Bellingham FHA Loans

BELLINGHAM, WA

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    • FHA loans are mortgages created in the 1930's to help insulate lenders from credit risks and help promote home ownership. The Federal Housing Administration (hence, FHA) allows for lower downpayments and credit scores-- making these loans much more accessible than traditional mortgages.

    FHA loans typically need just a 3.5% downpayment with credit scores of 580 or better. For credit scores between 500-579, the downpayment needs to be at least 10%.

    While FHA loans make home ownership much more accessible to first-time homebuyers, they do require PMI (purchase money insurance)-- an additional insurance premium that is paid to the FHA to help cover defaults.

    For additional requirements as defined by the FHA, click here.

    Bellingham's 71 lenders originated 593 FHA loans during 2021. The total origination value was $190,475,000, with an average FHA loan value of $321,206.

    Bellingham FHA Loans, 30 Year Fixed Rates

    30 Year FHA mortgages in Bellingham averaged 5.44% for the week of 2022-05-13, compared to the national average (all FHA variants) of 5.361% for the same period.

    The average rate for the prior week (2022-05-06) was 5.07% and one month ago for the week of 2022-04-08, the average rate was 4.73%.

    The average rate one year ago was 3.14%.

    For refis of the same type during the week of 2022-05-13, the average rate was 4.87%.

    Click on whitespace and scroll within the chart to zoom in/out. Larger bubbles equate with more originations.

    Bellingham FHA Loan Lenders by Rates & Fees

    The below table looks at the average fees and rates for FHA 30 Year Fixed Rate (purchase, first lien) mortgages originated by each lender at the Bellingham level.

    Name # of Loans 2021 Avg. 30yFix Rate 2021 Avg. Total Fees
    CALIBER HOME LOANS, INC. 144 3.12% $10,911
    Umpqua Bank 29 2.78% $11,369
    QUICKEN LOANS, LLC 20 2.56% $7,647
    HOMEBRIDGE FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. 20 2.74% $9,208
    GUILD MORTGAGE COMPANY 17 2.98% $8,717
    Peoples Bank 14 3.09% $10,859
    HOME POINT FINANCIAL CORPORATION 13 2.43% $9,237
    MID AMERICA MORTGAGE, INC. 13 2.82% $4,712
    LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING, LLC 12 3.01% $5,486
    MOVEMENT MORTGAGE, LLC 11 3.19% $8,171
    Bank of the Pacific 10 2.58% $10,244
    UNITED WHOLESALE MORTGAGE, LLC 9 2.89% $9,389
    Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC 8 2.97% $9,065
    FAIRWAY INDEPENDENT MORTGAGE CORPORATION 8 3.25% $11,443
