FHA Loan
The "What" and "Why" of FHA Loans
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) was established in 1934 to improve housing standards and conditions and to provide an adequate home financing system through insurance of mortgages. Families that would otherwise be excluded from the housing market were finally able to buy the homes of their dreams.
During the 1940s, FHA programs helped to finance military housing and then homes for returning veterans and their families.
In the '50s, '60s and '70s, FHA helped to stimulate the production of millions of units of privately owned apartments for elderly, handicapped, and lower income Americans. When soaring inflation and energy costs in the 1970s threatened the economic viability of thousands of private apartment buildings, FHA's emergency financing kept cash-strapped properties afloat.
When a deep recession prompted private mortgage insurers to pull out of oil producing states in the 1980s, FHA moved in to stabilize falling home prices. During the difficult '80s, FHA programs made it possible for potential homebuyers to get the financing they needed.
When you start researching FHA loans you’ll learn a lot about getting an FHA mortgage and the process of applying. But even with all the information you can find on the Internet, there’s plenty of confusion to clear up about FHA loans.
If you want to refinance your home mortgage using an FHA refinancing loan, it’s important to understand a few facts at the start of the application process. FHA refinancing is different than the FHA HOPE for Homeowners refinancing program.