The Boston metro area’s red-hot housing market has been cooling, reflecting a nationwide slowdown in property markets as the Federal Reserve moves aggressively to rein in inflation.
The median home price in Greater Boston dipped to $825,000 in August, down from $900,000 in June and $841,500 in July, according to the Greater Boston Association of Realtors.
While the slowdown is a welcome one for buyers, it does nothing to reverse the very real challenges buyers face in one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets. The metro area remains among the most competitive in the country, as well. In August, fully 54% of home bidders in Boston faced competition, fourth-highest in the nation, Redfin reports.
The Boston metro area’s combination of high prices and bidding wars that means bridge loans, jumbo loans, interest-only mortgages, non-warrantable condo loans and investor loans are hot products.
LendSure offers mortgages to meet the needs of borrowers seeking all types of loans. Notably, we’re licensed in Massachusetts, and we have a regional operations center providing underwriting. That helps us address the needs of your borrowers.
Here are some loan programs that can help your Boston-area clients:
- Bank statement loans. Boston’s economy is driven by innovation, and the number of self-employed borrowers has only accelerated. The freedom of entrepreneurship and gig work is appealing, but there is a downside: self-employed borrowers face higher hurdles when qualifying for mortgages. It’s a quirk of the mortgage market that some of the economy’s highest earners can have the hardest time qualifying for loans. Luckily, LendSure has a solution. Bank statement loans can help borrowers qualify based on their actual income, instead of what shows up on their tax returns.
- Bridge loans. Boston’s market remains competitive – and LendSure offers bridge loans to help equity-rich homeowners stand out when a non-contingent offer is needed to win the deal. Our Bridge Financing program empowers borrowers to access equity from their current home to purchase a new home, with no monthly payments on the bridge financing. Borrowers can gain a competitive advantage in a hot housing market by making a non-contingent offer on the new property.
- Jumbo loans. The conforming loan limit for 2022 is $770,500 in six counties that encompass the Boston housing market. However, even after the recent softening of prices, sale prices remain well above the conforming loan limit in many areas. LendSure’s JUMBO PRIME product is tailor-made for these higher-priced homes and neighborhoods.
- Interest-only loans. The Boston region’s home prices are high in part because wages are high. Still, the area faces affordability challenges. In the second quarter of 2022, just 26% of homes sold in the area were affordable to a typical family, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index. LendSure’s INTEREST ONLY product gives buyers some flexibility to reduce their payments. Our 10/40 Fixed Interest Only offers borrowers a HUGE advantage. Borrowers can make Interest Only payments for a full 10 years FOLLOWED BY 30 years of FIXED payments. This greatly reduces the monthly payments and eliminates the uncertainty of adjustable rates in the future.
- Condo loans. Sky-high home prices have spurred some buyers in the Boston housing market to shop for condos rather than single-family homes. In August, the median prices of condos and townhouses sold in the Boston area was $652,950, a record high. In some cases, the choice is more about lifestyle than price. Past generations of buyers favored single-family homes, but today’s urban professionals may find condos better suit their lifestyles. But borrowers can face numerous challenges qualifying for financing of condos, particularly after the onerous new rules imposed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Enter LendSure’s loans for Non-Warrantable Condos, a program that brings common sense to condo mortgage lending.
- Investment property loans. Rents have risen sharply, and many renters are unable to transition to homeownership because of the state’s affordability challenges. As a result, property investors are looking to expand their portfolios. LendSures loans for Investment Properties offer many opportunities for property investors. Our roster of benefits includes interest-only loans, debt-service coverage ratio (DSCR) loans and rate buydowns.
- Superprime loans up to $3 million. The Alternative A, or Alt-A, mortgage is a type of loan offered to borrowers who fall just short of the strict guidelines imposed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Alt-A loans also are known as A-minus mortgages – and that’s the perfect way to think of this group of borrowers. LendSure knows these borrowers represent good credit risks. These clients – LendSure calls them “super prime” – have proven themselves to be responsible borrowers. They’re highly unlikely to simply stop paying. That’s why we have offer loans based on a variety of alternative documentation, including Full Doc, Full Doc Self Employed, 12-Month or 24-Month Bank Statements.
The LendSure Way
It’s simple. We make loans that make sense. We’re not in-the-box lenders. Of course, there are numbers and ratios and data to consider, but we know that behind every file, there’s an individual with a unique circumstance seeking a loan. We work hard to offer our common-sense take on lending to borrowers seeking funding for the home of their dreams, another addition to their investment property portfolio or refinancing of a currently-owned property.
Are you ready to grow your business? Conforming loan approval guidelines can be restrictive, but we want to offer our mortgage broker partners the education, the tools, support and the guidance they need in order to say “yes” to more of their clients. This ensures happy borrowers and opportunities for bottom line growth. What are you waiting for? Let’s get started!
