Unlike Coca-Cola who decided to revamp itself back in the 1980’s, Knightlines Mortgage Services, LLC of Lake County, Florida is leaving the recipe of its success alone. However, in a bold move Knightlines is updating its branding image.

While the logo remains a knight, the image has been transformed into a more regal and elegant symbol. No longer trapped in a box, the knight is now the central focus of an all encompassing sphere to elude to the company’s wholeness and understanding of the mortgage industry, both commercial and residential.

Along with this change comes a newly designed website. Unlike traditional mortgage sites advertising programs and rates, Knightlines’ website lets the clients know what kind of company they are dealing with. The simple and easy to use site illustrates to borrowers the simpleness and easiness of the mortgage loan process. What you see is what you get. There are no smoke and mirrors with Knightlines. Every mortgage is fully disclosed in a simple to understand manner.

These changes come as part of the company’s goal to make itself a common household name in Lake County, Florida. With an already strong footing in the Golden Triangle area (Eustis, Mt. Dora, and Tavares,) Knightlines is expanding into neighboring cities. We have even made a bold move to open an office in Palm Beach County (Palm Beach Gardens) to begin offering our unique, second-to-none customer orientated services to borrowers in South Florida. And we are scheduled to open a third office in Orange County at the end of the summer of 2008. This branch office will become the flagship of Knightlines Mortgage Services, LLC due to its central location to the main office and the Palm Beach branch.

That’s right! 100% Financing still exists in Lake County, Florida. Despite all the obituaries about these mortgage programs, there is still one program that remains alive and well. This is all thanks to Lake County being USDA Grade A land… and I mean that literally.

The USDA 100% mortgage loans offer many benefits to potential home owners. The biggest being no down payment. Also, at the top of the list is the fact that there is no extra costs in your monthly payment in terms of mortgage insurance. Eh, what the heck? Here is a list of all the benefits a USDA loan has to offer:

1. No Down Payment.
2. If the appraised value comes in higher than the contract sales price, you can wrap closing costs into your loan.
3. No PMI (AKA Mortgage Insurance).
4. No Reserves. This means you do not need to have lots of money in savings, as some banks require.
5. No Minimum FICO Score. You must at least look creditworthy.
6. Available For First Time Buyers and Non-First Time Buyers.
7. Substitute Schooling/Education for Job History.
8. Unrestricted Gifts. Gift money is not sourced or seasoned when used for closing costs.

And yes, just like any loan, you have to qualify for it. So, how do you qualify? Well, the biggest hurdle is already overcome. You live in Lake County. According to USDA Rural Development, you are already in an eligible area. The next obstacle standing in your way is income. If you make too much money, you best be looking somewhere else. For sake of giving a chart and directions on how to use it, visit this site. With its fast and easy calculator, it will tell you whether or not you are eligible (or just call us). (And if you live outside of Lake County, you can use the same site to see if your property is eligible.) Last, but not least, you debt-to-income ratios must be within guidelines. We will be more than happy to calculate this figure for you when you call us for you new home loan.

To qualify for this loan, call 352-308-7219 and ask for your USDA Grade A Home Loan.

When shopping for a mortgage, one can easily become overwhelmed with all the different mortgage programs that are out there: Fixed Rates (FRM), Adjustable Rates (ARM), Hybrids, etc.

The problem that consumers face is “which mortgage is the best?” The answer to this is: the best mortgage program is that program that best suits the individual’s needs. But how does one know which is the best, if one is not up on all the different types of mortgages?

Well, let’s break mortgages down to their very basic levels: rate and term. Rate is the interest rate that one pays to bank. Rate is determined by risk. Term is the length of time that a loan is paid back. Term is also the length of time that the rate remains fixed (We will call this the rate term). The longer the rate term; the great the risk; the higher the rate.

Now, let’s assume that all mortgages are FRMs and paid back over a 30 year term. Why? Most everyone understands the concept of a 30 year FRM: the rate is fixed for 30 years and paid back over 30 years. So, what this means is the 6 month, 1 year, 3 year, 5 year, 7 year, and 10 years ARMs are now all FRMs and paid back over 30 years. The rate is fixed for that period of time which is mentioned.

Going back to our basics of the longer the term the higher the rate, the 6 month FRM has a lower rate than the 10 year FRM. So, why would one take one of these shorter terms versus a longer term? The answer is simple: they have a general idea as to their future (they plan to move, add on, build a pool, refinance to take cash out, etc). The reward for planning ahead: a lower interest rate.

Even if a person is uncertain of where they will be in the future, if they use statistics, they can get a lower rate. Statistics show that the average homeowner refinances every 3-5 years and sells around 7 years. Let’s say someone wants to be conservative on the 7 year figure, they can go for a 10 year FRM. They still will have a lower rate than that of the 30 year FRM. But, there are those still that do not even want to consider the risk of what happens after that 10^th year of the FRM. For them, the 30 year FRM is best.

Now that I opened the can of worms on “what happens after the rate term expires,” I will make a couple quick, simple answers. Assuming one misjudged their future expectations of their mortgage, they have a couple options.

1. Refinance and base the new mortgage on the new expectations
2. Refinance and jump start the expectations
3. Ride out the adjustments.

Ride out the adjustments? Yes, after the rate term has lapsed, the rate may/will adjust. Every lender has different ways of capping what your rate can change, but they all have the same calculation on determining what the rate will be: Margin + Index. Margin is a fixed amount. It is the amount the bank charges to put it simply. Index is an adjusting rate that is determined by market factors. Enough said on this.

When does one let it ride? Simple answer: rates have dropped. Think back a couple years when rates were at record lows. One could have been in a 3 year FRM that was about to adjust. Instead of refinancing, one could have seen a drastic drop in their rate just by letting their rate ride. Even with a fixed margin, rates dropped low enough for those individuals to enjoy a lower rate without the need to refinance.

So what is the best mortgage for you? The best mortgage is the FRM that has the rate term equal to your future goals timeline and the amount of risk you are willing to take. Now, there are variations to these FRM programs, so please call Knightlines Mortgage Services, LLC today at 352-308-7219 to talk to one of our licensed mortgage professionals.