Jack Guttentag
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Why not use Fannie and Freddie to make a better primary market?Oct 11, 2014 12:00 am - The phaseout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which have now been in conservatorship for six years, is on indefinite hold. Terminating them without an effective replacemen...
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Conventional versus FHA: which should you choose?Oct 04, 2014 12:00 am - Conventional versus FHA: which should you choose? It is not an academic question. My calculations show that the wrong choice can cost as much as $33,000 over 15 years on...
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A rocky transition to double-digit mortgage ratesSep 27, 2014 12:00 am - For the last 24 years, mortgage interest rates have been in the single digits, supporting a widespread presumption in the industry that this is the normal state of affai...
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The easy way and the hard way to get a mortgage: the hard way is betterSep 13, 2014 12:00 am - Most homebuyers who need a mortgage place themselves in the hands of a loan officer or mortgage broker referred to them by their real estate agent, or by a friend, relat...
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CFPB is now a consumer complaint clearinghouseSep 06, 2014 5:00 am - Markets for financial services often don't work well for Americans. The trial-and-error technique that people rely on in navigating many markets, such as food and clothi...
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Don't expect much from unregulated regulatorsAug 30, 2014 12:00 am - The seeds of this article were planted in my brain some 30 odd years ago, when I did a consulting project for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, for w...
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Manage your credit score to get the best possible mortgageAug 23, 2014 12:00 am - Q. Can I get a mortgage with a credit score of 450? A. If you get one, it won't be the mortgage you want. Credit scores are calculated using a variety of models that hav...
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Housing bubble differed from buildup in subprime car loansAug 16, 2014 12:00 am - Is a crisis brewing in the market for subprime loans on used cars? In a long front-page article in The New York Times last month, Jessica Silver-Greenberg and Michael Co...
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Should seniors buying a house do it with a HECM reverse mortgage?Aug 09, 2014 12:00 am - Many home purchasers are seniors. Some become homeowners for the first time, but most have been and want to remain homeowners. They just don't want to remain in their cu...
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Yields are incredible when you invest in a larger down paymentAug 02, 2014 12:00 am - Those who intend to purchase a home within the near future face many decisions, including how large a down payment to make. The down payment is the sale price (confirmed...