    Mr. Cooper ( Nationstar Mortgage ) 7 2.91% $4,339
    FREEDOM MORTGAGE CORPORATION 7 2.63% $6,726
    VILLAGE CAPITAL & INVESTMENT LLC 6 2.90% $3,434
    AMERICAN FINANCIAL RESOURCES, INC. 5 2.75% $13,888
    BROKER SOLUTIONS, INC. 4 3.40% $12,301
    PENNYMAC LOAN SERVICES, LLC 4 3.03% $8,720
    NEWREZ LLC 4 2.78% $7,401
    LOANDEPOT.COM, LLC 3 3.00% $9,768
    CANOPY MORTGAGE, LLC 3 2.83% $10,279
    Alaska USA Federal Credit Union 3 2.88% $7,715
    Alaska USA Mortgage Company LLC 3 2.88% $7,715
    FINANCE OF AMERICA MORTGAGE LLC 2 3.56% $9,170
    BKCO MORTGAGE, LLC 2 3.69% $9,296
    EVERGREEN MONEYSOURCE MORTGAGE COMPANY 2 3.25% $15,492
    GUARANTEED RATE, INC. 2 3.19% $9,706
    KeyBank 2 3.38% $9,512
    LEADERONE FINANCIAL CORPORATION 2 3.06% $10,722
    PRIMARY RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE, INC. 2 3.19% $11,632
    RANLIFE, INC. 2 2.81% $10,346
    SOVEREIGN LENDING GROUP INCORPORATED 2 2.56% $8,228
    SUMMIT FUNDING, INC. 2 4.06% $9,971
    The Federal Savings Bank 2 2.81% $12,945
    Wells Fargo Bank 2 3.44% $5,698
    CROSSCOUNTRY MORTGAGE, LLC 1 3.25% $11,355
    TOP FLITE FINANCIAL, INC. 1 3.75% $19,548
    CORNERSTONE HOME LENDING, INC. 1 2.75% $11,341
    LOANLEADERS OF AMERICA, INC. 1 3.38% $20,135
    CITY FIRST MORTGAGE SERVICES, L.L.C. 1 3.75% $7,031
    MORIA DEVELOPMENT, INC. 1 3.63% $13,108
    MOUNTAIN AMERICA 1 2.25% $13,841
    CHURCHILL MORTGAGE CORPORATION 1 3.13% $11,054
    Chickasaw Community Bank 1 2.25% $8,212
    Nations Lending Corporation 1 3.50% $10,536
    CARDINAL FINANCIAL COMPANY, LIMITED PARTNERSHIP 1 2.50% $8,104
    NFM, INC. 1 2.88% $13,582
    OCEANSIDE MORTGAGE COMPANY 1 2.99% $1,388
    BAY EQUITY LLC 1 2.99% $10,650
    PENRITH HOME LOANS LLC 1 2.63% $11,155
    Banner Bank 1 3.00% $10,286
    Peoples Bank 1 3.63% $9,910
    PLANET HOME LENDING, LLC 1 2.50% $8,311
    PREMIER MORTGAGE RESOURCES, L.L.C. 1 3.13% $10,539
    Amerifirst Financial, Inc. 1 3.50% $8,562
    PRIMELENDING, A PLAINSCAPITAL COMPANY 1 3.38% $15,254
    AMERISAVE MORTGAGE CORPORATION 1 3.00% $10,180
    AMERICAN FINANCING CORPORATION 1 2.25% $9,554
    Sierra Pacific Mortgage Company, Inc. 1 3.00% $9,162
    AMERICAN FINANCIAL NETWORK, INC. 1 3.00% $13,453
    Flagstar Bank, FSB 1 2.30% $12,084
    ACADEMY MORTGAGE CORPORATION 1 3.25% $8,117
    Gateway First Bank 1 3.88% $9,173
    Willamette Valley Bank 1 3.25% $11,112
    FAY SERVICING, LLC 1 3.13% $7,667
    DIRECTORS MORTGAGE, INC. 1 2.75% $17,289
    DATA MORTGAGE, INC. 1 4.00% $8,820
    WESTERN EXPRESS LENDING 1 2.99% $7,450
    Lakeview Community Capital, LLC 1 3.25% $3,108

