One fact is clear from the past few months: home equity lenders are extremely unpredictable. Because of declining property values, many HELOC clients have had their lines frozen or decreased. It’s hard on borrowers, but it makes financial sense for the banks. However, HELOC lenders haven’t stopped at that. Many customers have been surprised to find [...] [...more]
Washington Mutual just finished sending out the last of their HELOC freeze notices. The damage: customers have lost the opportunity to draw on $6 billion from home equity lines. We reported on this story earlier, but the total extent of the line freezes was not known at that time. Housing Wire explains the latest: “Washington [...] [...more]
Over the past four months, we’ve been keeping a list of major lenders sending out home equity line freeze letters. To date, an estimated 400,000 HELOC freeze notices have been sent and we receive information about new line freezes almost weekly. Here’s the latest update. Lenders Freezing Home Equity Lines of Credit Countrywide (recently froze almost all [...] [...more]
Washington Mutual customers may want to keep an eye on their mailboxes this week, as more HELOC freeze notices are on their way. According to the San Francisco Business Times, WaMu is sending out an undisclosed number of new line reduction letters: “Washington Mutual, Inc. has slashed or suspended $6 billion in available home equity credit [...] [...more]
Bank of America is now predicting even greater losses on HELOC investments than initially expected. The Los Angeles Times reports: “Bank of America Corp. warned Tuesday that its losses on home-equity loans would be worse than it predicted just three weeks ago, adding to evidence that more consumers are falling behind on debts… At an investor conference [...] [...more]
If you’ve received a HELOC freeze notice, you have more to worry about than a lack of funds. A decrease in your credit limit may actually harm your credit score. Here’s how: If you have a lower limit (under $20,000 usually, but no one knows the exact figure), your HELOC is probably reported to the credit bureaus [...] [...more]
Have you seen the commercial where the home shopper freezes her credit cards in a chunk of ice? When she sees a “call now to buy” number on TV she frantically starts chipping away at the ice cube. But, by the time the commercial ends, she stops chopping and changes her mind. If borrowers had [...] [...more]
Now that HELOC lending standards have become tighter, prospective borrowers may want to consider working with a mortgage broker. Mortgage brokers can’t change the standards set by banks. But, they can explore a variety of lending options with you and advocate on your behalf. The Problems of Working Directly with a Lender When you go to [...] [...more]
If you are using over 40% of your available credit, paying off your credit cards with a HELOC may improve your credit score. However, there are some risks involved. Applying and opening a HELOC will give your credit score a ding. However, you may be able to increase your score significantly by transferring your credit card [...] [...more]
Some urban areas are experiencing the worst of the bubble burst. Vegas is near the top of that list. Today, Bloomburg published an exclusive article claiming that Countrywide has suspended HELOC lines for pretty much all of their Las Vegas customers: “Homeowners’ pain is acute in Las Vegas, where property values soared 50 percent or more [...] [...more]
