Innovation is alive and well in the mortgage business, where Carrington Mortgage Services, NorthstarMLS and Privlo have all introduced new products recently. Even global property information and analytics firm CoreLogic is in the game.

Privlo, a venture capital-backed "alternative" lender, has financing for credit-worthy borrowers -- like former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, and even yours truly -- whose careers, lifestyles or finances are just too difficult for traditional lenders to wrap their heads around.

People with uneven or seasonal incomes, for example, should qualify. So should self-employed entrepreneurs, or borrowers with a single blemish on their credit records.

"Borrowers have changed dramatically in the last couple of decades," says Privlo CEO Michael Slavin. "There's an entire class of solo operators, freelancers, small-business owners and even just regular folks who are much more credit-worthy than their tax returns might show."

Slavin also says that folks in more traditional professions such as nursing and law are also being turned down "when in fact they are extremely well-qualified." All of these people are "positively contributing to our economy," he says, and should be able to buy a home just like the generations who went before them.

According to the Los Angles-based company, there are nearly 18 million independent workers nationwide, an indication that Americans are redefining what the typical career looks like. And small businesses account for some 90 percent of all U.S. businesses.

Privlo intends to reach these folks with a technology-based platform and business process that better qualifies them, taking into account a far greater number of factors than their personal history and future financial prospects. It also considers alternative documentation and "career-specific" factors.

The company is currently making loans in Idaho, Colorado, Texas, Tennessee, Maryland, Minnesota and Virginia, with more states on the way.

You can see if you are a candidate for a "Privloan" at privlo.com.

Carrington, meanwhile, says it is offering "a more transparent, simplified" lending process with no closing costs or upfront financing fees. The Santa Ana, California-based company, which has a national footprint, pays all the "eligible" upfront costs, and also covers any unexpected increases in estimated closing costs.

"Many underserved borrowers, including first-time buyers, still view the path to a mortgage as unattainable, complex and often cumbersome," says Executive Vice President Ray Brousseau. "The Carrington Loan simplifies the process and improves the experience to help remove the anxiety."

Earlier this year, the company lowered its acceptable FICO score to 550, and expanded its guidelines on a number of FHA, VA and USDA loan programs by extending eligibility to more property types and reducing add-on costs known as "overlays." It also developed a patent-pending online educational resource designed to improve borrower financial literacy.

The Carrington Mortgage is a government-insured loan program. Any upfront mortgage insurance or funding fees that may be required can either be rolled into the loan amount or paid in cash at closing. Borrowers will also be responsible for services they request -- such as rate locks or home warranties -- that are not required as part of the loan.

To find out more, visit thecarringtonloan.com.

NorthstarMLS's new program isn't for borrowers; at least, not directly. But its new True Lifestyle Cost tool will allow real estate agents to show their clients the true cost of home ownership, including costs that are often ignored or forgotten, such as commuting costs, utility bills and day care fees.

NorthstarMLS is a multiple-listing service used by more than 14,300 agents and brokers in Minnesota and Western Wisconsin. (It should not be confused with Lewisville, Texas-based lender Nationstar Mortgage.) The service says it is in the process of rolling out the true cost platform, and will make a variety of resources available to help agents learn how to use it.

CoreLogic's new CondoSafe database isn't for buyers directly, either. But it should help open up the stagnant condo market, in that it will help lenders and secondary investors more easily determine if a condominium project meets their criteria.

The Federal Housing Administration, for example, has all but banned condo loans. It will back mortgages in condo projects only if the property has cleared a certification process that examines budgets, reserves, insurance coverage, percentage of renters in the development and delinquencies on payment of condo fees.

Currently, lenders must identify and then query each condo association to ascertain whether the rules have been followed. "This can be a time-consuming 'chase and place process' that can stretch out the underwriting process and add $500 or more to the cost" of making the loan, says Arlene Hyde, a CoreLogic senior vice president.

And if the information they receive back is inaccurate or misinterpreted, the loan application could be rejected.

