The federal government officially shut down on October 1st after congressional leaders failed to come to a budget agreement. One question on the minds of many Americans is how will this shut down affect government-backed mortgages like FHA, VA, and USDA-RD loans.
The short answer to that question is: It depends on how long the shut down lasts. If government officials can sort things out in a week or so borrowers probably won’t even notice a difference. The longer the shut down lasts, the more it could delay mortgage closings. With the government shut down, agencies like the FHA and VA will be using only skeleton crews. The longer that happens the more loans will start backing up as those skeleton crews get overwhelmed with requests. Likewise, requests to the IRS for tax transcripts that are normally needed for any type of loan could start to be delayed.
So the upshot is, the sooner the federal government can get their acts together and come to some kind of compromise, the better it will be for you as you seek a government backed refinance or home purchase loan.
In the meantime, rates have dipped again over the last few weeks so now is a terrific time to get started on a refinance or a home purchase. If you get started now you can close your new loan after this shut down is over. Fill in the contact form on the right to get more information and to be pointed in the right direction to get started.