mortgage: Politics and Real Estate: It's Getting Downright Annoying!
- 03/18/08 12:42 PM
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There I was, pumping gas at Costco, minding my own business. I looked up, and there he was. I caught him in the lens before he could make a clean getaway. This is the old west, after all.
I don't know if this guy has had a rough life, whether his wife listens to Rush Limbaugh ad nauseum, or whether his neighbor put up one of those signs that says "Annoy a Liberal. Work, Succeed, Be Happy. What does it take to plaster a political, in-your-face homemade sign on the sides of your vehicle?
We're all taking ourselves a little too seriously!
I'm Mike … (27 comments)
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mortgage: Local Rag: Tucson Wildflowers Best in 30 Years!
- 03/08/08 12:51 PM
The Arizona Daily Star headline sent my Darlin' and me down 86, west of Tucson, looking for the poppies, bluebells and other wildflowers that blanket stretches of our Arizona-Sonoran desert after the December rains. The morning was cloudy, but by lunchtime, the sun pushed the clouds south. It was beautiful, and we want to share our beautiful desert with you.
As if you needed another excuse to visit the Old Pueblo! This is God's country, especially in the spring and the fall. This is one more reason why snowbirds buy their second home in Tucson, Arizona. Come on down!
I'm Mike in Tucson, your local expert and preferred … (26 comments)
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mortgage: Countrywide's Portfolio of Loans is the Ugly Duckling...
- 03/03/08 12:52 PM
...with little hope of becoming a beautiful swan. While companies like AmNet (American Mortgage Network) were busy originating 100% loans in the form of 80/20s and Pick-a-Pays, it was Countrywide who was buying and servicing the loans.
That portfolio, a beautiful swan in 2005, has become the industry's biggest ugly duckling. Late payments on option ARMs, according to today's Wall Street Journal, are increasing in the lender's portfolio, as are mortgage lates in conventional A-paper loans and subprime loans in the portfolio.
According to it's annual filing with the SEC, Countrywide said that 71% of it's borrowers with Option ARM mortgages were making the minimal (less … (24 comments)
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mortgage: Tucson Arizona Relocation Package
- 02/29/08 06:45 AM
Please think of me as your preferred mortgage lender and Relocation Consultant. I'll work closely with you and your real estate agent or REALTOR. Not many people have the privelege of knowing a town like I know Tucson.
You see, in a previous life as National Sales Manager for an international manufacturing company based in Moorestown, NJ, I was given the following marching orders:
We want you to move out west when you take this position. Where you move is up to you. Choose a city west of the Mississippi in North America, with access to a major airport, and we'll pay … (23 comments)
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mortgage: If You're Walking Through Hell, Don't Stop.
- 02/23/08 08:46 PM
From a distance of only ten feet, entrance to the courtyard beyond seemed a formidable task. Impossible.A fools errand, this. The high sunwashed adobe wall and the great iron throw-bolt seemed to say "go away."
I almost did just that. No one, after all, was expecting me, and see? The gate is barred, padlocked. I nearly turned away.
The journey had been long, the day hot, and I was tired. Now I was discouraged as well. Yet I took another step forward, toward the locked gate, and saw that it was not locked at all. With ease, I slid the bolt and entered my intended destination, thankful … (38 comments)
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mortgage: Inside NAR Political Contributions: A Major Shift From Right to Left?
- 02/17/08 04:08 PM
The 3rd largest contributor to political campaigns (per http://www.opensecrets.org/) is the National Association of REALTORS®. Since the 1996 election cycle, NAR contributions to Democrat candidates have increased in every cycle. This cycle, it's exponential. For the first time in a long time, giving to Dems will surpass 50%.
Here are the numbers.
Granted, we are still relatively early in this cycle, and the numbers could even out, but I'll bet they don't.
I wonder if it has something to do with the real estate bust?
I don't have an answer, but contributions/NAR support seems to be on hold until we have a clear choice of candidates. … (32 comments)
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mortgage: "Daddy, Make Him Stop!" Why Uncle Sam Isn't the Answer in a Free Market
- 02/15/08 04:55 AM
Where is uncle Sam? Why isn't he watching this [short sales] and have control on it? Why allow the lending institution to do whatever they feel like giving crazy mortgages or short sales why is it up to them?
