Christopher's Blog

Why PMI?!

2008-09-18T15:38:11Z

OK, NOW THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS BACKING JUST ABOUT EVERY MORTGAGE LOAN PRODUCT KNOW TO MAN WHY IS IT THAT MY CLIENTS STILL NEED TO PAY FOR AN ADDITIONAL INSURANCE AGAINST DEFAULT?

The Federal Government is now guaranteeing the performance of Fannie & Freddie... If borrowers default, thats ok. The originating lender, servicing lender, or purchaser of that debt will not lose a thing because Uncle Sam's hand is firmly in place to help steady the imbalance.

So, why do our clients all have to pay an additional premium to a company that is essentially doing nothing. It like the loans are now doubly insured!!

Of course I imagine that the PMI companies will help the government recoup some of their loss... But ultimately it is our tax money insuring these loans.

Fannie, Freddie, and Our Socialist Government

2008-09-08T11:09:21Z

Yesterdays bailout puts us one step closer to socialism...

This bailout was not really required because Fannie & Freddie both had the required capital reserves. They lost around 17 billion... but WaMu lost 19 billion. Losing money is not a prerequisite for taking control over a company; if it were the government would've seized many more companies by now.

in the short term this will be good for mortgage interest rates and ultimately the housing market. In the long term this is going to wreak havoc on our financial system and economy as a whole. The FED is going to start printing money to cover losses and to make cash infusions, the value of our dollar once again is going to plummet, and investors are going to turn to oil again as a hedge against inflation. The cost of gasonline will soar and we will be in the same type of mess that we are in now except that it will be deeper and take longer to recover from.

a pretty website won't get you leads

2008-09-03T12:43:27Z

I got a pretty website that I thought would really produce a lot of business for me. I thought that the fact that there are 18 lead capture forms on each page that it would naturally collect a lot of leads. I was sold on the site by the things that the sales rep told me; most of which ended up not being true.

I purchased my site from Superior Internet Solutions around 4 months ago and so far it has collected around 7 leads total. Not terrible I guess but I was expecting more. I thought that I would be able to tweak the site... but I do not have access to the HTML as I was told i would. All that I can do is add information to the pre-existing architecture of the site but I cannot actually modify the architecture.

The site is real pretty and I have added a ton of information in an attempt to make it a Plattsburgh real estate authority. My goal is to drive traffic to the sites but so far I have not had much success with regard to that.

My ability to modify the site is restricted... So if any of you have some suggestions on how to drive traffic to a site like this please let me know. Thanks for reading!

Hello again everyone!

2008-08-27T11:36:59Z

Its been awhile since I have last blogged here on ActiveRain. I love this community and I miss coming here to share my thoughts and ideas about the business and to see what other people are doing to remain successful in these hard times. Of course with everything hitting this industry right now there is no shortage of topics to wirte about.

I have not been here in a little while because I have not had any spare time to sit down and post a blog... I have been working like crazy and I have had some personal issues that I have been dealing with while not at work.

Anyway, I just wanted to come here and say hello; let everyone know that I am still alive and sticking this business cycle out; an ice breaker. I will be back shortly to write some more blogs on the industry and my experiences.

Thank you all for the help that you have given me in the past and I look forward to many more great discussions here in the rain

Another Good Look at Tru-Close Financial

2008-08-07T15:48:23Z

Tru-Close Financial is an absolutely amazing company and I am proud to be a member of the team. I am a sales rep for Tru-Close and it is pretty interesting how that played out. I am excited because this is a company that I can endorse whole heartedly and in good conscience.

It all started when I began working with Tru-Close for my own title orders. I was absolutely astounded with the level of service that this company provides. They are the most responsive company that I have ever worked with in any industry period.

I was super impressed with the fact that someone always answers the phone and that I am almost never placed on hold. The couple of times that I was placed on hold it was never more than a minute (no kidding, one minute!). They have excellent pricing and they get title on refinance transactions back in 24 hours and 48 hours for purchase transactions.

I was so impressed with the level of service that this company provides that I began recommending them to other people in the business as well. I sent a couple of referrals over just because I am genuinely impressed with this company.

A couple of days after sending a referral over I got a call from Jason Sheppard who is a fellow Active Rainer and the owner of Tru-Close. He asked me if I would be interested in being put on the payroll as a sales rep for the company! This was an easy decision to make because I was already telling people how great they were and I was already going out of my way to send referral business to the company.

I asked him "where do I sign" and he got me all set up. Now I am still working in the mortgage industry as a mortgage originator and while I do not get paid on my own title orders in order to stay compliant with RESPA I send all of my own personal title work to Tru-Close! Even though I do not get paid on my own title orders I send my business to these guys simply because they are the best in the business!

I feel great about joining the team because I do not have to sell in order to make sales, I simply offer my gods honest opinion about the company to people and it sells itself.

Another great thing about this company if you are a loan originator is that they have a fantastic lead generation program that will definitely help you expand your pipeline and close more loans.

So, if you need a phenomenal title company to work with that not only gets what you need done fast and efficiently but can also increase your bottom line give me a call today and while you have me on the phone ask me about the lead generation program.

Christopher Ohlsen

Mortgage Advisor

1-518-907-4665

1-518-335-8791 (cell)

Should I worry about Defamation of Character?