    The top Bellingham FHA lender as defined by loan originations is CALIBER HOME LOANS, INC., with 144 FHA loans originated. Their average total fees are $10,911, which is $459 lower than the next largest lender, Umpqua Bank.

    The lowest fee Bellingham FHA lenders (with over 10 loans originated) are MID AMERICA MORTGAGE, INC. ($4,712), LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING, LLC ($5,486), QUICKEN LOANS, LLC ($7,647), MOVEMENT MORTGAGE, LLC ($8,171) and GUILD MORTGAGE COMPANY ($8,717).

    The lowest rate Bellingham FHA lenders (with over 10 loans originated) are HOME POINT FINANCIAL CORPORATION (2.43%), QUICKEN LOANS, LLC (2.56%), Bank of the Pacific (2.58%), HOMEBRIDGE FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. (2.74%) and Umpqua Bank (2.78%).

    Bellingham FHA Loan Limits

    Metro County Year Single Family Limit 2 Family Limit 3 Family Limit 4 Family Limit
    BELLINGHAM, WA WHATCOM 2022 $514,050 $658,050 $795,450 $988,550

    Market Conditions (Median, Average Prices & Listing Count)

    Realtor.com - Bellingham (CBSA) retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
    Date Median Listing Price (YoY Change) Average Listing Price (YoY) MSA/US Median Price Ratio Active Listings
    2018-01-01 $419,944 (7.1%) $516,333 (-4.8%) 1.55 459
    2018-02-01 $425,000 (9.2%) $491,602 (-9.1%) 1.53 446
    2018-03-01 $425,000 (8.4%) $498,923 (-7.0%) 1.47 463
    2018-04-01 $437,000 (10.6%) $509,728 (-4.9%) 1.47 488
    2018-05-01 $444,950 (12.1%) $530,279 (0.7%) 1.48 535
    2018-06-01 $449,000 (12.5%) $538,308 (2.5%) 1.50 596
    2018-07-01 $437,000 (4.1%) $531,515 (-1.1%) 1.46 631
    2018-08-01 $422,500 (1.3%) $523,910 (-2.1%) 1.41 663
    2018-09-01 $429,000 (4.6%) $533,600 (0.4%) 1.43 680
    2018-10-01 $425,000 (1.4%) $557,257 (6.3%) 1.42 667
    2018-11-01 $419,250 (1.0%) $551,381 (7.0%) 1.41 642
    2018-12-01 $414,900 (0.0%) $553,389 (8.6%) 1.42 576
    2019-01-01 $415,950 (-1.0%) $559,790 (8.4%) 1.43 503
    2019-02-01 $427,000 (0.5%) $565,661 (15.1%) 1.43 504
    2019-03-01 $429,386 (1.0%) $564,858 (13.2%) 1.40 531
    2019-04-01 $432,450 (-1.0%) $567,291 (11.3%) 1.36 573
    2019-05-01 $447,500 (0.6%) $578,077 (9.0%) 1.38 620
    2019-06-01 $450,000 (0.2%) $573,371 (6.5%) 1.39 680
    2019-07-01 $449,475 (2.9%) $566,532 (6.6%) 1.40 716
    2019-08-01 $449,429 (6.4%) $561,565 (7.2%) 1.41 745
    2019-09-01 $449,929 (4.9%) $561,629 (5.3%) 1.43 764
    2019-10-01 $448,000 (5.4%) $559,041 (0.3%) 1.43 863
    2019-11-01 $450,000 (7.3%) $562,678 (2.1%) 1.45 776
    2019-12-01 $439,000 (5.8%) $549,591 (-0.7%) 1.46 662
    2020-01-01 $444,900 (7.0%) $576,568 (3.0%) 1.48 541
    2020-02-01 $449,750 (5.3%) $565,573 (0.0%) 1.45 511
    2020-03-01 $447,000 (4.1%) $561,702 (-0.6%) 1.40 558
    2020-04-01 $441,950 (2.2%) $551,900 (-2.7%) 1.38 618
    2020-05-01 $445,000 (-0.6%) $547,590 (-5.3%) 1.35 655
    2020-06-01 $454,950 (1.1%) $571,943 (-0.3%) 1.33 677
    2020-07-01 $471,975 (5.0%) $594,547 (5.0%) 1.35 675
    2020-08-01 $465,000 (3.5%) $587,521 (4.6%) 1.33 613
    2020-09-01 $459,900 (2.2%) $579,529 (3.2%) 1.31 558
    2020-10-01 $467,500 (4.4%) $602,698 (7.8%) 1.34 515
    2020-11-01 $447,950 (-0.5%) $596,814 (6.1%) 1.28 341
    2020-12-01 $449,500 (2.4%) $585,324 (6.5%) 1.32 302
    2021-01-01 $439,900 (-1.1%) $604,906 (4.9%) 1.29 243
    2021-02-01 $437,450 (-2.7%) $627,126 (10.9%) 1.26 245
    2021-03-01 $474,450 (6.1%) $643,675 (14.6%) 1.33 240
    2021-04-01 $499,450 (13.0%) $678,259 (22.9%) 1.34 240
    2021-05-01 $525,000 (18.0%) $721,166 (31.7%) 1.38 260
    2021-06-01 $545,000 (19.8%) $744,865 (30.2%) 1.42 288
    2021-07-01 $591,950 (25.4%) $822,420 (38.3%) 1.54 258
    2021-08-01 $625,000 (34.4%) $829,653 (41.2%) 1.64 279
    2021-09-01 $624,925 (35.9%) $837,515 (44.5%) 1.64 270
    2021-10-01 $600,000 (28.3%) $803,688 (33.4%) 1.58 269
    2021-11-01 $619,500 (38.3%) $807,039 (35.2%) 1.63 226
    2021-12-01 $599,900 (33.5%) $823,382 (40.7%) 1.60 154
    2022-01-01 $579,900 (31.8%) $877,449 (45.1%) 1.55 116
    2022-02-01 $663,500 (51.7%) $945,176 (50.7%) 1.69 121
    2022-03-01 $649,750 (37.0%) $917,217 (42.5%) 1.60 157
    2022-04-01 $649,950 (30.1%) $862,110 (27.1%) 1.53 207
    Bellingham's median listing price for 2022-04-01 was $649,950, a difference of $150,500 (30.1%) versus the prior year and $200 versus the prior month.

    Bellingham's median listing price comes in at 153% of the national average.

    Bellingham's average listing price for 2022-04-01 was $862,110, a difference of $183,851 (27.1%) versus the prior year and $-55,107 versus the prior month.

    For the 2022-04-01 period, Bellingham had 207 MLS listings, a difference of 50 listings (32%) versus the prior month and -33 listings (-14%) versus the prior year.

