Key Questions:

1. How at risk is California to the subprime mortgage crisis?
   1. Loans taken out by home owners in California are within a +/- 10 percent band of the national average. That is to say, California will likely be affected by the subprime mortgage crisis just like the average county in the US.
2. How stretched will home owners in California be in paying off their mortgage?
   1. Homeowners in California borrowed an average of 2.31 times their annual income for their mortgage. This compares to 1.83 for all of the US. Based on the national average, a signficantly higher risk that California homeowners will default on their mortgage payments in the coming years.
3. Who are the leading lenders in California?
   1. The leading lenders, by market share, are Countrywide Home Loans, Washington Mutual Bank and Wells Fargo Bank, Na. Do you have the best rate possible? Get quotes from mortgage lenders.
4. How likely are the owners of homes in California to actually live in them?
   1. 90.9% of home owners in California that applied for a mortgage in 2006 live in their homes versus owning them as an investment property. This compares to the national average of 89.0%.