Some good news for the folks Connecticut who apply for a jumbo mortgage in Fairfield County, Hartford County, Middlesex County and Tolland County. Both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have extended the conforming jumbo mortgage program through all of 2010.

Homeowners and potential ones have had the pleasure in these counties of having some really great mortgage rates for loans that are higher than the conventional mortgage limit of $417,000. In the past any loan higher than the conforming limit would be considered a jumbo mortgage and the mortgage rates were somewhat higher. The high balance conforming mortgage program allows borrowers in these counties to apply for higher loan amounts and the rates are close in comparison to that of a loan that is $417,000 or less.

Here is a list of the counties and the loan amounts that they can go up to:

Fairfield County:  $708,750

Hartford County:  $440,000

Middlesex County: $440,000

Tolland County:  $440,000

Today mortgage rates in Connecticut and the rest of the US for that matter are still under 5 percent. In fact for those that qualify today we are 4.75 percent for a 30 year fixed mortgage and paying ‘zero’ points. The question is how long will rates be here?

Mortgage rates are well off their fresh lows that bottomed out in the end of November and the first week of December and well up from the low 4’s in the spring of 2009.

The Federal Reserve has been a main component keeping rates where they are. In fact they are more than likely the main reason mortgage rates are still sub 5 percent. The thought behind that statement is as part of our economic bailout the Fed was the main buyer of mortgage backed securities making the mortgage rates almost artificially depressed to stimulate the housing market. Well in the coming months that is coming to an end and we will see the true test of the mortgage backed securities in the open market. Albeit sub 5 percent is not where we will be this summer.

The point here is if you are one of the many on the fence about refinancing or purchasing some will end up on the sub 5 percent side of the fence and then there will be those who unfortunately will be looking at 5 percent and higher. The time is now if the rate makes sense for you.

Starting the New Year for mortgage applicants in Connecticut and all of the U.S. will bring some change. The way borrowers will review their loan quotes via the GFE (good faith estimate) has been radically changed.

What borrowers and lenders have known and grown accustomed to is a single page GFE that line itemized all the fees associated with your loan. From bank and lender fees to attorney and escrow fees, it was all on one page to view. Here is an example of the “old GFE” . This is the “New GFE”. The bottom line is they are radically different.

I would be willing to bet that there will be a lot of consumers who will not readily grasp the new GFE. So here is a link to HUD explaining how to read the new GFE