With the bond market up 8/32 today, we can expect a slight decrease in mortgag interest rates of approximately .250 of a discount. Stocks to follow suit. This follows yesterdays positive tone but to a lesser scale.

The Labor Dept. reported over 500,000 new unemployment claims filed last week - a lower than expected number which can be a negative overall for news related to bonds.

Housing stats were also reported with an increase in starts for new home sales from July to Aug. These reports have little impact on the mortgage rates for today but good news overall.

Unless something unexpected happens, this means a relatively calm day in mortgage news and rates for tomorrow.

Not a bad time to lock if closing will take place in the next 7 to 20 days.

The Feds also announced Nationally last week to expect mortgage interest rates to rise over the next 120 days with an estimated "hold" rate to be in the area of high 6's to low 7's.

More to come -

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has completed an analysis of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) and it seems to be having an negative impact. No surprise here!!

The survey was conducted with approx. 40,000 random NAR members and the end result were response's from 3,600 members.

The analysis has shown the following.

76% of Realtors (responded) have stated that after the May1st deadline, they experienced a delay in getting appraisals complete. No surprise again!!

69% reported that this new wonderful policy increased the "close" time by more than a week.

Of these, 37% of Realtors polled said they lost sales due to these delays. 16% reported one lost sale while 20% (I don't know where the other 1% went) reported more than one lost sale.

AMC's assignments to Appraises had increased from 13% to 40% after May 1st.

Nearly half of all NAR Appraisers also reported a reduction in fees collected. Great deal for everyone here huh?

Another "no suprise here"......Its also been reported that a decrease in quality has also been reported since the May 1st. This reduction in quality was a result of reduced time to complete.

Wonder if the people responsible for this still have jobs???

NAR appraiser members have also reported a HUGE increase in assignments in unfamiliar geographic areas. Did these "gurus" not see this coming???

The people that are trying to make things "better" for the customer are the wrong people for the job. It really seems that little "logic" was used when implementing these new procedures.

71% of these Realtors that were polled also noted a HUGE increase in the use of "out of area" appraisers.

How can these appraisers do a quality job when they are first, not given the proper time and 2nd, doing appraisals in areas they may not be familiar with. Overall, the changes that are being made will certainly make things worse in the short term. Lets hope some good does come out of this in time.

Ok, Ok, lets not even get into the Cash For Clunkers deal!!  20,000 dealers across the Nation with $4500 per car ($3500 in certain circumstances) would come out to only 12 cars per dealer. the dealer has to destroy the cars but the 1Billion allowed for this program only gives money for 12 cars per dealer. Most have already exceeded this 12 cars per dealer. Oppsss...........Now what??

Jeff

They said we can offer it. They said it was available. They said "it's a good thing". They said its here! Please correct me if I am wrong. We see nothing!! Does it really exist? Seem lots of lip service and little else.

 As of today's date, of the 100's of lenders we communicate with, not a one of them has this credit to offer.

 Sure, the current administration says it's so. But not the lenders. What many may not realize is  although our government has approved this "program" they have left it up to the individual "lenders"/"lending industry"  to develop the programs to offer this credit.

 This $8000 has been approved to be used towards the down payment of a new home for a first time home buyer in anticipation of the tax credit and subsequent refund to the borrowers.

Ha! The lenders have been left with the task of putting together a program that will allow them (lenders) to "lend" $8000 to the borrower to be used towards the purchase with repayment due upon receipt of the tax refund -  Lets just say the lenders have not been lining up!!! As of now, not a one of the lenders we have spoken with have introduced a program that would accommodate this "credit"

 This whole program is simply not present in our lending community today. Maybe someone should tell our, well, ....................................... you get the picture.

 This is working just about as well as when this same "group" of "thinkers" told the American people that if you need help with your house payments, best to get 3 month's behind otherwise we can't help you. That worked well. Lenders always feel great about lending to people that are 3 months behind.

Next your going to tell me someone will give me $4500 for my gas guzzling car made no later then 1984 in trade credit towards on a new one with better gas mileage. Don't say no one ever warned us.