2008-07-03T10:54:44Z

I worked for a now defunct mortgage company named SMC Mortgage Company in Glens Falls, NY. I was not happy with my experience there after leaving. Actually, I began becoming unhappy a while before I left... I did not like the common consensus that my former colleagues seemed hold... They gave each other high fives when they were able to really "sell" someone on a bad loan! It was like they took pride in in pulling the wool over people's eyes... Like that made them "good"!

The mortgages that I wrote were frowned upon by management for not have a high enough overall percentage of fees. I brought a lot of ideas to the table to improve efficiency, lower overhead operating expenses, treat SMC clients better and to implement a referral strategy to work with local agents in the area.

My ideas were all shut down until our differences became too great to reconcile and I left the company while they continued to spiral down their self destructive path.

A while ago I signed into My Merchant Circle account and navigated my way to SMC's Merchant Circle landing page.

I left the following review:

Very unprofessional

"I worked for this company briefly. I thought that maybe I could bring some class and skills to the environment that would elevate the level of service that this company was able to provide and that maybe I could bring some ideas to the table that would put this company ahead of the competition. I did bring some great ideas with me. Every one of which was shot down because the owner of the company did not think of it. His ideas were ridiculous and I truly feel that he cared more about earning a commission check than he did about serving the best interests of his clients... which is probably why the company shut down... I wonder how Tom is paying for his mercedes now. The best way that I can describe this outfit is that they were a Cluster*#$@. everyone in this organization so I left and moved on to a much more ethical company who appreciates my ideas and who treats clients the way that they deserve instead of like a paycheck."

March 28, 2008 by Christopher Ohlsen in Plattsburgh, NY

This is my God's honest review of this company. Now they are out of business and I am not surpised in the least. There was a false review on their Merchant Circle profile that was left there by one of their unscrupulous employees, so I went back one more time to set the record straight and I have not thought about it since.

An old friend of mine who had a similar experience with SMC Mortgage Company in Glens Falls contacted me recently. He told me that SMC Mortgage Company had indulged in criminal activity since my leaving and that he reported them to the Banking Department right before leaving himself and that resulted in them being shut down.

Yesterday I recieved an email from someone who I will keep anonymous in this post.

The Email I recieved:

"Christopher,

I got your name off the defunct SMC site. Now that your blood is boiling, let me explain why...

I write for the local business journal and two years ago I was assigned a story about this new mortgage company. Den assured me SMC could write a loan for just about anybody and under just about any condition. That is why I tried to contact SMC now.

I have friends who will lose their home soon if they don't find a mortgage company who can help. Countrywide is making no effort to work with them. Yes, these homeowners made some bad decisions and are way over-mortgaged; but maybe you or another firm you know of can figure out how to keep them in their home.

If you think you can help, please email or call me at your convenience."

My Response:

"Anonymous,

The fact that Den thought that he could write a loan for anyone under any circumstance is probably why they are defunct... that and the fact that they were writing FHA loans without the proper certifications and pocketing the FHA government funding fees illegally.

I just received your call; I can't promise anything except that I will take an application and do my best to help them improve their situation. Thank you for your consideration. Have a great holiday weekend!"

I believe in Treating People Right and that is why I have such a problem with this former employer but did I going over the top? What justifies "defamation of character"? I have been reading a lot about new rules that are being proposed to "govern" blogging to some degree and I am curious just how far a blogger can actually express his first amendment rights...

I am not intentionally setting out to defame anyone but I am a firm believer in telling the truth.

Did GMAC do the right thing?

2008-06-18T08:54:56Z

Their goal from what I can tell based on the news circling the company that I have read is to return to profitability by the end of 2008. They have been frantically cutting costs, raising capital, and consolidating shops for the past couple of months.

I really like a couple of Assistant Underwriters here who were sent to the Charlotte branch from Jersey when they consolidated the two shops; this was only a couple of months ago. Now GMAC is shutting down the Charlotte branch and moving everyone to Texas.

When they first consolidated a couple of branches I noticed a huge gap in service and it gets worse every time they shut down and consolidate branches.

The reason that I am asking you all if you think that GMAC has done the right thing is because it seems to me that they are swapping lower overhead for service. I just kind of think that this way of thinking is short sighted. Their overhead may be lower but they are also going to originate a lot less and do a lot less business in general.

I'd bet that while they are reducing costs that their operating ratios are not improving all that much. Whats your take?

Can you believe it!?

2008-06-12T12:53:40Z

I can't believe it... I mean, I know that it is true I am just mystified by it.

I don't understand why anyone would do something like this... I am talking about an underwriter at an ailing bank. The Bank is HomeComings Financial (ResCap) and I won't mention the individual because I do not want to be sued by her in case she comes across this post on the internet.

I have been working on a file for a little while now; This file has been wrought with complication. The borrower is very well qualified with a 757 mid credit score, 20% down payment, and an additional 30k assets in her checking account; very good borrower.

The problems that we ran into were with the seperation that she is going through. I needed to show that my client is not responsible for the mortgage payment on her marital residence or else the DTI would not work. It took more than 3 weeks to get the seperation agreement as issues were being worked out between the 2.

I obtained a copy of the executed and recorded seperation agreement to show that she is not responsible for those payments and I indicated that she will be retaining the residence in DU. the findings that DU spit out and the language on the seperation agreement was very specific.

The day before closing the underwriter called me up and told me that she will be needing a fully executed and recorded quitclaim deed. I did not understand the condition because everything was in order and I did not state that she will be relinquishing her vesting in the property; just that her husband is legally responsible for the mortgage payments on the property.

