Home Buyers Benefit From Government Loan Programs

DALLAS, TX--(Marketwire - April 3, 2008) - National mortgage bank lending.com is now a Direct Endorsement lender with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), a designation that better enables companies to offer unique government loan programs to consumers.

The Direct Endorsement program gives lenders the privilege to directly offer government insured loans to customers without prior HUD review. This privilege is afforded to a small number of mortgage companies who have continuously demonstrated the ability to originate loans in compliance with HUD underwriting guidelines and policies.

"This is more than just HUD's recognition of our good business practices," says Carrie Kelleher, chief operating officer of lending.com. "This is yet another tool that allows us to respond to our customers quickly and with a greater number of flexible loan programs."

As conventional banking institutions tighten loan qualifications in response to the sub-prime crisis, government programs become increasingly attractive to consumers, especially first-time buyers and those looking to refinance.

"People are concerned they're not going to be able to take advantage of the great rates that are out there today," says Kelleher. "There is a strong tendency to refinance now and government programs have stepped in where private markets are still a little gun shy."

To date, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has 4.8 million insured single family mortgages in its portfolio. In addition to standard FHA loans which offer easy qualifying guidelines, minimal closing costs and low down payments there are also programs that offer no down payment options.

"Consumers are looking for alternatives today," says Kelleher. "The market is pushing buyers to explore their options and they are becoming more intelligent in how they purchase which makes the Direct Endorsement approval significant."

Learn more about FHA programs and other lending options at: http://www.lending.com.

Contact Information: Media Contact: Amy Summers 727-848-1618 ext. 202 Pitch Inc.