For VA loans closed on or after October 1, 2011, the VA Funding Fee (which is the VA equivalent of mortgage insurance) is dropping. This change is due to passage of Public Law 112-26, Restoring GI Bill Fairness Act of 2011. It is surprising to see fees actually drop! Read the rest of this entry »
I had a potential client approach me about a possible refinance. They said they had been getting fliers and phone calls saying they were eligible for low, low rates for a refinancing. Hmmmm, low, low rates? She said she thought she was unable to refinance. I asked two questions and knew she was unable to refinance. She had no equity in order to refinance, and a crazy story!
When people say you can do something, maybe they just want to see if you can do something. I'll cut and paste the whole conversation, you may find it interesting and helpful the next time you get a flier in the mail or a cold call Read the rest of this entry »
Do you feel this graphic is how the office of your local tax assessor works? Many of us feel that property taxes have not mimicked the course of real estate values. According to an April study by the National Association of Home Builders, the most recent available, property taxes across the U.S. have increased by nearly 20% from 2005 to 2009. But wasn't 2005 when the real estate bubble burst? How could property taxes have gone up from 2005 to 2009? And over the same period, home prices in major urban markets decreased 31% Read the rest of this entry »
A large, well known bank, who the client described as "well established with comparable rates, so we are going with them", has rejected a home buyer's loan after almost 90 days in process. The seller has already given extension after extension. Now the sellers are furious, the buyer's are literally in tears, and are asking me to take over the loan and get them to settlement in 7 days. That is impossible, no one can get a new loan done that fast. The husband told me, in tears, that he had to have this house to move into, and that he was desperate for more space for he and his growing family. This little boy should not cry just because his parents made a poor choice in mortgage lender. His parents simply need to make better choices, and not shop by price alone. Read the rest of this entry »
Yes, there really is a loan officer in the doughnut at times. What I am talking about is how business referrals are sourced in the mortgage industry. I'm afraid business is still referred the old-fashioned way, not by who earns it, but by who brings the freshest doughnuts to the Realtor office meeting, who picks up the tab at happy hour, who buys your Realtor tickets to the hockey game, and who hangs around the most in the realtor offices. Does this sound like a professional way to analyze a business vendor? Read the rest of this entry »
Is it time to refinance and save money? Maybe. I have a lot of clients who call me with 30 year fixed-rate mortgages and think that just because interest rates have dropped a lot they are going to switch to a 15 year mortgage and keep their payments the same, and cut a lot of years off of their mortgage. This is likely not going to happen. Take a look Read the rest of this entry »
For quite a while I have heard rumors that so-called “Obamacare” was partly being paid for by a 3.8% increase in the capital gains tax on real estate. This is mostly not true. If you dig deep into the issue you will find it will not apply to most people. However, in principle, there is an increase in the capital gains tax on real estate for some wealthier folks. Read the rest of this entry »
Who is this clown? Why, it's Ben Bernanke, that's who! He just said that he was going to keep interest rates low through 2013. Thanks a lot Ben, we all appreciate it. The problem is, the general public has taken that to mean that interest rates on mortgages are going to stay low through 2013. Not so. Read the rest of this entry »
Often times a Realtor will suggest to a homebuyer that they use the real estate company's "in-house" lender. Realtors don't usually push these lenders on their buyers, but they are definitely suggested many times. Every wonder why? It is important to know how these lenders are structured, and how they operate. Read the rest of this entry »
So the debt ceiling is all fixed? Too bad. What else will generate so much hyperbole from our politicians? There were stories of terrorism, global disaster, and economic meltdown. My favorite was this one from Nancy Pelosi who insisted the debt limit be raised massively, "We're trying to save life on this planet as we know it today." Rep. Michelle Bachmann worried that raising the debt limit at all would be "like saying we embrace being Greece." It was fun to watch. Rep. Maxine Waters said the final compromise bill "may be the single-worst piece of policy to ever come out of this institution." Maxine needs to brush up on her history, this comes nowhere close.
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