This question was posted by a young woman (a real estate agent) bemoaning the effect of short sales on property values in her neck of the woods. Since liberty is a lot higher on my flagpole than property values, I'd like to answer her question.
Uncle Sam doesn't have control because we don't want him to be our Daddy. He's not any smarter than Uncle Kim in North Korea, … (85 comments)
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mortgage: Yes I Can! Inspiration from Patrick Henry Hughes
- 02/15/08 04:22 AM
I get discouraged from time to time. Don't you? A client's home underappraised last week, and the loan was denied. I let discouragement creep in. I didn't stop at the denial, however, and found a way to get it done. I was pretty proud of myself.
And then I met Patrick Henry Hughes and his extraordinary Dad by way of an email. How blessed I am to have made his acquaintance. It puts my little problems in a different perspective. Are you discouraged with some part of your real estate life? Is your mortgage business running in the red from month to month like mine?
Then please … (7 comments)
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mortgage: 2500 Home Development in Tucson May Revert to Original Owners
- 02/07/08 10:59 PM
Word has it that the development known as Saguaro Springs, a 2,500 home development in Marana, AZ (near Tucson) may have tanked, and will revert to the original sellers for the original sales price of $30,000,000., resulting in a loss of approximately $70,000,000 for a national developer who has invested that amount in roads and infrastructure.
Situated to the north of West Twin Peaks Rd in Marana, and west of Interstate 10, the project is an anchor of Marana's spectacular growth. The setback may hold up the planned construction of the Twin Peaks interchange at I-10, the cost of which will be paid not … (26 comments)
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mortgage: Mortgage Pro Week In Review--1/28/2008 Through 2/03/2008
- 02/04/08 10:00 AM
Useful. That's the highest compliment I can pay to a professional who gives me advice. When Jeff Belonger asked me to take the reins of the Mortage Pro Week in Review for this past week, that's what I went looking for--posts that are useful to the general public--those people we hope will find us in their Google Search. Not every post I've included has a zillion comments. Not all members post to Groups. But all have something useful for you. Take a look in this week's Mortgage Pro Week in Review.
I clicked on Localism's home page, and there, under Featured Articles, … (32 comments)
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mortgage: Late Night Rain: Who's Minding the Store?
- 01/29/08 08:28 PM
2:30 a.m. on Wednesday, January 30, 2008: While 68,657 of you are asleep in your beds, 25 of us are cruising your blogs, looking for inspiration, encouragement, insight, and laughs. 12 are insane enough to have clicked the little button that lets others see when we're online. (For Newbies, it's under Settings on your home page.)
Here's what I found: (and if you can't read a post from my list, it's Members Only. Active Rain is free. Just join up!)
Inspiration: Judi Barrett, (OK) wrote The Way That We Treat People Has Nothing … (32 comments)
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mortgage: For My Newbie Friend, Kevin Wood, Listing Agent and Active Rain Member
- 01/21/08 03:15 PM
This is for Kevin Wood, (Active Rain Newbie,) and Jeff Turner, two people who need to do business together. The listing in the Real Estate Show I've created below is Kevin's; I lifted his photos off MLS and created it for him, with his permission.
IMHO, Real Estate Shows is just fantastic. Active Rain's Jeff Turner (respres) is the genius behind it. Jeff gives Active Rain members a $25. discount. I'm trying to get Kevin to do two things:
Get serious about Active Rain blogging, (since I'm the guy who invited him, LOL) andSign up for Real Estate Shows. Central Tucson w / … (22 comments)
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mortgage: Broken Priority: When "Free and Clear" Isn't Good Enough for the Bank
- 01/19/08 10:55 PM
The retired couple sitting in my office were incredulous. They had:
photos, architect drawn plans, and a loan denial letter from a local bank. "We own the property free and clear," said the husband. "We bought it as is, and we also bought the rights to the plans."
He was a builder from out of state who knew a good deal when he saw one. The couple had paid $95,000 for one acre of property with a partially built home.
The work that had been completed to date was sound. (My photo illustrates the situation; this is not their home.)
"I don't understand … (33 comments)
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mortgage: Sign of the Times: Plead My Case for Fraud
- 01/18/08 10:34 PM
High visibility, low cost per view. Intersections are a great place to advertise.
