not at their peak. Stimulating growth during a heat wave will stress the plants.

3. Spread 1 lb. per 1,000 sq. ft. at the end of October. The best root growth takes place when the soil temps are between 58 and 65 degrees F. The roots store energy over the winter, making the entire lawn healthier the following spring.

Photo 1: Fertilize around it
Spread 1/2 lb. of nitrogen fertilizer per 1,000 sq. ft.
to green up your lawn, but skip the fairy ring zone.
This masks the lush green of the fairy ring
by blending it into the rest of your yard.

Photo 2: Break it up
Break up the fungi with a hand aerator.
Punch holes every 2 to 4 in. throughout the ring and 2 ft. beyond.

Photo 3: Dig up the problem
Go “treasure” hunting if you see no improvement in three weeks.
 Dig out rotting stumps, roots, construction debris or other organic materials under your lawn.

Symptoms: Fairy rings are circles approximately 3 to 8 ft. wide that consist of a dark green and fast-growing area of grass surrounding an inner area of partially dead or thin grass. Some rings also produce mushrooms.

Cause: Fairy rings are caused by fungi that live in the soil. As the fungi feed on organic matter, they release nitrogen, causing the grass to turn dark green. As the colony grows, it disturbs the flow of needed water to the turf roots, creating thin or dead spots. Fairy rings often begin with the decomposition of organic matter, such as an old tree stump buried under the lawn.

Remedy: By bringing up the color in the rest of your lawn with a nitrogen fertilizer, you can mask much of the overgreening of the fairy ring (Photo 1). Hand-aerating the ring will break up the fungus and allow the flow of water and other nutrients to the grass roots (Photo 2).

Recovery time: Generally fairy rings can be masked with the application of fertilizer, with results in 10 to 14 days. The grass within the ring will thicken up with aeration in about two to three weeks.

CAUTION!

Call your local utility provider or 811 to mark your underground utility lines before you dig.

Free and cheap things to do in Miami - July 11-13

By Teresa Mears
Miami.com

Miami on the Cheap gives us the scoop on all the budget-friendly things to do in South Florida this weekend.

Classical music, popular music, art, family activities at museums – it’s a good weekend to experience a little culture.

The popular Wynwood and Design District art walks are Saturday night, and the Ikea Cafecito Truck will be handing out free cups of coffee from 6 to 11 p.m. at the food truck lot in Wynwood to promote the upcoming opening of the Miami Ikea store this summer.

Film lovers can get 2-for-1 movie tickets from Fandango on Fridays with a Visa Signature card. And, July and August are Miami Spa Month, with spa treatments at special prices at more than 30 Miami-Dade spas.

Two free chamber music concerts
Music in Miami is presenting several free concerts as part of its “Three Sundays in July” series. The program for this Sunday is “Classical to Latin,” featuring works by Beethoven, Johann Kaspar Mertz, Sergio Assad and Jose Lezcano on guitar, flute, viola, violin and bass. On Sunday, July 20, a woodwind quarter will perform Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf,” as well as a medley inspired by video game music. The concerts will be at 6 p.m. at Trinity Cathedral in Miami. There is no admission charge, but donations will be accepted.

Hot Nights, Cool Jazz at the Bass Museum
The Bass Museum of Art in Miami Beach is celebrating Miami’s hot summer with its Hot Nights Cool Jazz series of concerts on select Friday nights. Admission is free for members and $10 for non-members. Museum exhibits will be open until 9 p.m. The music starts at 7. The exhibits at the museum are now open until 9 p.m. Fridays. This Friday’s band will be the Mike Orta Trio. On July 25, the series will feature the Gary Thomas Quintet. Other concerts will be Aug. 8 and Aug. 22.

Free concerts in Fort Lauderdale
The 36th Bank of America Starlight Musicals concert series is under way in Fort Lauderdale, bringing free rock, pop, country, rhythm and blues and more music to Holiday Park from 7 to 10 p.m. on Friday nights through Aug. 1. Residents are encouraged to bring a picnic as well as their own chairs and blankets. No pets, however. This Friday’s band is Turnstiles, a Billy Joel tribute band.

2-for-1 one deals in Broward
More than 30 businesses and attractions in Broward are offering 2-for-1 deals this summer as part of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau’s 2-for-1 Summer Savings promotion. The deals are good through Sept. 30, and you can get deals at the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale, the Museum of Discovery and Science, the Mai Kai restaurants and more. To take advantage of the deals, you need a coupon from the website.

Free museum entry and activities for families
It’s the second Saturday of the month, which means free admission for special family days at three museums. At HistoryMiami, the event is 1 to 4 p.m. with a celebration of Miami’s 118th birthday. From 1 to 4 p.m. at the Perez Art Museum Miami, kids will get an opportunity to conquer El Bibliobandido (The Book Bandit) by writing stories. The Coral Gables Museum will focus on soccer with arts, crafts and story time from 2 to 4 p.m., with a performance by City Theatre at 3 p.m. On Friday night, the Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science will celebrate Fabulous First Friday a week late, with free admission in the evening, with a planetarium show at 7 p.m. and observatory viewing.

Gap's Lincoln Road Store is Re-Opened

Maria Tettamanti
Miami.com

The new two-story, 19,000-square-foot store is Gap's first Miami flagship.

Addicted to the Gap? Well, we've got some excellent news for you. Gap's Lincoln Road store re-opened on Friday, June 20, 2014! The even better news? The new two-story, 19,000-square-foot store is Gap's first Miami flagship!

What's novel this time around? The new store at Lincoln Road offers an expanded product assortment of women’s, including GapFit and the addition of GapMaternity, as well as men’s,GapKids, babyGap and GapBody. Designed by award-winning Miami locals Carlos and Jackie Touzet of Touzet Studio, Gap is the first retailer to deliver a new iconic structure amongst the historic architecture along the length of Lincoln Road Promenade. This new architecture respects forms of the past and absorbs the light and materials of Miami Beach itself.     

Built as a two-level environment, the new Gap store boasts 19,000 square feet; a 4,000 square feet addition to the past single-level retail space.The glass structure of the building allows sweeping vista views from inside and outside and is complimented by a locally inspired coral-studded limestone exterior. The interior plays on the light of Miami Beach with a wide-open environment that is filled with white and reflective materials. To bring warmth inside, oak is found throughout, both in furniture choices and architectural details.

Welcome back to the neighborhood, Gap.

Malibu Local Cindy Crawford Buys a Scraper on Point Dume

AUTHOR:EMILY HEFFTER
ZILLOW

Supermodel Cindy Crawford and restaurateur husband Rande Gerber are longtime Malibu locals, and now they may be moving down the beach. The couple have bought a new home in the exclusive Point Dume neighborhood for $6 million.

Source: IMDb

Celebdigs.com, which broke the story, reported that Crawford and Gerber plan to tear down the structure and build a dream home on the secluded property, which has a private path to the beach.

The couple already own two waterfront homes in Malibu. They listed the smaller of the two for rent last year.

Crawford and Gerber have lived in celeb-studded Malibu for years. Gerber owns a local restaurant, the Cafe Habana, and the two are known to hang out there with friends. Crawford has several business ventures, and Gerber, a mainstay in Los Angeles’ hospitality scene, recently launched a new tequila with George Clooney.

The 4-bedroom, 4-bath home will put the couple in good company. It is tucked away down the street from the estates of other big-name stars such as Kenny G, Julia Roberts and Sean Penn.

Crawford and Gerber’s new home has spectacular views, but the 1958 ranch-style home with a lagoon-style pool is too small and outdated to compete with their current Malibu mansion.