Are you looking to refinance your Scottsdale home?

Do you want to be sure that you are getting the best deal on your Scottsdale AZ Refinance?

Then look no further.  I will help you refinance your Scottsdale home and will also help you find the lowest refinance rates.

First, call your bank or banks about your refinance.  Ask them to provide you with a Good Faith Estimate.  We can call this your "benchmark" rate and fees.

Next, call another local bank, just to check on your benchmark refinance figures.

Finally, call me, Michael George of Arizona Wholesale Mortgage and get a Good Faith Estimate from me.  You don't have to tell me what your bank offered, because it really shouldn't matter.

Keep your cards close to your chest when shopping for a refinance.

I will give you the very best refinance rates I can, right from the beginning.  I don't need to see the refinance quote from your bank, because it will not change the rates and fees that I offer you.

If you need to refinance, please allow me to earn your business.  You can call me at:

(877) 551-8188, and press extension 81 to be connected to me immediately.

I look forward to working with you!

~ Michael George

Because if you know how to Google, I mean really learn to use Google well, your life will improve in two ways:

1.  You will always find the information you are looking for.

2.  You will get better at learning what makes Google "tick," as you study the results of your own searches.

I have been using Google since 1999, just shortly after it was launched.  (The picture on the left shows what it looked like when I started using the search engine.)  I've conducted thousands of searches and staring at those search results have helped me to rank well today, ten years later.

There is no better way to teach yourself SEO.  Just Google and Google and Google some more and stare at the results.  It'll start to click after a while.

First of all, Google is about information.  I can always find exactly what I'm looking for, on page one of the organic search results, if I search correctly. 

Ever hear the phrase "garbage in, garbage out"? 

If you are not having luck with Google's output, you just may not be searching properly.  Try to be as accurate as possible.  Sometimes I type whole sentences into Google.  Like, "What was the name of that guy that played BJ on BJ and the Bear?"

It turns out his name is Greg Evigan and he was in the very first result displayed.

That's the best way to find exactly what you are looking for...if it exists.  Give Google lots of info and you'll get it back.

Did you know about Google's functions?

Define-a-Word function:  Just type the word "define," followed by the word.  (You don't need any quotes.)  For example, I keep hearing people use the word czar incorrectly.  I was sure that the word czar was being misused.  So, just out of curiousity, I typed "define czar."  I was right; it is regularly misused.

How can you use this?  I would create a page on your website just for real estate definitions.  And write them out exactly as they will be searched for.  With the word "define."  So you could title a page, "Real Estate Definitions", and define short sale, foreclosure, etc.  With time, and a little luck, you may very well show up in Google's definitions, which will give you more "juice" as I've heard others refer to it.

Don't believe me?  Type in "define short sale" and you will find a mortgage company's page with a definitions page that Google added to it's "web definitions."  That could be you!  Just be sure to write your own definitions, or you don't stand a chance.

If Google's whole deal is providing great information, then you need to provide great information to Google.  Definitely have a definitions page.  Definitely fill your pages with useful information.  Sure, customer testomonials are great, but they aren't going to turn up in a Google search.

Start thinking of your site as a form of valuable real estate information, rather than just a fancy, online advertisement for your services.

Google's math functions:  This list is so exhaustive, that I could write an entire post about Google's math functionality.  But I'll just stick to a couple of interesting ones.

Everyone knows (or should know) that you can type "2 + 2" into Google (no quotes needed) and Google will return the result:  4.

But did you know you could type in almost any mathematical equation and get the results?  Google has a built-in mortgage function for example.  Now this is pretty complex stuff, but in case your financial calculator ever breaks, here is a list of Google math functions.

Population function:  Type the state or county name, followed by the word population.  For example, here is the search result for "population AZ".  They also have an unemployment rate function.  So I am going to type unemployment rate Michigan (or MI) and see what I get...  14.8%.  Not good.

Sports function:  To see scores and team schedules, just type in the name of the team.  For example, I'll try Phoenix Suns.  It gives you the schedule, the roster...heck, even a link to the Phoenix Suns Dancers.

Take the time to get to know Google well.  Once you really truly understand Google, it will help you to understand your own placement in the search engine.

If you are looking to refinance your Chandler, AZ home, please consider using Arizona Wholesale Mortgage.

(Of course, we are licensed in the entire state of Arizona, so you can call us no matter where you live!)

1.  We absolutely guarantee to beat your bank's best deal.  This means that we will either match the closing costs and offer a lower rate, or we will offer the same rate with at least $500 less in closing costs.  This is our guarantee to you.  Oftentimes, we save our clients thousands in closing costs, but $500 would be the bare minimum when comparing us to your local Chandler bank.

2.  We absolutely never engage in bait & switch.  If you are looking to refinance your Chandler AZ home, the rate we quote you will be the same rate you sign for at closing.  When we tell you that your rate is locked-- it's locked.

