At ABBA First Mortgage, Inc. we hold the integrity of your information in the highest regard. We are keenly aware of the growing problem of Identity Theft in America and we make every effort to protect you, our most valuable asset from this ever-growing threat.

During the course of processing your application, we accumulate non-public personal information about you from the following sources: information we receive from you on applications or other forms, information about your transactions with us, our affiliates, or others, and information we receive from a credit reporting agency.

We restrict access to your personal and account information to those employees who need to know that information to provide products or services to you. We maintain procedural, physical, and electronic safeguards that comply with federal standards to guard your non-public personal information.  We do not disclose any non-public personal information about you to anyone, except as permitted by law.

Here are some examples of the actual steps we take on your behalf…

Procedural Safeguards:
• Every new employee signs an agreement to follow our security policies;
• We check references thoroughly prior to hiring;
• We regularly remind all employees of our company’s policy and legal requirements.
• We have a policy in place to notify customers promptly if their non-public personal information is lost, stolen or damaged.

Physical Safeguards:
• All doors, windows and entries are kept locked;
• Our office is protected by a monitored alarm system;
• Central storage areas are kept locked;
• Access to central storage areas are limited and closely monitored;
• Firewall system is used;
• Fire protection is maintained;
• We dispose of all customer information in a secure manner;
• We maintain a close inventory of our computers.

Electronic Safeguards:
• We encrypt sensitive customer information when transmitting;
• We use strong passwords on all computers;
• We use updated anti-virus software;
• We maintain up-to-date firewalls.

We do not take the trust that you put in us for granted and we hope that this gives you confidence about the caliber of service that you can expect from us.  Navigating the waters of our ever changing times is no small task- but we want you to know that we are here to walk through these changes with you as trusted advisers.

Remember, “Finding the right HOME is hard enough… choosing the right LENDER doesn’t have to be.”  Choose ABBA First Mortgage, Inc. for all of your home financing needs.

“Appraisals are becoming one of the biggest obstacles for Americans trying to sell their homes, refinance their mortgages or tap into home-equity credit lines.

During the housing boom, appraisers often complained of pressure from lenders to inflate home-value estimates to justify dubious mortgage lending. Now, some people in the mortgage business — and some borrowers — say the pendulum has swung too far the other way.

Patti Sanders, an aerospace engineer in Oakdale, Calif., knew prices were down sharply but said she was “flabbergasted” recently when her 3,100-square-foot Victorian home was appraised at $250,000, compared with $635,000 assayed two years…”  For more click here.

With appraised values coming in significantly lower, many loans are being denied as loan-to-value ratios are pushed beyond approvable lender guidelines.  I do not believe that this momentum is sustainable- I suspect that lower values and increased denials will have many unintended far-reaching consequences in the long run.

If you are looking to obtain financing now, it is good to be aware of these changes.  We are staying on top of the trends and would be delighted to help you walk through this mess.  As always you can reach us at 866-676-3349 to discuss your mortgage questions.

Although the economy is still showing signs of weakness, you may want to consider making the necessary arrangements to lock your interest rate.  You can complete an application right on our website by clicking Apply Online.

Once the application is completed, one of our loan officers will contact you to go over the details of your transaction and to discuss continuing the process.  Couldn’t be easier!  We look forward to serving your mortgage needs…

Mortgage rates moved considerably higher following another sell off in the mortgage-backed securities market yesterday.  Since Monday, current coupon MBS prices have moved 200 basis points lower, consequently pushing the par 30 year fixed mortgage rate  from 4.875% to 5.375% (in one week!!!).   Prior to “Black Wednesday”, 30 year fixed rate mortgages were at 4.625%.  So, in less than 2 weeks, mortgage rates have moved almost a full percentage point higher!

Why?

The market is betting that our economy is on the road to recovery.  Investors are fleeing risk averse assets (Treasury debt) in favor of  seeking higher potential returns in the stock market. Good news right? Yes, unless you were waiting for a sub 5.00% mortgage rate.  Remember:  a weak economy forces the Federal Reserve to implement relaxed monetary policy, which helps keeps mortgage rates low.

“Wells Fargo & Co., the second-biggest U.S. home lender, has been prevented from lowering mortgage rates faster because it can’t keep up with demand and the costs of making home loans are rising, an executive said.”

Read more here.