I argued this point for quite a while with her and it looked like I might lose the battle in the end. I got supplemental proof to show that we did not need anything additional. The underwriter on the file told me that she took the information that I provided for her to the underwriting management team and they said NO! that I need the recorded quit claim deed.

I had looked at all of the facts by this point and I knew that everything was in order. I knew that this deal should be signed off on and I considered cutting my ties with this bank. I called our rep who is amazing; She sat down with me and collected the facts.

She went to the underwriting managment team prepared to go to battle. She was planning on really busting their balls in order to get them to sign off on this file. She called me back shortly after and told me that she did not need to go to that extreme.

Apparently per my rep the underwriting management team actually told the underwriter to sign off on the condition the day before... Wow! Why would she lie... Actually risk killing the file just so as not to be proven wrong?... She blatantly lied to me and the only reason that I can possibly imagine is that she just did not want to be proven wrong.

Everything is all set, the file has been doc'd out, and I just went over the final HUD with my client. I tend to overestimate on third party fees because I don't want anyone being caught off guard at the closing table. I quoted her 38k originally and she has to bring roughly 35k to the table. She is happy, everyone else involved is happy (except maybe the underwriter) and that makes me happy!

My new website is live... It's worth a look... Come check it out!

2008-06-08T12:15:37Z

My new website is up as of yesterday! I am pretty excited about it except that there are a few things that I still need done to it. I was expecting a lot of it to be done when the site came live, but they gave me the option of taking the site live while some things are still being done to it.

For one, I need a couple of things done to the site to make it more localized. I have several very nice pictures of the city of Plattsburgh that I have taken from my BlackBerry that I need uploaded. I am also working on the "links" section of the site to inlcude links from every company whom I have worked and enjoyed working with and I am including a small description of the company below each link.

I am somewhat new to actually operating, managing, and driving traffic to this kind of a site. The site itself is very impressive and user friendly for consumers. It's non-imposing and a real treat to explore... At least for me... And I hope for everyone else too, but we shall see.

At the moment I am working on manually driving traffic to the site and hopefully the site will be picked up as an authority on real estate and real estate financing for my area. I wrote a blog recently on a new mortgage product that we are offering at Lake City Mortgage. You can read about the product by clicking

Lake City Mortgage is Now Offering The Lake City Home Express!

After you read that article you will see why it is important for me to geo-target. Also, the area in which I live is easy to optimize key search terms for because the competition is not really too heavy. Here at Lake City Mortgage we offer just about every product out there. If we don't have it it can't be done in most cases. That being said, The Lake City Home Express is currently our flagship product so it is important to make sure that we get this information in front of the people who can benefit from the financing; hence the importance for geo-targeting.

I would appreciate all of your help in picking up some Google juice to my new website. You can visit it by going to www.northcountryloans.com. I also recommend checking it out if you are looking for real estate or real estate financing anywhere in New York State.

Are you shopping rates or are loan sharks shopping you?

2008-06-06T15:57:41Z

Shopping for an interest rate is one of the absolute worst ways to shop for a mortgage. The really funny part in saying as much is that people become sceptical when it comes to a Mortgage Professional saying that shopping for an interest rate is the worst way to go. The irony here is that a dishonest loan officer will jump at the chance to offer you a below the bottom interest rate that does not really exist for your situation and a Mortgage Professional will tell you the truth.

The truth is that I can no more quote an interest rate to someone without taking an application than a doctor can give a proper diagnosis without examining the patient. Of course that is an old analogy but just think about it for a minute... Interest rates are like a reflection of risk factors related to funding the loan based on how well or poorly a person is qualified. It is very rare that I will qualify two people in the same day who qualify for the exact same program and interest rate.

It does not matter what your neighbor got for an interest rate you may not qualify for the same rate. I mentioned at the top of this post that I believe that it is a bad idea to shop for an interest rate. Let me explain: Rates change on a daily basis... sometimes there are even mid-day re-pricing. Yesterday the markets were so jittery that most major lenders re-priced 2 times after yesterday morning's initial pricing came out.

In other words you may actually get a really good quote today from a loan officer and get another quote tomorrow from a Mortgage Professional. The interest on the quote from the Mortgage Professional may be higher than the interest on the quote from the loan officer. That does not mean that you should work with the loan officer as opposed to the Mortgage Professional, it just means that you did not lock the interest rate right away and by the time you got the quote from the Mortgage Professional the interest rate has gone up due to market conditions.

You can't get quoted a rate, decide not to lock for two weeks because you are shopping for a mortgage and expect to get the same rate that you were initially quoted in a turbulent market. That is why in my opinion it makes much more sense to check up on the credentials of the Mortgage Professional or loan officer that you are considering working with. Check them out and find out what other people who have already worked with them have to say.

If you make sure that you are working with a qualified and ethical Mortgage Professional in the first place you will be ensuring yourself that you will get the rate and terms that best suite your needs.

Testimonials

Dear Mr. Ohlsen

I appreciate the honest and straightforward way you handled my refinance.

You offered advice if I ever needed it.

As life goes I remembered that and I did need some important

financial advice and you supplied

that in a very timely manner.

Your expertise greatly appreciated. I wish you continued success.

Sincerely

-Rayena Sandell

Manatee, FL

__________________________________________________________________

Your rates were great, fees were low!

-Stephen Mallon

Brooklyn, NY

___________________________________________________________________

Great Job, will use you again!

