2014 a banner year for jumbo mortgages in US

[NEW YORK] The view of the Pacific Ocean from the San Joaquin Hills in Newport Coast, California is extraordinary. So, when Mohammad Taghavian started looking for a new home four years ago, he knew exactly where he wanted to be.

The housing market, however, wasn't so cooperative. Mr Taghavian, a 47-year-old engineer, jumped at any property that came on the market, only to find that whatever he bid, he was "edged out by a cash offer", he says.

He did what a keen home buyer would do. Mr Taghavian kept raising his offer, from US$600,000 to over a million. That placed him in jumbo mortgage territory - above US$625,500 in his part of the country, and above US$417,000 in lower-priced areas.

His real estate agent, Michael Salas of Coldwell Banker, homed in on one development and went on a letter-writing spree to about 60 homeowners with ocean views. When a US$1.4 million townhouse finally came on the market last year, Mr Taghavian sn…