Risky Loans Get Harder To Come By

Some nontraditional mortgage loans have vanished from
lenders' menus, while others have gotten more expensive during an eventful week for
those in the mortgage industry.
But a looming credit crunch for riskier mortgage debt has not yet spilled over to
traditional, creditworthy borrowers, who can still obtain conventional financing at
market rates, mortgage lenders say.
"What we're seeing is because of the mess in the subprime market world right now. It
is definitely blowing over to the [parts of the] prime market," said Ginny Ferguson,
co-owner and broker of Heritage Valley Mortgage in Pleasanton, Calif.
It's the riskiest part of the nonsubprime market that is feeling the squeeze as the
secondary mortgage market has curbed its appetite for these loans.
Mortgage offerings changed daily this week as some companies took Alt-A loans off
the table...[Amy Hoak, MarketWatch, Aug 3, 2007]