    Median Listing Time on Market & Square Footage

    Realtor.com - Bellingham (CBSA) retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
    Date Median Listing Time on Market Median Square Footage
    2018-01-01 89 days 1,901 sqft
    2018-02-01 83 days 1,905 sqft
    2018-03-01 51 days 1,870 sqft
    2018-04-01 46 days 1,890 sqft
    2018-05-01 41 days 1,938 sqft
    2018-06-01 39 days 1,960 sqft
    2018-07-01 45 days 1,942 sqft
    2018-08-01 44 days 1,880 sqft
    2018-09-01 51 days 1,870 sqft
    2018-10-01 58 days 1,941 sqft
    2018-11-01 61 days 1,889 sqft
    2018-12-01 72 days 1,826 sqft
    2019-01-01 76 days 1,831 sqft
    2019-02-01 69 days 1,917 sqft
    2019-03-01 58 days 1,880 sqft
    2019-04-01 33 days 1,842 sqft
    2019-05-01 42 days 1,894 sqft
    2019-06-01 44 days 1,920 sqft
    2019-07-01 50 days 1,936 sqft
    2019-08-01 52 days 1,922 sqft
    2019-09-01 56 days 1,924 sqft
    2019-10-01 63 days 1,893 sqft
    2019-11-01 70 days 1,910 sqft
    2019-12-01 82 days 1,839 sqft
    2020-01-01 98 days 1,834 sqft
    2020-02-01 98 days 1,832 sqft
    2020-03-01 54 days 1,836 sqft
    2020-04-01 45 days 1,791 sqft
    2020-05-01 56 days 1,820 sqft
    2020-06-01 62 days 1,825 sqft
    2020-07-01 51 days 1,874 sqft
    2020-08-01 51 days 1,824 sqft
    2020-09-01 50 days 1,780 sqft
    2020-10-01 50 days 1,824 sqft
    2020-11-01 63 days 1,717 sqft
    2020-12-01 78 days 1,636 sqft
    2021-01-01 97 days 1,565 sqft
    2021-02-01 74 days 1,590 sqft
    2021-03-01 50 days 1,635 sqft
    2021-04-01 44 days 1,640 sqft
    2021-05-01 35 days 1,702 sqft
    2021-06-01 33 days 1,762 sqft
    2021-07-01 35 days 1,850 sqft
    2021-08-01 36 days 1,896 sqft
    2021-09-01 36 days 1,939 sqft
    2021-10-01 35 days 1,899 sqft
    2021-11-01 40 days 1,895 sqft
    2021-12-01 51 days 1,860 sqft
    2022-01-01 46 days 1,701 sqft
    2022-02-01 31 days 1,941 sqft
    2022-03-01 26 days 1,868 sqft
    2022-04-01 23 days 1,857 sqft
    Bellingham's median listing age (time on market) for 2022-04-01 was 23 days. This is -48% shorter than the same period one year ago.

    Bellingham's median square footage for active listings during the 2022-04-01 period was 1,857 sqft. One year prior, the average listing was 1,640 sqft.

    FHA Loan Requirements

  • Borrowers must have a steady employment history or worked for the same employer for the past two years.
  • Borrowers must have a valid Social Security number, lawful residency in the U.S. and be of legal age to sign a mortgage in your state.
  • Borrowers must pay a minimum down payment of 3.5 percent. The money may be gifted by a family member. (Traditional mortgages do not permit gifted down payments)
  • New FHA loans are only available for primary residence occupancy.
  • Borrowers must have a property appraisal from a FHA-approved appraiser.
  • Borrowers’ front-end ratio (mortgage payment plus HOA fees, property taxes, mortgage insurance, homeowners insurance) needs to be less than 31 percent of their gross income, typically. You may be able to get approved with as high a percentage as 40 percent. Your lender will be required to provide justification as to why they believe the mortgage presents an acceptable risk. The lender must include any compensating factors used for loan approval.
  • Borrowers’ debt to income ratio (mortgage plus all your monthly debt, i.e., credit card payment, car payment, student loans, etc.) needs to be less than 43 percent of their gross income, typically. You may be able to get approved with as high a percentage as 50 percent.
  • Borrowers must have a minimum credit score of 580 for maximum financing with a minimum down payment of 3.5 percent.
  • Borrowers must have a minimum credit score of 500-579 for maximum LTV of 90 percent with a minimum down payment of 10 percent.
  • Bborrowers must be two years out of bankruptcy and have re-established good credit. Exceptions can be made.
  • Typically borrowers must be three years out of foreclosure and have re-established good credit.
  • The purchased property must meet certain minimum standards at appraisal. If the home you are purchasing does not meet these standards and a seller will not agree to the required repairs, your only option is to pay for the required repairs at closing (to be held in escrow until the repairs are complete).