Warning: Mild sarcasm ahead
Look what happens when you let someone other than a seasoned real estate reporter write articles about the market. You get the frightening truth—Washington State and the Seattle area are not exempt from feeling the effects of the national lending meltdown. Go figure.
Ongoing turmoil in the subprime mortgage industry could wipe out many Washington-based mortgage brokers, and it will dramatically narrow the choices available to homeowners seeking loans or refinancing, mortgage and real estate experts said Thursday.
Also hurt could be home builders, home inspectors, title insurance companies and appraisers.
“It will have a broad impact over the next year,” said Adam Stein, president of the Washington Association of Mortgage Brokers.
Washington state had about 1,200 independent mortgage brokers as of last summer. Of those, “30 percent may not survive the year,” he said.
Yowch. Bad news for mortgage brokers. Actually, bad news for people looking for mortgages, too. Hope you have a down payment, and don’t need a mortgage larger than $417,000…
Loan seekers with solid credit ratings seeking agency loans shouldn’t be affected by the subprime brouhaha, [mortgage broker Jason] Bloom said.
Those with worse ratings, or those seeking Alt-A or subprime mortgages, will have a tougher time getting money. Even those seeking jumbo loans — 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with a balance of more than $417,000 — may find interest rates up and eligibility criteria tightened.
“Consumer choice in Washington right now is being dramatically restricted,” said Stein, head of the mortgage brokers’ group. “For alternatives for someone with less than perfect credit, the rate has gone through the roof — if they’re available at all.”
But of course, there’s still room for some optimism because, you know, the real estate salespeople say so.
Real estate giants John L. Scott and Windermere said they have seen no downturn in sales because of the subprime-mortgage crunch.
“We’re not turning buyers away in droves. A few loan programs have gone away.”
Possibly the most interesting part of the article was this little tidbit of information nestled near the end:
As of mid-June, 6 percent of Washington mortgages were subprime adjustable-rate loans, compared with 6.6 percent for the country as a whole, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association in Washington, D.C.
Ooooh. We’re 0.6 points less exposed to sub-prime than the rest of the nation. Go us!
(Dan Richman, Seattle P-I, 08.16.2007)