Key Questions:

1. Who are the leading lenders in Santa Clara, California?
   1. The leading lenders, by market share, are Bank Of America, N.A., Washington Mutual Bank and Wells Fargo Bank, Na. Do you have the best rate possible? Find out your credit score or browse
2. How stretched will home owners in Santa Clara, California be in paying off their mortgage?
   1. Homeowners in Santa Clara, California borrowed an average of 2.59 times their annual income for their mortgage. This compares to 1.89 for all of the US. Based on the national average, a signficantly higher risk that Santa Clara, California homeowners will default on their mortgage payments in the coming years.
3. How likely are the owners of homes in Santa Clara, California to actually live in them?
   1. 93.0% of home owners in Santa Clara, California that applied for a mortgage in 2007 live in their homes versus owning them as an investment property. This compares to the national average of 89.7%.
4. How at risk is Santa Clara, California to the subprime mortgage crisis?
   1. There were significantly less subprime loans taken out by home owners in Santa Clara, California than the national average in 2007. That is to say, Santa Clara, California will be less affected by the subprime mortgage crisis in years to come as a lesser percentage of all mortgages in Santa Clara, California - 4.8% versus 7.2% - will reset to higher rates in 2009. This will mean that there will be less foreclosures caused by the reseting of subprime mortgages in Santa Clara, California than other areas of the US.