3.  We are not salespeople.  We will not try to sell you a certain loan.  We are Chandler AZ mortgage professionals.  We will suggest the best loan for your situation, but have no vested interest in what loan you choose.  It's entirely up to you and what is best for your family.  We do tend to suggest 30-year fixed rate mortgages, because those are the most safe, but we offer every other type of loan, including interest-only ARMs.

4.  We can refinance your Chandler AZ mortgage with as little paperwork as two checkstubs.  If you have good credit and equity in your Chandler home, we can offer you a great mortgage with very little paperwork.  Even if you don't have outstanding credit, give us a call.  We offer many types of mortgage loan programs.

5.  We live in and work in and love our Chandler Arizona.

Call Michael George at (480) 551-8188, and bypass the voicemail system by immediately pressing "81".

This is pretty odd, but I thought I would share a story about something that happened to a friend of mine very recently.

He was walking his dog in the "green belt" that runs behind our Ocotillo (Chandler) homes.  While he was innocently minding his own business he stepped on a "rain box."

I am not sure if rain box is the correct term; I can't remember where I heard that.  But he stepped onto one of those shoebox sized lids in the ground-- the ones that hold the sprinkler controls.

The lid of the rain box has a little half-moon sized hole at the edge, so that workers can stick a finger in and lift it out.  It also makes a great wasp nest, being completely sealed off with one entry and exit.

To make a long story short, my friend-- after stepping on the rain box-- and his dog were covered in a blanket of multi-stinging wasps and went through a pretty traumatic story.  He really believed he was going to die from Anaphylactic Shock.

The fire department came (Chandler has fantastic police and fire) and fogged the area where he was stung.

They also told him that swarming, stinging attacks aren't that unusual in Arizona.  "Common, in fact."

One reason this happens is because pretty much everyone in Arizona sprays for bugs.  We have scorpions and black widow spiders and it's just something that we do in Arizona.

The firefighters explained that the wasps will build a nest in somebody's backyard and when their nest is soaked in chemicals, they all leave and they leave in an angry homeless-wasp swarm, just looking for trouble.

I did not know this.

Since it happened, I have talked to several neighbors who had their own bee / wasp stories!  One neighbor's eight year old daughter was attacked and was almost killed.

Now this would be a really good post if I could tell you how to avoid this horrific experience...but I can't.  I Googled "personal sized" bee and wasp spray and couldn't find anything.

So I guess the only advice I have is DON'T STEP ON RAIN BOXES! 

Any more useful comments on how to avoid this would be greatly appreciated.

So you're running late on your Chandler halloween preparations?  Not sure what to do with the kids?  Never fear, we have gathered together what you need, and you can find it below.

First of all, if you need general halloween stuff...  Okay, if you need anything to do with Halloween, you really only need to visit the

Spirit Halloween Superstore, located at 2980 N Alma School Rd, Chandler, AZ - (800) 267-8869‎

There are also costume-specific places, if you want a higher quality costume or if you want to rent.  But none in Chandler unfortunately.

However, close by in Tempe we have:

Fun City Costumes, at 2820 E University Dr, Mesa, AZ‎ - (480) 654-5113‎

I'm not sure if Fun City rents or not.  They probably do.  But these guys do for sure:

Fantasy Costume Rentals, at 1400 S McClintock Dr, Tempe, AZ‎ - (480) 858-0805‎

What about things to do in Chandler on Halloween?

Halloween Spooktacular Downtown Library Courtyard, 125 E. Commonwealth Ave., Chandler, Arizona 480-782-2735

From about.com: "An evening of safe family fun. Food, games, arts and crafts, costume contests, souvenir photos, and a Haunted House. Everyone is welcome to wear a costume and enter the costume contest and parade. In 2009: Friday, October 30 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m."

And if your kids get too much candy, a Chandler Dentist will buy your children's candy back from them.  I'm not kidding.  Click the link!

For adults and for charity there is the annual Chandler Witches Night Out.  Unfortunately, that happened on October 17, but at least you know for next year.  Click the link above for more information on the Chandler AZ Witches night or you can read about the Phoenix Witches Ball right here.

~Copyright by Michael George, Arizona Wholesale Mortgage, (480) 704-4430

Chandler (and neighboring Sun Lakes) are not the most exciting towns in Arizona.  We are terrific for retirees and families.  We have a great school system and clean neighborhoods, but it's no Las Vegas as far as action, if you know what I mean.  Sometimes it can be hard to find things to do.  But actually we have quite a bit!

However, there is still fun to be had in Chandler, depending on your tastes.  Here's a few of my favorites, not in any particular order at all:

1.  C-FU Gourmet: I love this place for Sunday "brunch."  If you've never had Dim Sum, it's a style of eating, in which tiny plates of all kinds of exotic Chinese food is brought to your table in steaming carts.  You just point to what you want.  It's excellent.  Get there early though!

