Fannie Mae is offering a 3.5% incentive* for California home buyers who purchase and close on a Fannie Mae-owned home between January 28 and April 30, 2010. Buyers purchasing properties listed on this site that are closed within this period may receive up to 3.5% of the final sales price for:
- Closing costs;
- The purchase of new Whirlpool® appliances by Fannie Mae; or
- A mix of closing costs and appliances, at the buyer’s discretion, up to the maximum 3.5%.
To be eligible for this incentive:
- Offers must be accepted on or after January 28, 2010
- Property sales must close before May 1, 2010
- Buyers must be owner-occupants, investors are excluded
*Lenders may impose their own limitations on the use of the 3.5% incentive, so please consult Jonas Kruckeberg for guidance.
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About Fannie Mae Homes
from Homepath.comWhy does Fannie Mae have properties for sale?
Fannie Mae works with all of its partners to help homeowners prevent and avoid foreclosure; however, sometimes it is unavoidable. When foreclosures occur on mortgages in which Fannie Mae is the investor, their goal is to sell properties in a timely manner in order to minimize the impact on the community.
What kinds of properties are available in the Fannie Mae HomePath database?
Fannie Mae’s HomePath database includes only properties that are owned by Fannie Mae. There is a wide selection of homes, including single-family homes, condominiums, and town houses—located in a variety of neighborhoods. The number, types and the sales prices of the homes that are offered for sale may vary substantially. Many of these homes are relatively new; however, older homes are offered in some areas. Some homes may require repairs.
How is buying a home owned or managed by Fannie Mae different from other home purchases?
Usually, when you buy a home, you deal with a seller who lives in the home. Fannie Mae has acquired these properties through foreclosure, deed in lieu of foreclosure, or forfeiture.
When buying a Fannie Mae-owned home, you should know the condition of the property, as explained in more detail below, the cost of any needed repairs, and the steps in the loan qualification and closing process before you enter into a purchase and sales agreement.
Has Fannie Mae fixed everything in the house?
Fannie Mae may make some repairs to properties to increase their marketability; however, the buyer should be aware that other repairs may be needed. Fannie Mae sells each property “as is,” which means that the buyer accepts the property “as is.” Fannie Mae is not responsible for fixing any problems after settlement.
Even if the house has fresh paint, brand new carpet, new appliances, perhaps even a new roof or siding, it doesn’t mean everything in the house is new, or even works.
Fannie Mae does not warrant or guarantee any work that may have been done on the property, whether as part of its efforts to sell the home or pursuant to conditions in the purchase contract. Where a home warranty is available, you may wish to buy it at your own expense.
You should also consider hiring a qualified professional to inspect the property, whether it has been repaired or not. Hiring a home inspector is a recommended practice, no matter what type of home you buy.
What can you tell me about this house?
If Fannie Mae knows of any hazards on properties they own or market, they disclose this information through their real estate listing agents. However, they may not have been informed by the previous owner of all hazards. They encourage you to have the property inspected by a professional before you buy.
What type of sales contract does Fannie Mae use?
Fannie Mae uses a state-specific real estate purchase contract and a real estate purchase addendum for their properties. If there is anything in the document you don’t understand or aren’t comfortable with, you may want to contact a real estate attorney, the real estate sales professional who has listed the property, or any real estate professional of your choice to review these documents with you.
Do I have to use Fannie Mae’s selected title, settlement, or escrow companies?
No. You may designate the title, settlement, or escrow company of your choice, subject to the terms of the contract.
Will Fannie Mae accept an offer contingent on the sale of my house?
No, Fannie Mae will not accept offers contingent on the sale of your current home. Other types of contingencies will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Why does Fannie Mae require a lender’s pre-qualification statement before negotiating a home purchase offer?
Fannie Mae wants to be sure that prospective buyers will be able to complete the sales transaction, including obtaining financing when needed. Pre-qualification allows you to see how much house you can afford and the mortgage amount you may be able to qualify for before you make an offer on a home. It also helps you focus on homes in an affordable price range.
A loan pre-qualification doesn’t mean your loan is approved. You must apply for a loan separately, after you are pre-qualified and your purchase offer is accepted. Some of my lenders allow a TBD (To Be Determined) Address approvals. Therefore, you may not need a home in contract before you can apply.
Does Fannie Mae provide special financing?
Special financing is available on many properties through HomePath® Mortgage and HomePath® Renovation Mortgage. Email me for more information.
Can I buy a house directly from Fannie Mae without going through a real estate sales professional?
No. Fannie Mae depends on the expertise of local real estate sales professionals and accepts offers only through their real estate listing agents. You may work with any real estate sales professional to submit an offer to the real estate agent who has listed the property.
What happens if Fannie Mae gets more than one offer?
All interested parties may be asked to submit their best offer in writing though the listing agent no later than a specified date and time. Fannie Mae may accept or provide a counteroffer that they determine to be in their best interest. Fannie Mae is not obligated to accept any offer submitted.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for providing this info.
I called Fannie Mae for further info as their site said, and found I need to submit three ’special forms” with an offer:
1. appliance incentives buyer form–to select appliances and colors, she said
2. appliance incentive price list
3. appliance incentive bid summary sheet [I copied down the form names as quick as I could--she didn't give me the form numbers, so I doubt they're online at FNMA's site.]
But neither I nor most others have time to shop around and decide on the exact model we want before submitting the offer, when a quick offer is needed on a desirable property. [I haven't seen the forms, but the form-names indicate they ask for detailed info like the specific appliance, price and the color.] Are they really that unreasonable? Don’t they let you turn in at closing or a few days before so the closing folks can do the numbers?
Do you know, do you have to pay the list price, or can you turn in a price from a discounter, so as to make your 3.5% go further.
I am getting no help from my agent OR the Fannie Mae selling broker.
Take care, gary
Great research Gary. You have some questions that I am unable to answer immediately, however, I will do my best to track down someone at Fannie Mae to see if I have better luck. It seems unreasonable to make it this difficult almost like getting free press and publicity for something unobtainable. Will get back to you shortly.
Jim W.
Gary B.got farther than I did. I received an E-Mail from Fannie Mae on the same day they accepted our offer on one of their home path homes telling of the new 3.5 incentive.Our realator,lender and I have made dozens of phone calls ,and sent E-Mails to Fannie Mae,over the past month and still have no info on what paper work we need to fill out.We have since closed on the property,and moved in.
I am fed up with them,and my next letter is going to our state attorney generals office.
found your site on del.icio.us today and really liked it.. i bookmarked it and will be back to check it out some more later
I was supposed to close on my Fannie Mae owned property yesterday. All of my paperwork has been approved, the title company has everything ready to go . The only problem is that Fannie Mae will not return calls/emails from the title company to give us the “green light ” to close. Now I have appliances and furniture and NO house to out them in. We were origianlly supposed to close on 4/30! I certainly hope my next home buying experience will be less traumatic.
April P,
Thanks for sharing. Well, I certainly hope we can stay connected for your next home buying experience. I’ll do everything I can to make it a happy event.
Jonas
Is that 3.5% in addition to anyhting that is negotiated, or do I specifically have to ask for it in my offer? We’ve looked at homepath.com and I’d like to know if the 3.5% comes after you’ve negoiated you best overall price for the house.
You must place this in your offer and the listing agent must provide the forms. They won’t have them, so use the forms on my site and you’ll be fine, but it must be mentioned so you are not going back on your original offer and changing it. Hope this helps.
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