Did Countrywide Freeze Your Home Equity Line of Credit? - 01/30/08 10:54 AM
I don't quite know how to write this because I've never had to do it before.    In 14 years of mortgage lending, I have never seen banks treat their good San Diego customers this way.  As you probably know, many big banks and mortgage companies have 
TERMINATED THE RELATIONSHIPand closed the home equity lines of credit to San Diego County homeowners.  Apparently, Countrywide did just that last week. They spun the whole thing as the "Preserving American Home Ownership" initiative but you and I know that the only homeownership they were saving was their employees'.  I must admit, those banks and … (0 comments)

$729,000 FHA Loan Limit, $650,000 Conforming Loan Limit - 01/24/08 08:46 PM
A conforming loan limit of $650,000 and an FHA loan limit of $729,000 are being telegraphed as part of the Economic Stimulus Package of 2008.
Inman News reports that Congress backed a temporary loan limit increase to $625,000:
The government-sponsored enterprises, or GSEs, may soon be allowed to back loans up to $625,000 nationwide and $700,000 or more in high-cost areas, according to published reports on the negotiations.
The Bush administration had previously tied any increase to the conforming loan limit to tighter regulatory oversight of Fannie and Freddie, where accounting scandals led both companies to fire top managers and restate … (0 comments)

Best Damn Mortgage Crisis Explanation Ever...Period - 01/18/08 01:12 PM
This may be the best explanation of the mortgage crisis and the future of the mortgage industry. Produced by Dan Green of The Mortgage Reports null … (22 comments)

January, 2008 Issue of YOU ! Magazine- Compliments of Brian Brady - 01/17/08 03:23 PM
SUBSCRIBE to YOU Magazine. If you received this message from a friend, you can subscribe online.
YOU !  Magazine compliments of Brian Brady 
… (6 comments)

Mortgage Rates Report is Available On Twitter - 01/12/08 04:26 PM
Mortgage Rates Report, the nationally-syndicated update about mortgage rate movements, is now available on Twitter. 
Twitter is a FREE broadcast service that can be directed to your phone, e-mail, or Twitter page.  It's a great way to broadcast mortgage market information to tech-savvy customers and REALTORs. 
Click the link above for my Twitter feed.
Here is what you can expect from the Mortgage Rates Report feed on Twitter:
1- Market sensitive updates- I'll only tweet you if there is a move in the market with advice to float or lock.
2- Communication at least once a … (7 comments)

VOTE- Weekly Blog Competition is Open - 01/06/08 02:32 PM
Here is this week’s short-list of Odysseus Medal nominees:
Jay Thompson — Bureaucrats Gone Wild, Todd Kaufman, Loudoun County Assessor — Starring in “Bureaucrats Gone Wild”Michael Wurzer — Open Letter, Open Letter To Yahoo!, Google, Trulia, and Zillow, Encouraging Data StandardsJay Thompson — RSS Feeds, RSS Feeds - The Full vs. Partial ConundrumKris Berg — Alphabet Soup, Alphabet SoupMorgan Brown — 2008 Musings, 2008 Musings - It’s going to suck a little less, depending who you are.Troy W. Garris — Dodd Exits Presidential Race, Dodd Exits Presidential Race; Focus Turns to LendersDustin Luther — Zillow RE Auction, I may have found … (0 comments)

California Mortgage Rates Report: January 6, 2008 - 01/06/08 02:00 AM
Should California home buyers float or lock the mortgage rate?  Should California homeowners refinance their home? 
It's important that you read my full report; I can sometimes get long-winded when I answer those two questions.  I mean, a report about mortgage rates ain't as sexy as Uma Thurman, right?  Sometimes, when I'm reiterating my advice, I rely on other respected professionals' opinion, to reinforce what I'm saying.  My opinion changes as often as the market changes so you have to keep coming back.
I'll cut to the chase:
If you're buying a home I think you should cautiously float the mortgage rate, right … (2 comments)

Inman Connect NYC 2008: Making Money From Your Blogging Efforts - 01/03/08 09:44 PM
I'm pitching, in the bottom of the ninth, at Bloggers Connect.  It ain't gonna be easy; I'm facing Dustin Luther, one of the ten people to watch in 2008 (picked by Inman).  Dustin should be no stranger to most of you.  He is, without a doubt, one of the few "tech guys" that truly understands what you and I, practitioners, really do. 
Dustin hosted the Relevance on The Internet seminars, sponsored by his old employer, last year.  It was the beginning of a formal workshop about RealEstate2.0 and blogging for business.  His post, Linkation, Linkation, Linkation is the one post every … (10 comments)

Are You Living Beyond Your Ability? (The Art of Fruitcake) - 01/03/08 10:14 AM
Gosh, I hope you are.
People restrict themselves when they consider the possibilities for their life.  You are probably on your "second career", as most of us are.  Your career may have been in corporate life, small business, child-rearing, or education.  You made a conscious choice to take charge of your life and pursue the entrepreneurial life of real estate or mortgage brokerage.  Perhaps external forces pushed that "conscious choice" but the very act of closing your first transaction made you a REALTOR or loan originator.
Maybe you've been successful, maybe you've been a failure; that doesn't matter today.  Today is a blank … (18 comments)

Mortgage Rates Report: January 2, 2008 - 01/02/08 05:23 PM
Mortgage rates are improving.  Economic weakness and an anticipated Fed cut drove 30 year fixed mortgage rates to their lowest level, in 25 months, in mid December.  While mortgage rates are not as low as mid-December, they are getting lower.  Two things are contributing to this near-term phenomenon:
1- Economic weakness suggests a recession is underway.
2- Continued anarchy in Pakistan is scaring the world- money is flowing to safe havens like mortgage bonds
Should you float or lock your mortgage rate?  We've been recommending to float the mortgage rate at application, for a week,  and we're not going to change … (4 comments)

Gift of Knowledge: Russell Shaw - 01/02/08 01:03 AM
Happy New Year, Active Rain.
Are you a working REALTOR who is not getting the desired results?  Worried about your future in this industry?
Listen to this five-part, three hour podcast series with mega producing REALTOR, Russell Shaw:
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four 
Part Five 
The poster is from a success seminar, Russell hosted and I attended, in Phoenix last Spring.  Some thirty people listened to Russ give practical information from his years of experience as Arizona's top residential REALTOR.
The podcasts are free.  Nobody will try to sell you anything. 
 
… (18 comments)