So, you’re considering PHH Mortgage for your home lending needs. The company has been around for more than 30 years, so that’s understandable. But how much do you know about the lender? Let’s look at PHH Mortgage pros and cons.
PHH Mortgage Overview
The company offers a host of mortgage products and has experienced loan officers who can help guide you through the mortgage process. PHH is particularly good for first-time home buyers, people buying vacation or investment properties, and those looking to refinance.
Who is the Company Best For?
As we say, its staff of experienced representatives is a particularly suitable fit for many first-time home buyers who need help with navigation. In that way, PHH is best suited for those who like an educational approach.
The company’s also best for those who wish to refinance or who need a jumbo mortgage.
PHH Mortgage Pros
Here are some of the company’s overall highlights and features:
- The company has a full complement of educational resources on its website.
- Customers have several purchase and refinance options from which to choose.
- A partnership with insurance agency Matic makes products such as homeowner’s insurance available.
PHH Mortgage Cons
The few knocks against the company are:
- There’s no mobile application.
- There’s no digital mortgage process.
What Does PHH Mortgage Offer?
According to a PHH Mortgage review, the company offers most standard loan options except for USDA loans. It has loans for home purchases as well as re-fi. Let’s look closer.
Home Purchase Loans
These include:
- Conventional mortgages. Because they aren’t insured by a federal program, these mortgages typically require a higher credit score. The types of conventional loans are:
- Conforming loans. Insured by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, such loans are less of a lender risk. They also have loan caps based on an area’s housing prices.
- Nonconforming loans. These loans don’t meet Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae guidelines, and frequently go beyond conforming loan limits.
- Jumbo loans. These are nonconforming conventional loans that exceed the conforming loan cap in an area.
- Federal Housing Administration loans. Terms for such loans can reach 30 years. Your down payment can be as low as 3.5% but to qualify, you’ll need a debt-to-income (DTI) ratio – your total debt payments versus your gross monthly income — of no more than 43%.
- Department of Veterans Affairs loans. These VA-insured loans are available to active service members, veterans, and some surviving spouses. There’s no down payment required but, in most cases, you do need a DTI ratio of no more than 41%. To make sure you can handle the loan, the lender will assess your credit history and income.
Refinance Loans
Homeowners take out such loans when they wish to supplant their mortgage with a new one. They often do this to:
- Reduce their monthly payments.
- Reduce their interest rates.
- Improve mortgage terms.
- Pull cash from their home.
Average Days for Loan Closure
The term “closing” refers to the final step in the mortgage process, which basically involves you signing a bunch of paperwork then getting the keys to your new pad.
While PHH Mortgage doesn’t publicly disclose how long it usually takes its customers to close – the process can be lengthy — a peek at national averages gives you an idea of what to expect: As of last February, the average time to close for all mortgages was 43 days.
Now that you’re aware of some of the pros and cons of PHH Mortgage, you can make your next move with confidence. Get going today.
PHH Mortgage Pros and Cons is a feature post
Further reading
You might also like to read my post on reverse mortgages