-William Smith

Woodridge, NY

___________________________________________________________________

"Amazing, fast, and thorough. Chris helped me buy my home and kept me informed every step of the way. He was honest and direct in his approach, and he was always concerned with my needs as a client and as a person. I would definitely recommend his services to anyone considering buying a house." May 15, 2008

Top qualities: Great Results, Expert, High Integrity

Phyllis Mitchell
hired Christopher as a Mortgage Broker in 2,006

____________________________________________________________________

Its true that Chris is the best. He is my son so I did not originally want to go through him, I did not want him to show me any special favoritism. I was turned down by 4 lenders over the course of a year before I decided to see what my son could do. He has been giving me financial and credit advice that has always panned out for the past 4 years. When I finally went to him he not only got me approved he got me a lower rate than any of the other lenders even offered me before they told me they could not do the loan. Chris got me a 7% fixed rate for 30 yrs when no one else could even get me approved. Chris is my son but he is also the only mortgage advisor that I will ever recomend to anyone or ever go through again!

-Deborah Ohlsen

MT. View, NY

_____________________________________________________________________

"My fiancee and I are first-time home buyers. We were referred to Chris by one of my wife's colleagues who recommended him. I am very glad that we chose to work with him. He was very patient, well-informed, and was willing to meet with us outside of regular work hours to ensure that we were comfortable with the process. We highly recommend his services to other first-time home buyers!"

-Sean Dermody

Plattsburgh, NY

________________________________________________________________________

"In a line of work where you hear many horror stories, every once in a while you meet a truly honest and ethical person. I was contacted by Chris intially about a year ago to perform an appraisal, and knew that he was 'one of the good guys' in this business. Ever since I have been very impressed by his dedication to his craft. I recommend Chris for all of your lending needs, as I know he will do everything in his power to help you in any way he can. He is truly a gentleman and stands out in his field." May 15, 2008

Larry Ellis, Owner, L. Ellis Appraisals Inc.
was a consultant or contractor to Christopher at Lake City Mortgage

___________________________________________________________________________

"I met with Chris to explore a business oportunity with one of my clients and Chris was very receptive to finding ways to work together. His in-depth knowledge of construction loans made him my go-to broker for potential log home buyers in New York." May 15, 2008

Top qualities: Personable, Expert, Creative

David Pearce
hired Christopher as a Mortgage Broker in 2008

______________________________________________________________________________

"During our entire transaction, Chris was always available and always kept me updated and got back to me promptly. Chris went out of his way to keep this transaction together and moving forward. I would recommend anyone looking for a hard working, professional mortgage broker to call Chris." May 15, 2008

Andre LaFountain, Owner, Kavanaugh Realty
was with another company when working with Christopher at Lake City Mortgage

_________________________________________________________________________________

"I met Christopher through the Net! He is such a wize kid (not really a kid, but the term fits). Better yet he follows up on what he promises! No fluff, high energy, excellent delivery for a great value! Folks take advantage of his services before he becomes one of the Fortune 500 group! Chris' work ethics are what successful CEO's are made of!" May 16, 2008

Top qualities: Great Results, On Time, Creative

Darleen March
hired Christopher as a Financial Advisor in 2008

__________________________________________________________________________________

"I worked with Chris at Sunset Mortgage Company in Glens Falls NY. During the height of the refinance boom when there were a whole lot of shady dealings in the industry Chris received the majority of his business from repeat clients and referrals. Chris is honest, genuine, and truly cares about his clients needs. Chris has never struck me as the type who is working for a commission but rather he works to uphold his client's best interests and earns an honest wage in the process. I highly recommend Chris for your entire home lending needs!" May 29, 2008

Marshall Jurnak, Loan officer, Eagle Nationwide Mortgage
worked directly with Christopher at SMC Mortgage

___________________________________________________________________________________

"I have known Christopher for many years. He and I spent time at the same company during the refinancing boom. He was the loan officer I turned to whenever I had a situation in which I needed advice. His attention to detail and dedication to the craft were unparalleled in the industry. I have had family members go through this fine gentleman for their mortgages, and I will not buy a home without talking to Chris Ohlsen first." June 1, 2008

Alvin Mitchell, Senior Technician, Bobby Jones Inc
worked indirectly for Christopher at First Guarantee Mortgage

____________________________________________________________________________________

"Chris had helped me buy my first home. It had been a process that I was unsure of and hadn't had the training and expertise in. Chris not only acted as a loan officer by securing a loan that, had I not gone to him, I very well may not have been approved for, but also acted very much as an advisor to the process of buying a home. I'd recommend his services to anyone that needs a knowledgeable approach. Chris in my opinion worked on this one with the same diligence that he would have if it were his own." May 30, 2008

Top qualities: Personable, Expert, High Integrity

Russell Duprey
hired Christopher as a Loan Officer in 2,008

_____________________________________________________________________________________

"Chris is extremely knowledgeable, professional and a pleasure to work with. He continually provides the highest level of customer service and maintains very respectable ethics. I can understand why the majority of his borrowers are referrals from previous customers he has assisted. My processing staff loves working with him, too." May 23, 2008

Celeste Marek, Account Executive, Fifth Third Mortgage Company
was with another company when working with Christopher at Lake City Mortgage

______________________________________________________________________________________

"Christopher Ohlsen is thorough in his financial services and places high expectations on clientèle's satisfaction." June 4, 2008

Stephen Arvay, Owner, IT - Computer & Business Consulting Services
was with another company when working with Christopher at Lake City Mortgage