CondoSafe solicits and stores information from more than 140,000 condo associations. Initially, the program will provide lenders with alerts based on apparent conflicts with investor guidelines. But in the future, it will be able to compare data to historical statements and validate the information.

In light of the recent murder of Arkansas real estate agent Beverly Carter, it is interesting to note how agents protect themselves when meeting strangers at open houses and showings.

According to Moby's 2011 Real Estate Report, most realty pros -- more than 90 percent -- consider their phones to be their first line of defense against attackers. But 15 percent of all male agents carry a gun, and almost 10 percent carry knives.

Women tend to be a tad less bold. Only 5 percent carry guns. But 25 percent have mace or pepper spray in their purses, and 13 percent wield a Taser, something no men reported carrying.

Admittedly, these stats are a little old. You have to wonder what the percentages are now, after Carter's death.

Incidentally, there are several safety-related phone apps on the market, which may be why most agents feel safe with their smartphones.

The latest is called PerpAlert. It costs $2 annually, and was designed by three Southern California fathers who were concerned about their own families' well-being.

Without getting too technical, PerpAlert works something like this:

Aim your phone at a threatening person, press the button and the phone takes a photo of the potential bad guy, stamped with the time, date and your precise GPS coordinates. The photos are instantly sent to up to three people you designate in advance.

With the phone in hand, you can announce what has just happened.

Hopefully, that will be enough to convince the creep that you are not an easy target.

Jody Eldred of Los Angeles bought the app for his wife, and is recommending it to "everyone I know, especially women. (It's) cheap protection for two bucks, and it can be used by law enforcement as evidence if a crime is committed."

LOWBALL APPRAISALS ON THE RISE

In another sign of the times, technology company Platinum Data Solutions reports that 17 percent of appraisals on purchase transactions come back with a value less than the contract price.

That means nearly 1 in 5 deals are likely to fall through because buyers have agreed, in principal, to pay more than the house is really worth.

Appraisers are often at odds with buyers, sellers and their agents, who complain that valuers are being too conservative. While they want accurate valuations, lenders also gripe about low appraisals.

A high percentage of lowball appraisals could mean that home values have stabilized in that particular market. Conversely, it could indicate that values are declining; nobody but the appraiser knows which one. And that's why numbers like these need to be followed closely.

LIFE STAGES INFLUENCE HOUSING TRENDS

The share of 25- to 29-year-olds who are married is down, way down -- it's 48 percent lower for men than it was in 1970, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and 43 percent lower for women.

Mollie Carmichael of John Burns Real Estate Consulting says that fact alone is "one of the biggest game-changers" for housing.

Changes in marital status are "huge," according to Carmichael, a principal in the Irvine, California-based consulting firm. "The housing market is unquestionably fueled by life stages, particularly the change in marital status and the addition or subtraction of children," she wrote online.

Here are the five life stages of homebuyers, identified by Carmichael:

-- Unmarried. Singles are more likely to rent and live in locations that are closer to entertainment and employment, which is why these areas are more in demand today than usual.

-- Togetherness. Cohabitation has been on the rise in recent decades, but homeownership rates for these couples are much lower than rates for their married counterparts.

-- Marriage. Marriage often increases the desire to own a home; many location and housing choices depend on income and nearby family.

-- Children. The addition of little ones makes owning a home feel like a necessity for many, given the desire for yards, good schools and social circles for the kids.

-- Children moving out. An empty nest often results in lifestyle changes, including different home-size preferences, social circles and floor plan needs. Locational preferences also begin to shift.

MORTGAGE RATE FALLS HALF A POINT

Since the beginning of the year, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate has fallen about a half point, from 4.3 percent to 3.8 percent, according to Zillow. A half point may not seem like a lot, but it can translate into significant savings on a monthly basis and over the life of a loan.

For example, a buyer who started shopping at the beginning of the year for a $375,000 house could buy a $400,000 house now for the same monthly payment -- an extra $25,000 of spending power.

Consequently, buyers who started shopping just two or three months ago may want to run their "affordability" numbers again. They could now be looking too low.

Homebuyers are often in for a rude awakening when they receive their first property tax bill after they move in.

