New low mortgage rates out of reach

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By David M. Dickson

Many of the would-be borrowers who have bombarded mortgage lenders with phone calls since interest rates dropped last week are finding they don't qualify for loans.

Credit standards remain significantly tighter than they were two or three years ago. Some types of loans, such as adjustable-rate balloon mortgages, are difficult to obtain, and millions of homeowners cannot qualify for refinancing because they owe more on their current mortgages than their houses are worth.

"A dramatic tightening of underwriting standards and a rising number of underwater homeowners will eliminate more than half of the people" who could benefit from the new lower rates, said Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance.

To qualify for a conventional 30-year loan for $400,000 at a fixed rate of 5.5 percent, a consumer would need a credit score of 680, a down payment of 10 percent and a debt-to-income ratio of 45 percent or less, said Brian Bonnet, president of Signature Mortgage Services in Alexandria.

While acknowledging that credit standards had tightened this year, Mr. Bonnet emphasized that a buyer with solid credit could obtain a Federal Housing Administration-insured loan of $625,000 bearing a 5.5 percent fixed rate and requiring a down payment as low as 3.5 percent.

Mortgage rates fell immediately Nov. 25 after the Fed announced its extraordinary plan to spend $600 billion purchasing debt and mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae.

"This is as big as it gets," said Bob Walters, chief economist of Internet lender Quicken Loans. Mr. Walters reported that mortgage rates instantly dropped three-quarters to 1 percentage point, reaching 5.4 percent to 5.5 percent, after the Fed announced its program.

Many lenders expect rates to keep dropping.

"Mortgage rates have been artificially high this year mostly due to panic and disruption in the credit markets, especially for anything with a mortgage label on it," said Mr. Cecala. "A more appropriate rate for 30-year fixed rate mortgages would have been 5 percent or less," given how the rate on the Treasury 10-year note has plunged, Mr. Cecala said. Mr. Cecala expects rates to reach 5 percent by the end of the year.

For those who do qualify, the savings can be substantial, especially if their initial below-market "teaser" rate is scheduled to adjust upward in the near future.