_______________________________________________________________________________________

"Chris was a very proactive, hardworking, honest person who seemed to really care about our situation and our well being in the purchase of our new home. We would highly recommend him and we would not choose another advisor anywhere!!!!!!!" June 4, 2008

Top qualities: Great Results, Expert, High Integrity

Jeffrey Mars
hired Christopher as a Mortgage Advisor in 2007

__________________________________________________________________________________________

"I've worked with this gentleman on and off for the past 3 years. The one attribute that I can give him above others, is his relentless ability to find the perfect balance between the banks, the brokers, and most imortantly, the clients. They all seem to walk away knowing they got the best possible scenario out there for them at the time and everyone goes home happy. That's prob why he gets so much repeat business." June 5, 2008

Nathaniel Hallmark, Mortgage Banker, ENMC
worked directly with Christopher at Lake City Mortgage

______________________________________________________________________________________________

More testimonials & verifiable references are available upon request.

Lake City Mortgage is Now Offering The Lake City Home Express!

2008-05-29T09:46:35Z

We have an amazing new loan program here at Lake City Mortgage that is sure to help a lot of people. To my knowledge we are the only mortgage company in the area offering anything like it. 100% conventional financing has completely gone away which is why I am so thrilled to be able to offer The Lake City Home Express!

Here Are a Few of The Highlights:

100% financing of appraised Value.
Unlimited Seller Concessions.
Gift Funds Acceptable From Family and FRIENDS.
Can finance Closing Costs Up To Appraised Value If Sales Price is Below Appraised Value.
No Minimum Credit Score.
Exceptions on Loan Program Restrictions For Credit Scores 620 and higher.
No Declining Market Restrictions.
Phenominal Interest Rates Compared to Conventional.
Entire Process Takes 4 Weeks or Less.
No Monthly PMI!

This program is limited to Sub-Urban and Rural areas. Lake City Mortgage and I are located in Plattsburgh, NY 12901. While we cannot close the Lake City Home Express directly in the city of Plattsburgh we can provide this financing for any property located in the sub-urban and rural areas that surround Plattsburgh, NY including Cumberland Head.

This program is viable in many regions of the North Country including:

Keeseville, NY.
Peru, NY.
Cadyville, NY.
The Town of Plattsburgh.
Malone, NY.
Moira, NY.
Brushton, NY.
Dannemora, NY.
Lion Mountain, NY.
Saranac, NY.

And any other region in NY, RI, and MA that has a population of 20,000 or less. I am very excited to be able to offer this program. To get pre-qualified for this program just give me a call at 1-866-562-6930 ext.105
or send me an email at cohlsen@lakecitymtg.com.

We also have a full suite of conventional financing options for ineligible areas and FHA in-house. We basically run the Full Gambit here at Lake City Mortgage so give us a shot today! I promise you that it is worth the call!

Sincerely,
Christopher Ohlsen
Mortgage Advisor
1-866-562-6930 ext.105
1-518-907-4665 (cell)
1-518-324-3358 (fax)
www.lakecitymtg.net

Working my pipeline

2008-05-28T09:17:20Z

I have seen a lot of posts recently about DATA BASE management. The most obvious benefit to keeping and maintaining a rich data base is repeat and referral business. Sometimes people struggle for business and they miss the fact that a huge source of business is sitting right there in front of them.

I get back to everyone whom I deal with in a timely manner. I always get pre-qualifications out within 6 hours and I keep my clients informed every step of the way.

Still, there are those people whom I speak with for quite a while who go out in the market and do not find what they are looking for right away. After several months it can become too easy to lose touch with your prospects. It is important to go back through your pipeline every few days to make sure that you don't miss anyone.

This morning I went through my pipeline and there are about 5 people whom I had been in touch with and have not heard from in 2 months or more. I called every one of them this morning and so far I have recieved one call back.

The call back that I recieved was from a gentlemen whom said that he has just found a place. He had lost my contact information so he was going to start shopping for a mortgage again. I told him what I can do for him and reminded him of some of the conversations that we had previously had.

I got his Realtors® information and sent over a pre-qualification letter for negotiating purposes. The offer is almost definitely going to be accepted as this is a motivated seller and the offer is not a lowball offer.

This is almost certainly going to be a loan for me for the month of June and all it took was a few minutes of my time to scan through my data base and make a couple of phone calls. Work those Data Bases and you will be successful in a "down market"!

Deliberate plan by the Bush Administration FED or just coincidence?

2008-05-21T15:27:31Z

I'm talking about the spike in oil recently... Who'd of guessed? A diabolical plan to increase the cost of oil while a Bush is in the whitehouse...?

Oil is a hedge against inflation. Oil is traded in dollars so when the dollar drops oil becomes a more attractive investment for those trading in foreign currency.

The FED cutting its key rate increases the likelyhood that the value of the dollar will drop. When the value of the dollar drops investors world wide rally around oil and the cost per barrel soars.

The FED Funds rate cuts did not help the consumer, they did not help the housing market and they certainly are not helping the financial markets but oil is doing just fine.

10 Champlain St. - Plattsburgh, NY 12901

2008-05-20T12:46:50Z

Priced at $139,000

Bedrooms:

Bathrooms:

Square Foot:

1,837

Community:

City of Plattsburgh

County:

Clinton

Property Type:

Income

Year Built:

1900

MLS Number:

128904

Property Description

This duplex has been remodeled. Ground floor apartment has new carpet, ceiling fan, mini blinds, repainted. Has tin ceiling in den. Upstairs apartment was completely redone. New maple cabinets, vinyl flooring, hardwood cherry floors, new full bath, new windows throughtout, light fixtures, rewired and carpeted. Shed area off back has plenty of storage for tenants. Washer/Dryer hookups in both apartments. For more information or additional pictures please visit www.10champlainst.2cmyhome.com.

