It's Semi-Official : New Conforming Mortgage Fees Go Into Effect Monday

Even though its effective date is April 1, 2009, mortgage applicants should start seeing Fannie Mae's new fee structure from lenders beginning this Monday, January 12.

The reason why Fannie Mae's mandatory loan fees are hitting lender pricing so far in advance is because lenders can take up to 30 days to package and sell a loan to Fannie Mae post-closing.  In effect, this moves the April 1 start date to March 1.

Then, figuring that March 1 is roughly 45 days from now and that 45 days is a normal window on which to close on a home or on a refinance, the start date again pushes back, this time to January 15.

Given lenders' typical timeframe to close, fund, and sell a loan to Fannie Mae, in other words, it's normal that pricing reflects the fee changes two-and-a-half months in advance.  Homebuyers and would-be refinancers would do well to take notice.

If you are floating a mortgage rate today -- or shopping for one -- consider locking it in before the close of business.  Effective Monday, any number of traits in your home loan could increase your closing costs:

• Your credit score
• Your downpayment / equity percentage
• Your home's property type
• Your reason for wanting a mortgage
• Your loan type

For a complete look at Fannie Mae's new, mandated loan fees, visit the Fannie Mae web site.  If you have trouble interpreting the worksheet, call or email me and we can talk about it together.