Lending Tree Security Breached by Lenders
Filed Under Lenders, Loans, Mortgage, News, Refinance, Reviews | Comments Off
April 21, 2008
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Dear LendingTree Customer:
We want you to know that some loan request forms our customers sent to LendingTree may have been seen by lenders without our consent. These lenders then used the forms to market their own mortgage loans to our customers. While we don’t believe that the forms were used for any other purpose, we want you to know what happened and what we did to correct this situation, as well as what you can do to monitor your credit records.
What Happened and What We Did
Recently, LendingTree learned that several former employees may have helped a handful of mortgage lenders gain access to LendingTree’s customer information by sharing confidential passwords with the lenders. When we learned of this situation, we quickly contacted the authorities, and LendingTree is helping with their investigation. We promptly made several system security changes. We also brought lawsuits against those involved.
Based on our investigation, we understand that these mortgage lenders used the passwords to access LendingTree’s customer loan request forms, normally available only to LendingTree-approved lenders, to market loans to those customers. The loan request forms contained data such as name, address, email address, telephone number, Social Security number, income and employment information. We believe these lenders accessed LendingTree’s loan request forms between October 2006 and early 2008.
What You Can Do
Again, we don’t believe any identity theft or fraudulent financial activity resulted from this situation. However, we suggest you get a free credit report. Look for any accounts you didn’t open and/or inquiries from creditors that you didn’t initiate. If you see anything you don’t understand, contact the credit bureau. If you see anything suspicious, you may want to file a fraud alert with the bureaus. For more information on how to do this, please refer to LendingTree’s Guide to Protecting Your Credit and Identity.
Where to Get More Information
We regret any inconvenience and apologize for any unwanted mortgage calls you may have received. For more information about this situation, and for more information on what you can do, please refer to the attached Questions & Answers .
Sincerely,
R.L. Harris
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Federal Reserve Lowers Fed Rate 0.5%
Filed Under Loans, Mortgage, News, Rates, Refinance | Comments Off
Just a couple of hours ago the Federal Open Market Committee decided to lower the Fed Rate and the Discount rate by 50 “basis points”. This means the Fed rate has gone down to 4.75% and the discount rate is down to 5.25%. This is the first rate cut under the chairmanship of Bernanke and also the first rate cut since early 2006. Here is what the Fed reported:
The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to lower its target for the federal funds rate 50 basis points to 4-3/4 percent.
Economic growth was moderate during the first half of the year, but the tightening of credit conditions has the potential to intensify the housing correction and to restrain economic growth more generally. Today’s action is intended to help forestall some of the adverse effects on the broader economy that might otherwise arise from the disruptions in financial markets and to promote moderate growth over time.Â
Readings on core inflation have improved modestly this year. However, the Committee judges that some inflation risks remain, and it will continue to monitor inflation developments carefully.Â
Developments in financial markets since the Committee’s last regular meeting have increased the uncertainty surrounding the economic outlook. The Committee will continue to assess the effects of these and other developments on economic prospects and will act as needed to foster price stability and sustainable economic growth.
Voting for the FOMC monetary policy action were: Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman; Timothy F. Geithner, Vice Chairman; Charles L. Evans; Thomas M. Hoenig; Donald L. Kohn; Randall S. Kroszner; Frederic S. Mishkin; William Poole; Eric Rosengren; and Kevin M. Warsh. Â
In a related action, the Board of Governors unanimously approved a 50-basis-point decrease in the discount rate to 5-1/4 percent. In taking this action, the Board approved the requests submitted by the Boards of Directors of the Federal Reserve Banks of Boston, New York, Cleveland, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, and San Francisco.
Mortgage rate data from FreeRateSearch.com shows little difference between fixed and adjustable subprime mortgage rates.
Milwaukee, WI (PRWEB) May 31, 2007 — Consumers holding adjustable rate loans may be tempted to refinance with another adjustable rate loan for a smaller payment, but the savings are not worth the risk, warns mortgage rate search engine http://www.freeratesearch.com/ With an estimated $1 trillion dollars in adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) debt resetting in 2007, and about $650 million of that in subprime loans, many homeowners are at risk of refinancing into another risky ARM unless they know all the options available to them.
According to data released today by FreeRateSearch.com, the gap between the best subprime ARM and 30-year fixed rate loan is too small to justify the additional risk of the ARM. FreeRateSearch.com is a free website that allows consumers to search and compare multiple mortgage loan programs anonymously, and get custom rate quotes for any type of credit.
 If you are in a dangerous ARM because you didn’t know a decent fixed rate loan was available, don’t let it happen again  |
FreeRateSearch.com offers the following example* for a subprime loan customer:
Comparison of Best 2 Year ARM vs. Best 30 Year Fixed
Best 2-year ARM: 7.550% rate, $1,756.60 payment
Best 30-year Fixed-Rate Loan: 7.89% rate, $1,815.28 payment
The difference in payment between best 2-year ARM and fixed rate loan is only $58.58 per month, but the risk associated with the adjustable rate loan is significantly higher. [read more]
Relief for Stressed Out Homeowners
Filed Under Lenders, Loans, Mortgage, News, Refinance | Comments Off
(PRWEB)Â The Mortgage Bankers Associations report that in the first quarter of 2007 the percentage of subprime ARMs that started the foreclosure process climbed to a record high. Analysts estimate that nearly 2 million ARMs will reset to higher rates this year and next. Option ARMs can become so costly they push homeowners into financial crisis. Homeowners can avoid “Payment Shock”, losing their home, and destroying their credit, by refinancing into a less risky mortgage with an online lender.