Features List

Gravel Drive	Patio	Porch
Cable TV	Ceiling Fans	Double Pane
Vinyl Clad

Note to Reader: This is a Co-Marketing Project betweeen myself and the listing agent. The listing agent on this property is Kathy Bennett of RE/Max North Country. Kathy can be reached directly at 518-569-5959. Thank you for your interest in this property.

Would I send clients directly to AR? No Way!

2008-05-20T11:16:41Z

My blog is mixed with blog posts and real estate listings. If you were to just read each post in chronological order my blog would not read well. I saw someone else mention that they would not because there are many other professionals whom they may choose to work with instead of them. I really am not concerned about that aspect... Yes there are many great professionals here on the Activerain network.

Most of us who are here and actually take the time to participate are pretty ethical people. I am not concerned with fellow AR members trying to steal business from me. I may from time to time send someone directly to an article that I think is noteworthy and relevent to their needs but I will not direct anyone directly to my blog.

The reason for me is that I don't need to. Other than specific articles as I mentioned ARhelps me seperates and parse my posts and they pop up in groups on the search engines based on the tag clouds that you use.

66 Clinton St. - Redford NY, 12978

2008-05-20T10:47:58Z

Priced at $135,000

Bedrooms:

Bathrooms:

Square Foot:

3,621

Lot Size:

Property Type:

Single Family Detached

Year Built:

1910

MLS Number:

128702

Property Description

This beautiful home has so much potential!! With seven bedrooms and 4 bathrooms you will never run out of room in this home, and the price is unbelieveable but true!! Full unfinished attic area. Bedroom #5 is 10x15, Bedroom #6 is 9x11 and Bedroom 7 is 10x12. This home has been completely redone with new windows, insulation, sheet rocked, painted, wallpapered, new bathrooms, heating system, french doors, ceramic tile floors, oak cabinets in kitchen, enclosed porches, 200 amp service, hot water tank and carpet. Original hardwood floors and tin ceilings. For more information or additional pictures please visit www.66clintonst.2cmyhome.com.

Features List

Celing Fans	Bay or Bow	Storm Windows
Vinyl Clad	Wood

85 Macy Lane - Schuyler Falls - NY, 12985

2008-05-20T10:43:16Z

Priced at $298,000

Bedrooms:

Bathrooms:

Square Foot:

2,694

Lot Size:

Community:

Fildowns

County:

Clinton

Property Type:

Single Family Detached

Year Built:

1998

MLS Number:

128472

Property Description

This is a true dream home!! Cathedral ceilings through, built in appliances, and wood galore. Everything in this home just seems to fit together perfectly. This home has been well maintained. Hardwood & ceramic floors, crown molding, ceiling fans, cathedral ceilings. Master bathroom has jacuzzi tub & shower. Full wall fireplace in living room. Oak cabinets in kitchen, recess lighting, stainless steel appliances. Stockade fence in backyard. French drain in front and back yard of house. This home is a great deal! For more information or additional pictures go to www.85maceylane.2cmyhome.com.

Features List

Jacuzzi	Cathedral Ceilings	Ceiling Fans
Double Pane	Walk in Closets	Wood

What is your competition doing for business?

2008-05-19T14:46:27Z

I really think that this is an important question to ask yourself. How can you compete if you do not know where the goal posts are?

My colleague Travis Carter and I have experimented with this a little bit. In posts like this that reference interest rates you need to take note of the time stamp on the post.

I had a client call me up and tell me that Community Bank is offering her a 5.875% on a 30 year fixed rate mortgage. Her qualifications are lacking in that her scores are below 700 and she is looking for a cash out refinance. She explained something to me about it being Community Bank's "secondary product".

I called Community Bank to find out what they are offering. I called up and simply asked "what is your rate on a 30 year fixed rate mortgage?" because that is a very common question in this business. The lady on the other end of the phone who was very nice by the way told me that she can give ME a 5.875% on a 30 year fixed. She did not even ask my name before quoting me a rate let alone pull my credit or even ask me any questions about my income.

I thanked her kindly and moved on.

Travis has a client whom he is working with who he experienced something similar with. His client came in to the office and said that Wells Fargo was offering her a 5.875% rate and again this borrower was not truly qualified for that rate. Travis told her to take it; partially because if she really could get that rate he would prefer her to take it than to take his loan at a higher rate and partially because he knew that it was not out there. After she left he then called Wells Fargo and explained to them that he is in the business and he knows what is out there and that he is looking to finance some property. He gave his client's scenario to the LO anonymously and he was given a quote of 6.375%. Shortly after that his client called him up and explained to him that the rep at Wells Fargo cannot do what she promised after having pulled and reviewed credit.

Since then I have been calling my competition anonymously just to see what approach they are taking and I have to tell you, I am amazed that some of my competitors are still in business. I can't believe how some of these people get away with operating out there.

After having spoken to much of my competition I am quite confident with regard to our position within our local market. I truly feel that there is no-one left to compete with. As long as we keep doing what we are doing our market share will continue to increase.

