What Would You Say

My voice is broken, can't speak, which means I am out of a job. You don't know what you have until you lose it. My ability to speak is how I connect to my customers and without my customers I have no business. When you can't speak you think a lot more about the words you use. I am grateful that I have this experience if only to give me perspective about the words I use every day.  Try not speaking for a day and see what happens.  I am waiting for my voice to come back....and enjoying the silence.

Steve Currington

Mortgage Banker

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What are Jumbo Home Loans?

USDA Rural Housing 100% Financing

USDA 100% STILL HERE!

We will continue to fund USDA loans without any delay. The funding for this program will likely come through in a a few weeks, but in the meantime it is business as usual with this program. If you know of anyone that would like to purchase a new home with no money down tell them to call Currington Mortgage at 918-394-5626 or visit www.curringtonmortgage.com.

The upfront guarantee fee has increased to 3.5%

For more information please contact Steve Currington 918-394-5626 or email steve@curringtonmortgage.com

Channel 6 New Good Faith Estimate

Call Steve Currington for questions about the new Good Faith Estimate
918-394-5626.

Tax Credits Ending Soon

Home Buyer's Tax Credit

It's almost tax time again. With so many home buyers wanting to claim the tax credit this tax season, what papers are required? According to Realtor Magazine, the Internal Revenue Service is still requiring that taxpayers fill out Form 5405, however they have changed the requirements for the HUD-1 settlement document signatures. In areas, on the settlement statement, where it is uncommon for both the buyer and seller to sign, the IRS is not requiring both signatures as long as the document meets all local laws.

For repeat home buyers claiming the credit, proof must be given that they have lived in the previous home for 5 consecutive years out of the last 8 years.

If you live in the Tulsa, OK area, get more information on the home buyer tax credit and find out if you are eligible, contact Steve Currington of Currington Mortgage at 918-394-5626 orwww.curringtonmortgage.com.

New Rules for Lenders in 2010 are GOOD NEWS for Consumers

Buying a home?  Need to refinance?  There has never been a better time than now.  Interest rates are at an all time low and there are still tax credits available to first time home buyers and "move up buyers."  Another great reason to get on the "mortgage bandwagon" is the protection you now have from the government.  Uncle Sam is making it virtually impossible for a consumer to be duped by a rogue loan officer or lender.  In fact, the new GFE (Good Faith Estimate) which was launched January 1, 2010 has had lenders scrambling to make sure they are in compliance with new regulations.  This new GFE along with the other regulations enhanced in 2009 make it safer than ever for consumers to obtain financing.  The federal government is drawing a line in the sand and taking no prisoners with the new GFE and Truth-in-Lending rules.  The new rules protect consumers from predatory lending practices by preventing a lender or broker from changing ANYTHING in the loan application without documenting it to the consumer.  Have you heard stories of people going to the closing table and finding out the interest rate they thought they had is 1% higher or the closing costs on their loan increased dramatically?  The new GFE makes this impossible with new re-disclosure rules requiring your lender or broker to let you know of any changes in your loan and giving you time to consider whether you will complete the loan with them.  Important things like the interest rate, origination charges, underwriting fees, appraisal fees cannot change at the whim of your lender or loan officer.  Only qualified items are allowed to change and only if it is a true and documented "change of circumstance."  You loan officer simply forgetting to disclose something to you does not qualify as a "change of circumstance."  If a charge is not disclosed to you it cannot be added after the fact.  Items that qualify as a "change of circumstance" include, but are not limited to,  appraisal review fees, repairs required by your lender, property address changing, purchase price or contract changes. 

Now is the best time to enjoy a hassle free purchase or refinance with no surprises at the closing table. 

For information on how you might qualify to purchase or refinance a home contact Steve Currington with Currington Mortgage Company.  Currington Mortgage is located in Tulsa, Oklahoma and is happy to provide local processing, local underwriting and local funding. 

Call Steve today at 918-394-5626 (LOAN) or visit www.curringtonmortgage.com and find out how you can Own Your Doorbell.  

Building Industry Shows Signs of Improvement

Despite the economy and the constant news that the housing market is failing, Tulsa, Broken Arrow, and the Tulsa metro area are doing quite well. Tulsa and Broken Arrow both had 32 housing starts (new residential building projects started) for the month of December. Broken Arrow, however, had 375 housing starts for the year of 2009, where Tulsa had 353. 190 building permits were issued in the Tulsa metro area in December. That is a 14.5% increase over November of 2009 and an 81% increase over December of 2008. Tulsa's housing starts for the year of 2008 were only 9.5% behind that of totals from last year at the same time. While that may not sound positive, the beginning of the year housing starts were 50% behind those of last years.


That news causes many to believe that the building industry is improving. While there is no one factor that could cause this improvement, there are several that may have helped with it: the first time buyers tax credit and new legislation in Oklahoma that would require builders to carry worker's compensation insurance.


To build a new home in the Tulsa, OK or Broken Arrow, OK area call Bruce Gardner of Gardner Construction at 918-481-1377 or gcc1946@aol.com.


To buy or sell a home in the Tulsa, OK or Broken Arrow, OK area, contact The Baskin Real Estate Specialists at 918-258-2600 or www.darrylbaskin.com.

For more information on the first time home buyer tax credit contact:

Steve Currington 
Currington Mortgage  918-394-5626(LOAN)  stevec@curringtonmortgage.com