2.  The Chandler Center For The Arts:  I saw Bill Cosby there with my wife and it was really terrific.  Only a couple of minutes from my home, deep in the burbs.  This December, there will be an Italian Circus performing there.  Click the link above for information on Tickets.

3. Veterans Oasis Park / Environmental Education Center:  From their website--

Veterans Oasis Park covers 113 acres and feature both lush wetland and arid habitat suitable for the diverse plants and wildlife of the Sonoran Desert. The park will also include 4½ miles of trails, wildlife viewing areas; ramadas and picnic areas; a butterfly and hummingbird habitat; an outdoor amphitheatre; a unique, learning-oriented playground; a 5-acre “urban fishing” lake; and interpretive signs and exhibits.

4.  The Hamilton Aquatic Center: I have never grown out of my love for playing around waterslides.  I'm 38 years old and I have no shame standing in line with kids.  I love it.  This is walking distance from my home and they have 2 waterslides, a lazy river, an Olympic sized-pool and a volleyball court if all that weren't enough.  If you live in Chandler, you've got to check it out.  And how much will a day of fun and sun cost you?

Admission is $2 for Adults and .75 for children!

5. Chandler Skate Park:  If you like skateboarding or inline skating-- or, if you are like me and like to watch crazy people do crazy things on skateboards, we have the place for you.

Did you know that Thrasher, a popular skateboarding magazing wrote that the city skate park in Chandler is one of the top five in the United States?  Right here in lil' ole Chandler!

Anybody can use the park at any skill level.  But if you go there enough, you are bound to see many professional skateboarders there.  Famous guys on the circuit.

So those are my five favorite things to do in Chandler.  The above list, you can do anytime.  However, we also have some great yearly events, such as:

The Chandler Ostrich Festival

The Downtown Chandler Art Walk

The Chandler Jazz Festival

I hope you find this list helpful whether you currently live in Chander or in one of our neighboring Arizona cities.  Chandler has a lot more to offer than just farmland!

~ Copyright By Michael George, of Arizona Wholesale Mortgage, (480) 551-8188, ext. 81

Chandler AZ First Time Homebuyer?

Chandler AZ Refinance

I know we all like to pretend that racism doesn't exist...at least some of us do.  But I have to believe that most every white person in this country has been exposed to lots and lots of racism when the black folks aren't around.

Then, later on, we like to say that there are only a "few bad apples." 

Well, there are a whole lot more than a few.  There are millions and their hatred for other races and religions defies the very truths that we hold self evident-- that ALL MEN are created equal.

A couple of nights ago, I watched a documentary called Prom in Mississippi.

From National Public Radio:

Mississippi integrated its public schools in 1970, but segregation still haunts parts of the culture. One example of this could be found at Charleston High School. The Delta town had maintained a system of separate proms — organized privately — for black and white students.

Hmmmm...

I guess Brown V. Board of Education doesn't apply to after-school functions, so they've managed to isolate the black students up until...2008? 

Fifty-four bloody years after schools became integrated?!?  Are you kidding me?

So much for all men are created equal.  Not in Charleston they aren't.  And not in hundreds of other communities across the country.  Someday I'll write about my experiences with hatred in a couple of places I've lived, places kind of notorious for racial problems.

Being treated like a second-class citizen damages your psyche.  Being told that you aren't good enough to hang out with the white kids at the prom hurts your self-esteem.  You might not have the same bright outlook as the white kids.  Or, you'll work twice as hard to prove yourself.  It's fair to say it could go either way.

And then, when African-Americans in Mississippi don't do as well financially, we like to say that it's their fault and that they had the same opportunities as the white kids.

Bullcrap, says I.

And yes, some-- maybe even most-- of the black students will overcome and go on to work as doctors or lawyers, but some-- maybe only a few-- won't be that strong and will be affected enough by their life experiences in their formative years to screw up their very dreams. 

And if they don't believe in the American Dream, being that they weren't allowed to socialize with whites and made to feel separate-- can we blame them?  Come on now.  The Supreme Court said, in 1954 mind you, that separate is not equal.  Separate is not equal. 

Not everyone is strong enough to tolerate being prejudiced against through their most sensitive years.  It's going to hurt some more than others...

Anyway, some of the white parents became angry, so they held their own White Prom.  The cowards wouldn't let the camera's in-- because racists love to deny being racist-- so we couldn't actually see the racist parents.

But some of the kids left after the parents repeatedly used the n-word when describing the other students. 

Totally amazing.  Charleston High School just came into the year 2009.  But the parents?  They'll be alive spreading their hatred for many more years to come.  And what about the kids who attend the white prom and believe in their parent's hatred?  What will become of them? 

Well, they'll probably have kids themselves and teach them to hate also.