Anyone else have these kind of experiences? Please share; It is vital to know what t6he competition is doing and I was pleasantly surprised to see how lackluster the performance is of most of my competitors in my local market area.

Thanks for reading; I welcome your comments.

Well thought out articles or blogs on the fly; which sell better?

2008-05-12T14:20:47Z

I am guessing that a carefully planned and well written article will pull better than a blog that someone writes on the fly. I write most of my blogs on the fly... and I have met with success. I have definitely extracted business from the web via my current style of blogging. I will definitely continue this style of blogging but I may change it up on my personally owned blogs.

AR is AR and I am here more for the business to business relationship that I have developed and to learn from other seasoned professionals. It is a bonus that many individual people find my articles here and contact me for business.

I am putting up a blog that will be located on my www.northcountryloans.com website when I take the site live. I love to just think up a post as I am writing it, but I think for my business blog I am going to actually write them as though I am writing an essay that will be graded.

I will keep my language simple enough that you will not need to be a trained mortgage professional to read and understand but I think that if I actually take the time to write my articles that they will kick back a bigger return... Especially on my own personally owned blogs.

Have any of you experiemented with both? Have you tried writing "freehand" blogs on one blog format and carefully orchestrated articles on another? I am curious about this... I will be putting this into motion myself soon and I will write my results here on AR. In the meantime I would love to hear of any experiences that any of you may have had with regard to a change in writing style and a direct increase or decrease in your business.

Doorway Pages: Are they all bad? See here!

2008-05-09T13:18:11Z

All of you SEO gurus out there, correct me if I am wrong.

Disclaimer: I am not an SEO expert.

As a matter of fact I posted my first piece of web literature back in September of 2007. I feel that I have learned quickly. Currently I am generating roughly half of my business from the web.

I am setting up a new network of leas generation websites that will be going live at the end of this month (got moved from 16th to 22nd to do additional tweaks). I just registered a couple of new domains... My primary domain (Master Site) will be www.northcountryloans.com.

I am going to be engaging in several practices in order to drives MASSIVE traffic to my network. I recently stumbled upon something called "doorway pages". Upon further inspection it has come to my attention that Google regards these Doorway pages as spam.

I read on Google Web Master's site that Doorway Pages are considered spam because tehy do not present any value to the user. So... What I am wondering is if Doorway Pages that are hand crafted and contain guenuine content that is relevent to the search such as a couple of articles will be viewed as spam?

Any takers?

Country Wide is not out of the woods yet!

2008-05-05T21:30:37Z

Country Wide is Back in the News...

And this time they have not come out to deny that they are in serious hot water as it seems to be their customary policy. This time it appears to be 100% true. If you haven't read, the CW Giant has just written down more losses; it seems that they have found themselves in a siutation in where they owe more debt than they own in value of performing assets! What's worse is that a few of the portfolios of assets that they are counting toward their performing assets are questionable at best.

Bank of America is planning to renegiotiate the deal from $7 per share to $2 per share or less... and if they cannot come to terms they are considering walking from the deal just like Microsoft did to Yahoo. If BofA walks from the CW deal Cw can definitely not stand on their own legs right now. We may see another government bailout; as bad as that is for the economy overall... or we may see the Giant fall and cause a terrible rippling affect throughout the finacial hemisphere of our national economy!

If CW falls so soon after Bear Sterns we will see more of a restriction of credit lending guidelines and it will become even more difficult to obtain financing. Good borrowers will be denied and great borrowers will be scrutinized. Underwriting teams across the board for the best lenders will reduce the appraised value of peoples homes and many loans will be denied as a result of declining market conditions!

A lot of bad things will happen to good people and the nation as a whole will suffer because of the huge gape in our economic engine. Credit in every industry is falling apart at the seams; cars are being repossessed, homes are being foreclosed on, and debts are being sent in to collections.

We are feeling the pinch the most in the real estate and real estate financing industries because they have been carrying the economy for many years; after all they are the largest most common investments for the average person.

In the coming months underwriters are going to be wary and it is important to make sure that you are working with a professional. If you do not know someone seek a referral from someone you trust. Times are too tough to trust just anyone to such an important transaction, so find a professional and do your research to make sure that you fully understand the terms of the transaction before you sign on the dotted line!

Christopher Ohlsen
Mortgage Advisor

Why buy mortgage leads?

2008-05-02T15:33:51Z

Leads are sold by the dozens to struggling loan officers, many of which are new to the business and just recite what their managers tell them to... Many of them are extremely unprofessional and will say whatever needs to be said to get someone to pay for an appraisal. Many of them just throw "SHIT" against the wall and wait to see what sticks.

I do not want to be stressing myself out about people who believe whatever they are told and want me to slice my FAIR AND HONEST FEE to the bone in order to compete with someone who is quoting them an origination fee, leaving out all third party fees, and lying about the rate.

I have been having much more success lately generating my own leads from the Internet. I generate them by providing good honest information on my websites that people can use to educate themselves and enough lead capture forms strewn about the website so that when someone decides that they are ready to apply they can easily do so over my website.

I have found that the quality of self generated leads far surpasses the quality of purchased leads. First of all they are exclusive (unless you sell them), they are branded to you (prospect has been reading info written by you), and they already have some education about the process (if you are good at getting your point across).

You really could not ask for better leads! And whats more is that if you "GEO-TARGET" your leads you can create a plethora of referrals to send to your favorite agents which will result in reciprocation. I have been generating much of my own business via the web and I am excited to be launching a new network of 26 highly optimized lead generation websites each complete with its own blog!

