Fires are just one of the natural disasters that can impact the availability of loans. Lenders and the Federal government consider occurring or imminent disasters when approving loans, publishing listings of areas that are restricted, and suspending the funding of loans during the time frame of those disasters. It is vital for any prospective homebuyer to contact their lender, whether it is Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or any other source to be certain that their loan is not affected or put on hold in such a situation.

Housing prices have recorded double-digit gains in recent months, and rates are unbelievably low at the moment with the help of the Federal government, but there’s no telling how long they will remain that way. Even with the lower interest rates, a lot of home seekers are finding themselves priced out of the market with multiple buyers bidding on the same properties. Are there enough qualified buyers to take advantage of the opportunity?

With the end of summer approaching, the housing market tends to soften because families are usually settled for the beginning of the new school year and fewer buyers are actively searching for a new home. However, at this stage of the pandemic, when people are feeling confident that their families are safe and that sufficient precautions are being taken for the health and safety of the buyers, sellers, and agents, they are more willing to enter into the process. Jeff’s guests this week include:

– Escrow expert Ronnie Montana of Contact Escrow discusses the influx of properties on the market and the resulting high prices.

– Celia Rios from Impact Mortgage talks about privacy and loan qualification.

– Design expert Brendan McBreen shares ideas for staging a home for sale.