The usual fare is a cardboard box advertising a yard sale. This wasn't your usual sign. This one got my attention.
Target market: A good lawyer. Incentive to call? Up to half a million dollars if you win the case.
What will you bet that the lawsuit advertised in this busy Tucson, AZ intersection involves real estate? I didn't call, so I don't know.
But if it does, the list of defendentants likely includes a realty company, a real estate agent, a mortgage company, and a loan officer. More than ever, the real estate … (37 comments)
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mortgage: Rent! You Can Always Buy Later for Less!
- 01/14/08 02:19 AM
I'm going out on a limb here. I was just watching NBC's Today show, and the talking head was being interviewed about the wisdom of renting versus buying.
"Much better to rent right now than to buy," he said. "The price of housing is still going down. It will cost you less to rent the same house than to buy it, and you'll be able to buy it in the future for less than today's price." He's dead wrong!
As a buyer, please know that there are problems with the talking head's assessment.
You can't rent from month to month, waiting for just … (39 comments)
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mortgage: Play BIG? I Can't. I'm Just an Ordinary Agent--Loan Officer--Title Officer...
- 01/09/08 08:34 AM
If you don't have four minutes to stay here, click on another post. On the other hand, not having enough time might be what your clients sense when they interact with you. If so, take the time. This is worth it! I promise.
"I'm just an ordinary person. I don't have the talent to ___________________." (You fill in the blank.) That's the undertone of some of the Active Rain posts I'm reading lately, especially from some of you Active Rain Newbies. Reading between the lines, I can hear a little negative self talk: "I just don't have the big market, or the winsome personality, … (34 comments)
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mortgage: "Rise in Pending Home Sales at Odds with Local Closings"
- 01/08/08 11:25 AM
That was the headline in the business section of Tucson's Arizona Daily Star. A bar chart shows the MLS data. It supports the headline.
The National Association of Realtors sees pending sales as a leading indicator of housing market activity. Christie Smythe (not a REALTOR®) quotes an NAR spokesperson, Walter Molony, as saying that the "discrepancy might be due to a higher proportion of new home sales."
What she's talking about is fallout from buyers who cannot perform.
I have a different take on the reason sales are falling through. See if this resonates with you.
The lenders whose money we broker are running scared, as values flatten and diminish … (15 comments)
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mortgage: Rotting Apples: The Psychology of Foreclosure on your Community
- 12/31/07 01:11 PM
"Thank God that's not MY problem," is often one's reaction upon hearing that someone in the neighborhood has been foreclosed.
Please take this to heart: as a homeowner, it really IS your problem. Foreclosures are an equal opportunity occurance. They don't just happen in middle and lower middle class neighborhoods. Driving home from church yesterday, I passed through a Tucson neighborhood where older homes on two acres list for as much as $750,000. The graffiti stopped me cold. I pulled over and took the picture you see below.
Being foreclosed--betting the farm and losing the … (17 comments)
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mortgage: Adam Waldman Has The Best Perspective for 2008
- 12/29/07 01:26 AM
So you had a bad day? That's what I read this morning when I checked in on Adam Waldmans blog. (Real all the way to the end. This has a good ending!)
You bet I had a bad day yesterday! My client, after months of looking, found the perfect home for herself, her dog and her horse. The listing agent sent back the contract signed with no changes whatsoever.
I referred her to a favorite lender friend of mine for an FHA mortgage, because that's what she needed. (I'm a lender, but also have a real estate license, so I can't do … (46 comments)
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mortgage: There's a Floor Under the Tucson Real Estate Market. How's By You?
- 12/27/07 02:36 PM
Two UP arrows. Five DOWN arrows. That's the Tucson Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service sales snapshot for the month of November, 2007.
Quick glance? "Boo! Hiss! See? I told you the sky was falling!" But that's not the real picture at all.
First: Look at the UP arrows.
The average sales price is up again. Pending contracts are up as well.
Second: Look at the good DOWN arrows.
The median sales price is down. This is good for buyers coming into the market. What's good for buyers is good for real estate agents and lenders.Active listings are flat. Existing inventory is beginning … (15 comments)
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