which loans are assumable?

FHA Loans are assumable as well as some conventional products, however you have to fully qualify.. the only benefit would be if the current loan has some really good terms.. very low interest rate, small loan balance, Etc... so by assuming this loan, you would have very low closing costs.. however with today's low interest rates, even if you had to pay for closing costs, it still might be worth it.. if you sit down with a qualified mortgage broker and let him look at the complete scenario, he can then advise you the best path to take.. .. I'm a Broker here in Scottsdale AZ and I only lend in Arizona. If you or someone you know is looking for financing options, feel free to contact me or pass along my information. 480-287-5714 WilliamAcres.com

So the answer is government loans are assumable (FHA, VA & USDA) and most adjustable rate mortgages are assumable during the adjustable portion of the loan. For example, if you have a 5/1 ARM, the loan is fixed for the first 5 years and generally not assumable at that point but in years 6-30 it is fully assumable. I agree that you should have a loan officer review your situation as it may make more sense to get a new loan.The guy who suggested assuming the loan subject to and that the bank may not call it and he offered to help...... that is called fraud and should be avoided. I am amazed that a loan officer would offer help with a fraudulent situation but the penalties could be large.

what type of loan do they currently have?

If they have an FHA loan, it can be assumed. Also, some Conventional ARM loans can be assumed. Have them get a copy of the Note and Mortgage for your review - or better yet have a real estate attorney look it over.

FHA and VA - but the person assuming the loan needs to qualify with the agency's.

You, or anyone else for that matter, can take over payments on a mortgage. You just start making the payments. This is called "taking a loan 'subject to'".This is prohibited by the fine print in the loan documents, which call for the loan to be paid in full, if you transfer the ownership deed, but very, very few, if any, lenders enforce this in today's market conditions, since the interest rate on this loan is probably higher than current rates. The biggest challenge is with the fire insurance, if you transfer ownership. Contact me directly at primefinancial@frontier.com, if you need help. I have done a number of properties this way myself.