Today's subprime mortgage minute brought to you by New Century Mortgage Company.

First, analysts say the unraveling of the subprime mortgage loan market will have an effect on the overall US real estate market.

A report released yesterday by Credit Suisse analyst Ivy Zelman forecast that credit tightening for financially stretched borrowers will lead to a 20% drop in new-home sales in 2007, to about 890,000, as buyers find it more difficult to borrow for homes.

Coupled with a general waning in demand for housing and the exodus of speculators from the market, Ms. Zelman expects that credit tightening will cause housing starts to drop 35% to 45% through this year and into 2008 from their peak annual rate of 1.8 million units in January 2006.

In addition to there being less buyers available to purchase the new-homes, foreclosures will add to the already high levels of inventory seen in parts of the country (but not in Boston, btw).

Source: Subprime Fallout May Sink Sales of New Homes - By Michael Corkery, The Wall Street Journal

Second, maybe you think you're going to escape from the coming malström, unscathed.

Most likely, if you're in a fixed-rate mortgage loan, or are looking for a new home and have a good credit score (above 650?).

If your credit score is less, though, you could find you're having a bit of trouble finding someone to write you a loan, over the coming weeks. Meaning, start shopping now!

While we're at it, if you do have a loan that is going to reset, regardless of rate, should you think about refinancing? Here are some questions:

Here is a set of questions to test whether your mortgage is truly bulletproof. If it isn't, there are ways to get a new one while avoiding key mistakes.

First, a set of old-fashioned financial-planning queries: Are you spending more than 28% of your pretax income on mortgage principal and interest payments, plus property taxes and homeowners insurance? Or do these four items, plus all your other debts, add up to more than 36% of your gross income?

You don't want to go up there for long. After taxes and a 401(k) deposit eat up 30 or 40 percentage points of your income, you'll need money left over for milk and meat and the fridge going on the fritz. And if your mortgage payment is about to spike higher, you'll be that much more vulnerable to unexpected calamities.

Be proactive.

Source: Bulletproofing Your Mortgage: How to Spot Risks in Your Loan - By Ron Lieber, The Wall Street Journal