In a move to increase their financial standing (and to get the FHA back into required capital requirements), on Monday, HUD announced their anticipated increases in the premiums they charge borrowers. Simply stated, the cost of borrowing is going up.
FHA loans, by design, are more liberal in their underwriting guidelines than most conventional loan products (in terms of credit, income ratios, required investment from the borrower, and maximum loan amount). HUD is not a lender. Rather, it is a federally-insured insurance company. They insure lenders against default on loans underwritten in compliance with their published guidelines. It is because of this insurance that lenders approve and close loans with more liberal guidelines.
As an insurance company, HUD charges two types of premiums on the FHA mortgages:
- The UFMIP (Up Front Mortgage Insurance Premium) will be raised effective April 1, 2012 from its current 1% to 1.75%. One advantage to the UFMIP is the fact that it is typically built into the loan amount and does not require additional cash outlay at closing. However, the increase in loan amount does impact monthly payment and cash flow.
- The MMIP (Monthly Mortgage Insurance Premium) will be raised 10 basis points on April 1, 2012 to cover the requirements of the payroll tax extension approved last year. This is a direct increase of 10 basis points in the borrower’s mortgage payment, and has the effect of a 10 basis point increase in interest rates. As a kicker, loans over $625,000 will be bumped 35 basis points from today’s levels effective June 1, 2012. This bump is substantial, as you can see in the chart below.
Click to enlarge
via kcmblog