In an attempt to broaden the market for refinances (due to the fact that many who have the need do not qualify) Fannie Mae has made the following announcement -

This change is in an effort to increase the population of eligible borrowers for the Refi Plus manual and Desktop Underwriter options and provide more lender flexibilities which include:

As quoted from Fannie Mae' recent published info -

• "Adding existing loans with various forms of credit enhancement other than borrower-paid mortgage insurance coverage to the pool of loans eligible for Refi Plus (DU or manual). Loans with lender-paid mortgage insurance coverage (which are already eligible for the manual Refi Plus option) will now be eligible for DU Refi Plus. Loans with credit enhancement that is necessary to meet Fannie Mae's minimum requirements for loans with LTV ratios exceeding 80 percent remain ineligible.
• Allowing more flexibility for lenders to optimize our manual and DU Refi Plus options. A lender that is the servicer for the existing loan will be able to use the manual Refi Plus option if the refinance was already underwritten through DU, as long as the loan case file:
  - Was underwritten as a DU Refi Plus loan, received an Approve/, EA-I/, EA-II/, or EA-III/Ineligible recommendation, and the only reason for the ineligibility is an excessive debt-to-income ratio;
  or
  - Was not underwritten as a DU Refi Plus loan because DU was unable to match the subject property address or the borrower(s) Social Security number entered on the loan application to an existing Fannie Mae mortgage loan in the DU Refi Plus database.
  The scenarios under which servicers of existing loans may use the manual Refi Plus option will be identified by new DU messages implemented in the DU Version 7.1 June Update release the weekend of June 27, 2009".

In the past, we have all heard and seen attempts to put the industry "back on track" with much fewer then expected results. The many recent announcements within our current administration have made several statements re: people that are "behind at least 3 payments" can benefit. Many of us in the industry have found that this has done very little to help. Others may disagree. This is not meant to cause a debate about the current administration but rather to get people thinking.

If you have seen areas that have helped you with your continued success, please feel free to share and best of luck.

Doing what we did in years past simply does not work in today's market. Are you frustrated with lower rates, lower home prices and slumping sales? In this market, sales should be UP! How to do it is the question.

Please keep in mind that the following is simply based on statistics alone. Nothing re: "sub-prime" borrowers that follows is meant to be negative towards "sub-prime" borrowers but statistical facts. 

The straight forward approach that we all used when the market was going strong is simply not going to work today. Don't allow logic to come into the picture. If you understand what's going on in today's market, you know that logic plays a very small part. The time is now to re-think your marketing strategy.

It's estimated that the number of foreclosures that have occurred to date are, for the most part, borrowers who were statistically headed for foreclosure anyway. The 2nd wave of "bad" news is on the way. People with good credit and income are now facing the same fate. They do have options. Options that can be found outside the normal way of thinking.

The "2nd" wave of possible foreclosure bound borrowers are quite different from the "1st" round. These borrowers have good income and credit. They don't have a track record of missed payments and are statistically not coming out of a "sub-prime" mortgage. These borrowers can get help in more ways then most think.

The problem with the "2nd" round is, in many cases, more simple and controlable then those that came before them.

Again, this is not in any way intended to put any negative light on the "sub-prime" borrowers but rather identify the difference between the two and make some changes.

Statistically, many involved in the "2nd" round have taken a beating with current 401K's or investments. We can and have turned many of these "2nd" round borrowers into investors. When the numbers work, we have taken these borrowers and re-financed the current mortgage they have. We then either take out equity or money that has not been "working" for them and they have taken advantage of the much lower home prices that we all see today.

If you simply sell a home and buy another one, you are going to take a beating on the home you sell which makes the new pruchase "relative" and not that great of a deal. If you are simply buying a home without selling one, the benefit is far greater.

In a nut-shell (that's funny, this is a long nut-shell) if you spend more time on investor sales then on "new" sales, your numbers will go up. If a borrower has a home that they want to sell in this market and take a $50K hit, then buy another home that has taken a "hit" its not a great deal. If your client is only looking to buy and not sell, the costs savings are much better.

With home sale slightly up and new home sales down, its time to re-think and focus on the investor. We are doing this and when the numbers work, so does the deal.

You can do it on your own or we can do it together. Either way, best of luck and hope this helps in some way. 

With Summer starting and buyers out "looking" now is the perfect time to develope some new relationships. Realtors working with Loan Officers and Loan Officers working with Realtors can make a great team.

New loan programs, new guidelines along with lower home prices and more motivated sellers equals a great opportunity for a "team" to not only be able to better service the clients and offer great rates, but a great time to form those ever important long term relationships. We can test each other. See that we work good together. Form a partnership that will benefit us all in the short and long term.

Being a direct bank as well as a broker, the opportunities are endless. With current turn times in the industry hitting 45-55 days, as a direct bank we only underwrite our own loans for our company. We have turn times still within 72 hrs. for underwriting and when you, as a Realtor, have that deal that just needs to get done fast, we can do it. In the last two months, many deals have gone South because they took too long. Not the case with direct banking.

Anyone in the State of WA open to developing new relationships, please let me know. With the wide range of products we can offer, under these "times" we are dealing with, the higher % of loans that get done means the higher volume of homes that you can sell. Its a win win.