That's when they discover that the tax estimated at closing was just that: an estimate. More often than not, the estimate was not only off, it was way off -- by hundreds or perhaps even thousands of dollars.

Sometimes the bill is estimated by the real estate agent, who wants to show a low monthly payment so the place looks more affordable. Sometimes the agent simply goes off the seller's tax bill, not bothering to even hazard a guess of what the new tax bill will be when the house changes hands. Other times, the title company folks get it wrong. Even when they do their level best to get the number right, they are sometimes incorrect.

Whatever the case, the result is the same: The new owners are hit with higher house payments that they can't avoid. Unless they choose to sell and move on, they are stuck.

"Mistakes in property tax estimates can be much more than an inconvenience," says Mark Collins of Black Knight Financial Services. "In some cases, they can be devastating. Any unexpected and significant monetary obligation can create a substantial financial hardship."

Any number of things can drive up your property tax bill. The most likely event is a new and higher sales price, which means the value of the property has gone up. Another possibility: A pending assessment of property renovations or improvements is not yet reflected in the assessed value. Or an inaccurate or out-of-date tax record, overlooked until the property changed hands, may now be corrected.

The point here is this: Homebuyers shouldn't take anyone's word for it when it comes to their future property taxes. A little homework is in order.

Unfortunately, coming up with an accurate estimate can be difficult because there are so many variables to consider at the local, regional and state level, says Collins. There isn't any single solution that fits all states, since each state's tax rules -- and those of the jurisdictions within them -- present their own set of unique challenges.

The good news is that many jurisdictions offer free tax estimators on their websites. For example, Montgomery County, Maryland, has an estimator based on the address of the property and the tax account number for the most recent bill sent to the seller. Los Angeles County in California has an estimator for what you can expect to pay on your new house, but only for existing properties that are changing ownership, not for new construction.

There also are commercial sites that will do the same. Tax.Fizber.com, for example, is a free site that allows you to calculate the tariff for any property in any city nationwide.

If you are of a mind to do it yourself, your first step is to review the property record for your new house to determine whether the physical data accurately reflects the property in its current conditions. Is the correct number of bedrooms listed? Bathrooms?

Now determine if recent renovations or improvements are already included in the assessed value. If not, they will be in a future assessment. And if the work was done without the proper permits, it's highly likely that the current assessment in based on inaccurate information and that an increase is coming.

Next, according to New Jersey appraiser Michael Brady, determine if the assessment is disproportionately low (compared to like properties) by looking for the average ratio of assessed-to-true value for the taxing district. The ratio can be found in the Table of Equalized Valuations on the assessor's office website.

"Once you know the average ratio for your municipality, it's possible to evaluate the assessment to determine the likelihood of a future tax increase," says Brady.

The appraiser says this varies by state, and that not every state posts the equalized valuation table. But unless the jurisdiction updates assessments every year, there is likely an "equalization ratio" that is used to adjust assessments.

If the average ratio is near 100 percent, according to Brady, a purchase price significantly higher than the assessment is a strong indication that your taxes will be sharply higher. Ditto if the current assessment is significantly below market value, or what you paid for the place. So if the average ratio is, say, 75 percent, but the current assessment is 50 percent of value, a bigger tax bill is in order.

Sounds intimidating, for sure. But if you don't want to be hit by a major surprise, it may be worth a try. At the least, at closing, ask who estimated your tax bill and how they arrived at that number.

Erroneous tax bills can also trip up would-be buyers even before they close. The incorrect bill could be so high that buyers are turned down by lenders, because the tax puts them above the acceptable debt-to-income ratio.

Collins provides this example: A borrower who applies for a $500,000 loan is rejected because the DTI ratio is over the 44 percent his lender demands. But the ratio is high because the predicted tax bill is $6,250, as opposed to the actual bill of $5,000.

Had the bill been estimated correctly, the buyer would have been able to proceed. But the $1,250 difference kicks him over the ratio, and he loses the house he wanted to buy. Homework and preparedness can possibly help stave off this scenario.