With the meltdown in the subprime lending business there is a unique opportunity for MassHousing lenders to reach out to those subprime borrowers who may have qualified for mortgage financing through any one of MassHousing's mortgage programs for low- and moderate-income homebuyers. MassHousing combines products and guidelines that create safe, affordable and sustainable financing options for low- and moderate-income homebuyers purchasing a home or refinancing an existing mortgage. MassHousing's programs reach well beyond the traditional first-time homebuyers and now include financing programs for borrowers moving up to their second or third home, as well as homeowners looking to refinance out of an exotic mortgage loan.
We are surprised by the number of mortgage brokers who are accessing our programs through third party relationships with direct lenders. At the end of October third-party originators outnumbered direct lenders for the first time in MassHousing's history.
Once thought of as only a first-time homebuyer program offered through community banks, MassHousing is much more. Those lenders who recognize the benefits of our programs for their customers may be able to take advantage of a unique opportunity to use those programs to recapture business lost to subprime and predatory lenders. With the flight to quality taking place in the market, opportunity is knocking.