Mortgage Resources
Mortgage resources
WRA resources
- Legal Updates — Mortgage Banking
- Legal Updates — Mortgage Foreclosure
- Legal Hottips — Mortgage Banking/Finance
- May 2023 Wisconsin Real Estate Magazine article: "Adjustable-rate Mortgages: What You Need to Know"
- May 2023 Wisconsin Real Estate Magazine article: "The Best of the Legal Hotline: Where's the Money, Lebowski?"
WHEDA resources
- WHEDA webpage: "Mortgage Lending — Getting Started"
Credit and homeownership counseling resources
Encourage homebuyers, especially first-time homebuyers and homebuyers with no credit history or a marginal credit standing, to attend credit-counseling classes:
Down payment assistance
- May 2023 Wisconsin Real Estate Magazine article: "Down Payment Assistance Programs"
- WHEDA webpage: "First Mortgage and Down Payment Assistance Programs"
- Bankrate.com article: "Wisconsin First-time Homebuyer Assistance Programs"
- Home Buyers Round Table
- Housing Resources Inc.
Consumer information
- WRA brochure: "First-time Homebuyer Guide"
- MyMoney.gov
- WRA mortgage calculator
Reverse mortgages
- AARP webpage: "Reverse Mortgage Spotlight"
- Wis. Stat. § 138.058: Reverse mortgage loans
Credit reports and credit score resources
Buyers should be encouraged to find out their credit score and obtain a copy of their credit report from a national credit reporting agency. The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act allows consumers to get one free comprehensive disclosure of all of the information in their credit file from each of the three national credit reporting agencies once every 12 months through a central source: See the FTC's "Free Credit Reports" webpage.
Consumers can obtain FICO credit scores and credit reports from the following websites, which may require a fee:
Foreclosure resources
Foreclosure and fraud
Foreclosure and short sales
- July 2022 Legal Update: "Ending Tax Foreclosure Equity Theft"
- March 2021 Legal Update: "Top 10 Pointers for Short Sales and Foreclosures"
- June 2013 Legal Update: "Short Sales Streamlined"
- March 2009 Legal Update: "Working with Distressed Sales"
- July 2009 Legal Update: "Solving the Mysteries of Short Sales"
- January 2008 Legal Update: "Short Sales: A Risky Business"
Foreclosure prevention
REO resources
- WRA-REO form: Information for Buyers About Bank (Foreclosure) Property
Predatory Lending Resources
- WRA consumer brochure: "Predatory Lending"