I personally believe that I will be able to generate roughly 100+ high quality leads per month for myself! That is on top of what I am producing now. I will not be selling any of them, I will just be using them to generate more business for myself and the agents with whom I am partnered! I know that I just used a bunch of exclamation points! but I am very excited to be launching this new network... While I may invest portions of my income to lead generation I will never purchase another lead again!

What about when the buyer agrees with the seller on price?

2008-05-01T13:14:50Z

I have seen a lot of posts here on AR complaining about sellers who just won't lower the price of their home even when buyers are not biting. I have also seen complaints around the web here and there about appraisal issues killing deals.

Most often though it is refinance deals that an appraisal condition may kill. I have run into a first time issue for me... I have a seller who wants to sell his home for $335,000.00 and a buyer who wants to buy it. The buyer does not have any complaints about cost of the home.

I have always been of the thought that "if someone is willing to pay the asking price then it must be worth it." ... Supply and demand!

3 - 5 homes above $300,000.00 sell in this area per year. I initially got 3 comps that I think were pretty decent comps. I was asked for 2 additional comps that must be within a 1 mile radius, dated within 6 months, same GLA, Amenities, condition, style, and age. No, I am not kidding they really asked me for that...

Only 5 homes sold for more than $300,000.00 in the past 12 months. I already had 3 of them... and the other 2 were both over a mile away, sold more than 6 months prior, had different GLA, Amenities, styles, the condition was not the same, and they were different ages.

The borrower in this case has a 785 mid credit score, over 109k in his checking account (need 82k to bring to the table), is putting a 20% down payment, and is fully income verified. This is the clean kind of paper that lenders should be trying to write... not finding excuses not to fund!

My Review of Search Marketing, LLC

2008-04-30T13:49:52Z

As the company refers to itself...

I have a Search Marketing, LLC. blog located at www.lakecitymtg.net.

When I first set up my own blog I was not sure where to go or which platform to use. I looked around for a while until I found Moguling.com. I read their claims and I became interested in their "vertical directories".

Their "vertical directories" really do work! They are actually pretty simple in the way that they work... All they really are, are blogs that are set up so that when you post a new entry on your own blog and select a category your post will be added to one of the "moguling" blogs that Search Marketing, LLC. hosts. You can pretty much do the same thing manually by copying a post from one of your blog sites and pasting it to another blog site that you own.

All in all I do like the "vertical directories"...But I am definitely questioning the level of service that Search Marketing, LLC. is providing. I signed up for one of the more simple services that they offer which is just a blog. For an additional cost they offer to have their professional content writers provide the content for my blog... Which is basically letting a bunch of other people write the content for my blog, slapping my name on it, and taking credit for something that I had absolutely no part of in exchange for a fee. I am not interested in "professional content writers"... I just want a blog.

So I chose the least expensive package which is $9.95per month; I began blogging on the site and I was happy. I even posted a couple of posts here about my new blog...

Until one day a couple of weeks ago I noticed an advertisement at the very top of my blog. The advertisement was actually a banner ad suggesting that my readers should click on it and be brought to a "comparison shop" and read something like "up to 4 lenders compete"... Then I saw a "Virgin Money" ad and realized that the banner ad rotates and that all of the ads are competitors; I really felt like this made me look like a sellout... Like I am making an extra buck from Google to advertise things that I do not agree with or believe in. Not only did Search Marketing, LLC begin advertising on my blog they were advertising companies whom I either am competing with or that I despise. I despise comparison shops because unfortunately they encourage LO's to lie because consumers are often times not as well educated on the topic of Real Estate Financingas we are, so many LO's just lie and say whatever that need to say to get people "on board".

I was very upset about the ads so I contacted Search Marketing, LLC. I told them about the problem and I asked them what it is all about. They told me that the ads are new and to reclaim my "ad space" that I would need upgrade my service to $29.95 per month! This really felt to me like I was being strong armed.

I was very disappointed with this service and I went back and forth for a little while with the representative via email. Finally they agreed to remove the ad without charging me 3x more than I initially agreed to pay for the blog.

Now I am reserving my best blogsfor the blog that I will be setting up shortly on my new website that will be launching on the 16th of next month. I do not plan to shut my www.lakecitymtg.netblog down right now.... but if I am ever propositioned like this by this company again I will definitely shut the blog down and focus all of my attention on my other web medium.

Have any of you had any dealings with Search Marketing, LLC? Let me know how it went... This is definitely a poor way to do business. Thanks for reading everyone!

Is there still a lot of mis-information out there?

2008-04-21T15:57:37Z

Or is it just me? Is anyone else aware of the fact that mortgage interest rates increased today with just about every lender out there by about .375% - .5% or is it just me?...

I had a gentleman call in today to inquire about financing a portion of a Co-Op that he is purchasing in New York, NY. He's looking at a 30 year term and is looking for a 5.375% (on a Co-Op... Ha!). I told him no, I cannot get that rate today. He told me that the interest rate is the most important thing and that if I can get him a 5.375% rate today that he will go with me.

I sent him an email with 3 options attached, a 30 year (not even close to what he wants), a 20 year (Closer), and a 15 year (closest). He emailed me back saying that my rates are not even close to being the lowest... He also asked me to negotiate to get him a lower rate because he thinks that he should be entitled to what someone quoted him 2 weeks ago...

Sorry, but I am not going to quote rates that don't exist and then deal with the headaches that are sure to follow when the truth comes out.