And I am sure there will be another White Prom next year.  You can count on that.

I am so proud of my fellow Arizonans.

When Obama came to town, lots of angry white people showed up brandishing guns.  One guy, with an assault rifle, told our local news that "America isn't ready for a black President."

And he didn't even wear a hood like most of his cowardly brothers do.

The guns were a message and we heard it loud and clear.  Thanks to you crazy, gun-toting racists!  I appreciate you exposing yourselves.  It's not about this or that, for some folks, it's all about color. 

I wonder what the right-wing would have to say about a large crowd of black people attending a McCain rally with assault rifles and telling news cameras that they aren't ready for a white President.  What do you think Rush Limbaugh would say about that?

Fox News would be all in a tizzy.  It would be discussed for weeks!  Scare the heck out of white people and push our much more gentle, gun-toting agenda.  But blacks with guns?  You've got to be kidding me.

When I attended the Phoenix Gun Show, I heard many people use the n-word when describing our Commander-in-Chief.

Is that ever appropriate?

I saw assault rifles for sale, with our President's face on the price tag and a target superimposed...as if to say "Buy this gun and kill the President."

And now this.  Political signs in Cave Creek, AZ with the words "Kill Obama" on them.

In the words of Sheriff Joe:  "This is a complete disgrace and gross act towards our president."

P.S.-- And if anybody knows the genius in the picture, please remind him that America has no official language, but if we did...he isn't writing it.  I have tons of these totally ironic teabagger signs.

It's just so hard to choose which ones to post!

I am torn.  On one hand, I don't want to scare the heck out of everybody with this post...  And on the other hand, it is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and I want to remind everyone just how insidious this awful disease is and how much it plagues our beloved wives, sisters, friends, and daughters.  We really need to stay on top of it.

Because... See the picture of my wife to the right of this post?  She's gone because we were not educated about the real dangers of cysts and lumps and so forth.  We did not stay on top of things.

According to the National Cancer Society, 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer at some point in their lives.  (Edit:  And, as several people commented below, men can get it also...just not nearly as often.)

This is almost too much to digest.

I don't know this for a fact, but I think women represent ActiveRain a little more than the men do.  But for argument's sake, let us say that we have a 50/50 split.

As I write this, I see that we have over 160,0000 ActiveRainers.

If half of them are women, we can say that 10,000 current ActiveRain members will be diagnosed with some form of breast cancer at some point in their lives.  I hope to God that's not true, but statistically speaking...it is.

Ten thousand ActiveRainers!  That's the facts.

I've lived through the trauma of breast cancer and, please believe me, you don't ever want to see the things I've seen.  Please be diligent with your health care.  And if you have a loved one-- a wife, a daughter, a sister-- make sure she is being diligent.  Sometimes we need to be aggressive for our loved ones, when they aren't aggressive enough.

Remember, cancer is only curable when caught in the early stages.  You may be the 1 in 8, or one of the 10,000 [possibles] on ActiveRain-- but if you catch it at Stage 1, you have a 100% chance of survival.  Early detection is the key!  Please make that your personal mantra.

Stage I breast cancer has a 100% survival rate, according to the stats!  So if you are the 1 in 8, this is where you want to fall.  You can read more about that here.

Also, mammograms are not 100% effective.  Read about lousy mammograms here.  If you have a lump-- any lump anywhere:  PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE ask your doctor to stick a needle in it.  A biopsy is the only way to know for sure.  Everything else leaves room for guessing.  And you should never guess when it comes to cancer.

If you want to read my wife's story, you can find it at:  http://www.fighting-breast-cancer.com

The first post Karen wrote is really the most important one.  It tells the story of her misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis.

I am not trying to scare people right now.  I realize this is a grim and depressing topic.  I just don't want anybody to go through what Karen and I went through, if it can be avoided.  And we could have avoided it...

Okay, now in the interest of full disclosure, I'd like to say that I have no affiliation with this company at all.  They are not paying me for this endorsement, either in cash, gifts or trade. 

But this is a product that I personally send to clients, and they always love it.  More importantly, it's pretty cheap, especially if you buy in bulk.

I guess by now, you can see what it is.  It's pretty self-explanatory.

It's a self-inking stamp with your client's new address on it.  It really comes in handy for people who are sending all of their mail from a brand new address.

They will use it every week for years.  (I've had one for three years now and it still inks up just fine.)  And every week, when they are paying bills, they will see your name.

They cost me $10 per, because I buy in bulk.  I think the high-end price is $15.

They come gift-wrapped in gold foil and are a nice little surprise for your new homeowners.  They ship them for you, so you don't have to worry about that.

I cannot begin to tell you how much these things have paid off.  Clients love them and I have done dozens of refinances where people have told me that they remembered to call me because of the stamp.

So where do you get them?  Adstamp.com

I really think this is an awesome marketing tool.