I love this song and wanted to share this video that I found of it…very touching.

Happy Friday everyone!  Have a wonderful and blessed weekend!

Here are 4 common mistakes people can make that will affect their credit scores:

• Asking a creditor to lower your credit limits. This will reduce that all-important gap between your balances and your available credit, which could hurt your scores. If a lender asks you to close an account or get a limit lowered as a condition for getting a loan, you might have to do it — but don’t do so without being asked.

• Making a late payment. The irony here is that a late or missed payment will hurt good scores more than bad ones, dropping 700-plus scores by 100 points or more. If you’ve already got a string of negative items on your credit reports, one more won’t have a big impact, but it’s still something you want to avoid if you’re trying to improve your scores.

• Consolidating your accounts. Applying for a new account can ding your scores. So, too, can transferring balances from a high-limit card to a lower-limit one or concentrating all or most of your credit-card balances onto a single card. In general, it’s better to have smaller balances on a few cards than a big balance on one.

• Applying for new credit if you already have plenty. On the other hand, applying for and getting an installment loan can help your scores if you don’t have any installment accounts or you’re trying to recover from a credit disaster like bankruptcy.

If you are careful about these items, then your credit score will begin to rise or if you’re already in the great credit rating catrgory, then you won’t have to worry about your scores declining.

Good Luck!

Kim Shuford

This week’s quote:

“What we hope ever to do with ease we may learn first to do with diligence.”

                                                                                           ~~Samuel Johnson

Here are a few videos of the talented Michael Jackson at work.  Enjoy and may he rest in peace!

Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful mothers out there! 

I hope you have a wonderful day surrounded by those you love!

This week’s quote:

“What one does today for the sake of tomorrow is an investment; what one does to enjoy today at the expense of tomorrow is debt.”

                                                                                                ~~Unknown

The Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA’s) general credit policy requirements for obtaining a new home loan

This may sound strange due to the “type” of income, but basically this means what type of job a borrower has.  If it is a self employed position, the rules are different than for a W-2 employee.  Tax returns will be looked at to prove income for self employed borrowers.  If a borrower is self employed and writes off a good amount of their income, they will probably have trouble qualifying for a new home loan.  The total used for qualification is the adjusted gross income, after deductions.  W-2 employees will need to prove their income by pay-stubs and W-2’s. 

A new rule for all FHA loans, because of the fraud in the last several years, is a verified 4506 pulled on all borrowers.  This is a form that verifies the income shown on your taxes with the IRS, and all lenders are required to pull this report.   

• analyzing the liabilities to determine creditworthiness, and

This portion of scrutiny looks at the type of credit you have.  I have written in the past about diversifying the types of credit accounts you have.  Underwriters typically like to see different types of credit accounts, and on time payments.  As I have said before, the more diversified you are with your credit accounts, the higher your credit score will be.

• reviewing debt-to-income ratios and compensating factors.

Debt to income ratios (DTI) are the total amount of income coming in and the percentage that is paid out every month for all your bills.  This, however, does not include car insurance and utilities.  Your income to house payment is your top ratio and the income to total payments including your house payment is the bottom ratio.  FHA guidelines are 31/43 on these ratios.  They will consider loans with  higher DTI’s only if there are compensating factors – one of which can be an excellent credit rating.  Other compensating factors can be a raise that can be verified, or several accounts that will be paid off in the next few months.

I hope this information helps you understand some of the requirements for obtaining an FHA loan.  If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them here.  Have a great day!

Kim Shuford

This week’s quote:

“Let us unite with one heart and one mind.”

                                                                                               ~~Thomas Jefferson

In today’s world of worry and strife, sometimes you need to take a minute and decompress, take a deep breath, and remember the gifts and blessings that we do have from God.

John Newton wrote Amazing Grace after finding his way back to God and the church.  He had turned his back on God and the church and was amazed at the grace that God had to welcome him back.  It’s great to know that even if we go through a hard time, God is always there to take us back, with open arms and through his Amazing Grace. 

Here is the Il Divo version of Amazing Grace, which must be one of the most beautiful versions of this song…please enjoy.  And remember to thank God for all of your blessings!

I am sure you have heard of the tax credit for first time homebuyers by now, and the fact that it’s different from 2008 to 2009. This document should answer your questions on the changes to this program.
If you have any further questions, feel free to leave a comment or email me directly at kim@kimshuford.com.

Tax Break for 1st Time Homebuyers

Thanks and have a great day!

Kim Shuford