National Mortgage Insurance Corporation and Freedom Mortgage Corporation have teamed up to help more borrowers qualify for mortgage loans by expanding Freedom Mortgage’s lending capacity for loans with higher loan-to-value (LTV) ratios. By making National MI an approved provider of private mortgage insurance, Freedom Mortgage is now able to offer its customers more loan options. Freedom Mortgage is a privately held, full-service mortgage lender licensed in all 50 states.
Private mortgage insurance is typically required on mortgages with loan-to-value (LTV) ratios of greater than 80 percent.
“We’re very pleased to be an approved mortgage insurance provider for Freedom Mortgage,” said Bradley Shuster, president and CEO of National MI. “With the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) reducing its role in the mortgage market, we believe today’s lenders are looking for new private-capital alternatives to help qualify more borrowers and to close loans quickly. We’re happy that Freedom, a large national and quickly-growing lender, is choosing to work with National MI.”
The FHA is decreasing the role it plays in providing mortgage insurance to borrowers, Shuster noted, making the availability of private mortgage insurance more important to American homeowners. In a recent report to Congress on FHA’s financial status for fiscal year 2013, HUD stated “As the housing market has recovered and private credit has begun to return, FHA’s market footprint has steadily declined from its peak in 2009, as expected.”
The return of the purchase market is also driving demand for private mortgage insurance, Shuster said. “We expect that the role of private mortgage insurance will grow as purchase loans continue to gain market share relative to refinances,” Shuster said.
“At Freedom, part of our commitment to service is helping our customers find solutions that address their unique needs, and that can include private mortgage insurance,” said Stan Middleman, CEO of Freedom Mortgage. “Our close relationship with National MI helps us to further expand the options available to our customers, particularly those with down payments less than 20 percent.”