Option ARMs initially offer the chance to “qualify” for a more expensive home, minimize monthly payments, and achieve greater flexibility of managing monthly cash flow in the beginning of a loan. However, the initial rates are subject to a periodic change or “reset”. Interest rates on loans, and the monthly payment, could increase dramatically. In some case, Option ARM payments can double overnight. Online mortgage lenders and LoanSpace.Org provide the tools, information, and resources to help homeowner’s with their home and credit.
Option ARMs offer minimum payment, interest only, 15-year amortized, and 30-year amortized options. They can be especially attractive to homeowners who have irregular incomes such as educators who do not work during the summer months, salespeople whose commissions fluctuate, and college graduates about to begin lucrative careers.
Conversely, industry experts and Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan warned that many consumers were using the loans to purchase homes they could not afford. Many consumers gambled on the “housing boom” and purchased expensive homes they could “flip” in a few short years for a quick, big profit. Unfortunately, the hot housing boom has cooled considerable in many areas, and several major markets are experiencing a big drop in home values. Buyers who purchased more home than they could afford or made the minimum payment often wind up in serious financial trouble. [read more]
Peak Home Loans Limited Time Release
Filed Under Lenders, Loans, News, Rates, Refinance | Comments Off
Tampa, Florida (PRWEB) May 8, 2007 — Peak Home Loans announces a limited time home refinance loan program for people with less-than-perfect credit. Four out of five applicants that apply for a home refinance loan with Peak Home Loans can now qualify with 24 hour results. Borrow $100,000.00 for less than $365.00 per month, But, before applying, learn the top five mistakes people make when refinancing their home. The best advice is to “get the best deal while making an educated decision.”
These are the top 5 mistakes people make when refinancing their homes:
1. Choosing a home loan lender for the wrong reason (i.e., the lowest rate, your existing lender.) People choose home loan lenders for all the wrong reasons. Getting a low rate is important, but it’s not the only consideration. Lenders may offer the lowest rate but charge extra fees (loan fees, origination fees, copy fees) so that in the end you’ll pay more for the refinanced home loan even though your rate may be lower. The only way to protect yourself is to wait for the Good-Faith Estimate which should list all the closing costs. Compare the Good-Faith Estimates from a number of home loan lenders. But comparing Good-Faith Estimates is not the only story when you want to refinance your home. If time is important, you want to choose a mortgage company that is capable of acting quickly. Ask each company to give you their average closing time for loans similar to yours. Ask around among your trusted friends. Find out who refinanced lately and ask them what they thought of the company. Don’t assume that your existing home loan lender is any better than a new lender. Since most home loans are sold in the secondary market, everyone has to meet certain criteria, and your existing lender will probably require the same documentation as a new lender. However, once you have a commitment from a new lender, it doesn’t hurt to ask your existing lender to beat it. Often times they will.
2. Not getting everything in writing about refinancing your home loan.
Get everything in writing. No matter what the Loan Officer tells you, ask him to confirm it in writing. Don’t believe someone when they tell you that your refinance rate is guaranteed. Get it in writing.
3. Not knowing the appraised value of your home.
Many people go ahead and try to refinance their home without knowing the true value. There are many places you can get an estimate of the true value of your home for purposes of refinancing. Many Realtor sites have home value estimators on their site. For the price of listening to a mortgage company try to sell you a mortgage, you can get an approximate value for your home.
Check the recent sales in your neighborhood and try to find a comparable house in a comparable location. Or you can ask the appraiser to do a drive by and give you a verbal estimate of the value of your home. If it’s in the right ballpark, you can order a thorough appraisal. Know the value of your home before you seek to refinance your home loan.
4. Not doing the math when refinancing your home loan.
Do the math. Refinancing your home has a cost. You need to see what the cost is, and then determine how long you are going to stay in your home. For example, if you are going to stay in your home for 5 more years, and the cost of refinancing your home is $5000, you need to save at least $1000 a year in order for the deal to make sense. If you only save $50 a month as a result of refinancing (that’s $600 a year), you’ll be loosing money.
5. Not considering a 2nd Mortgage.
When you refinance your home, you are refinancing the total amount. Suppose you have a home that is now worth $400,000, and you only owe $250,000 on the home and you want to take out $50,000. If you refinance and take out $50,000 in cash your new loan may be for $310,000, ($250,000 owed + $50,000 cash out + a total refinance cost of 3% or $10,000). It may be better to take out a 2nd mortgage for $50,000 and pay a slightly higher interest rate and slightly higher points, but only have a basis of $50,000 instead of the $310,000.
Peak Home Loans has been assisting an average of 3000 clients a month with less-than perfect credit obtain mortgage and home refinance loans since 2001.
Robert Myers,
Managing Partner,
Peak Home Loans LLC
4134 Gulf of Mexico Dr., Suite 201
Longboat Key, FL 34228
(877) 959 – PEAK