We also put together raffles and fund raisers for your small business or charity. We pay for all and 100% of all proceeds go to that charity.

10% of my personal profits always go to a charity. Working together not only is a win win, but the community wins also.

Never really will know until you give "us" a try.

Loansnjobs.com and check out our FAQ page.

Nothing is out of reach if we are all willing to put in the effort.

Seems that's the way people on this site like it. "It's not my fault?" "It's the economy?" "I don't know anyone doing that great now?"

They all work. Don't let anyone tell ya they don't. Any excuse really will work if it makes you feel better.

If you go through this site like I do from time to time, do you ever notice that the only "posts" that seem to catch the "eye" of the reader are the warm and fuzzy ones. The ones that may bring moments of entertainment, but will never do anything for your business.

I challange anyone to "throw" out a challange and see what happens.

Working in an Industry filled with soooo many "leased" Lexus, BMW's and "your car here", with so many wearing that "suit" you're still paying off at 17% over the next year while drinking your latte (also paying for it at 17% over time), its sometimes hard to spot the ones that really make a difference.

 They're usually the ones in the 2001 Camry, wearing a modest suit and have "family" responsibilities. The quiet ones. The ones that do more listening and less talking (now that's funny coming from a guy that's doing all the talking now)

Anyway, the people that get it will get it, those that don't never will. Why make things complicated when they're not.

Now the tone of this post may sound "negative" but my observations here are the only things being detailed in writing. Not my personal attitude. Again, some will get that, others will not.

More then ever, in this market, it's vital to stay positive and always treat others as you would like to be treated. Always! They guy in front of you at the supermarket may just be your next client. I understand that and practice that daily. This post is simply an observation of the things I see while reading posts.

Everyone wants to do better and they seem to think that "next" customer will be calling anytime - you know, like the old days - Thing's are different now and although this is a great place to come for a break and look around, remember the "basics" are always the best place to start.

I recently looked at a post with a similar title here on ActicveRain. I noticed in reading the post that the information I found inside was similar to others that got far less views.

I decided to search around ActiveRain for a while to get an idea of what types of posts get the most "views" - and to my surprise, I found that the most views came from posts that really didn't have anything to do with our industry. Just posts that give us a place to go and escape for a while.

In this market, many of us can not afford to go on a vacation. Going to a warm and fuzzy post may just give us the "mini" vacation that we need. Its free. Its fast. You can leave anytime. Your mind can escape and put you in "another" place. A place to relax and forget about whats going on.

It's funny when you think about it. These posts, in many cases, do actually get our minds off things and allow us to time to "relax" and just be. It's the post that get down to business that are overlooked it seems. If you wanted to find an informative post, look for the ones with the least amount of comments or views. That's funny!

Just some thoughts.

We've all heard it before.

Why not take this time when things are slow to re-think the basics. No matter what you're selling, the basics are usually the foundation to all success. As we get caught up in "life" it seems the first things that go are the basics.

I recently noticed during a meeting one of the customers in the room was a "watcher". They looked at everyone. Body movements and how they spoke. Everything. It seemed that everyone in the room was "interviewing" for this person and didn't even know it.

We have two ears and one mouth so listen twice as much and talk less. All things we have heard before right? Well after this meeting, I spoke with this person and asked him what he was "watching"? He says to me, "I was looking for the Realtor I am going to use to list my home and help me find a new one!

Wow, pretty cool stuff. How we act in normal day to day life can have a HUGE effect on not only our personal life, but professional as well.

The "needy" looking people were glossed right over, the ones that were "stuffy" "didn't get a second look" he told me. "It was the 2 that looked as if this market was on fire that got my attention. They were confident, self assured and looked like they were movin-on!" (as it turned out, these two people were in the bottom half of the"sales leaders") - One very new and the other, a veteran, was out of the "game" for almost a year and was making A"come back"! 

If any of you are single, or have gone through a divorce you may relate to this. When you're out on "the hunt" looking for a mate, have the spear in your hand and you're aggressively hunting - have that look in your eye................. usually nothing happens. It's when you put your guard down, stop the "hunt" and just be you that something usually happens. Well, the same holds true in this case. The term "fake it till ya make it" came to mind.

The customer is scared in this market. They look to us as they would a doctor when they're ill. We know our market and have the best interest of the customer in mind. We're educated! We follow the market as it pertains to us!

The media has turned our customer into a timid one. We're here to give them Real Estate "therapy" and they need it.

So next time you're out and about, stop and think how you come across to others. Do you look like the successful Real Estate professional they are looking for?

Sometimes, when you're living your life, you too will be observed by others and not even know it. You may be interviewing for the next listing or sale that could really help about now and not even know your being interviewed.

As always, thanks for reading!

Jeff