We closed on our home August 28, 2008. We secured a loan through Aimloan.com referenced in this post by another poster within the last week of August. They finished our loan in 3 days if you belive it or not. We got approved by Wells Fargo in August as well and they weren’t requiring 15% down.
The lending standards haven’t gotten as tight as you think. I can give you several examples of how lax lending still is.
The main reason lenders are requiring a higher downpayment is because they can’t find an Insurance company to provide the mortgage insurance.
