georgia home loans: Top Ten Reasons to deal with a local loan officer
- 08/31/11 05:48 AM
Top Ten Reasons to deal with a local loan officer:
10. They will probably be at the closing table where you can look them in their eyes.
9. When they come to the closing table you can expect a nice little gift.
8. The fifth time they ask you for the same documentation you can "suggest" they drive over and pick it up.
7. You can actually go to their office and see their licensing hanging on the wall. Unless they are unlicensed in your state!
6. Chances are they actually understand the neighborhood trends where you live or are buying. … (2 comments)
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georgia home loans: Over promise and hope it happens - a question of ethics
- 02/05/10 09:33 AM
Lani Rosales and the folks at Agent Genius started it. I swear. If you don't believe me visit the networked blogs Facebook post for the AgentGenius group. So let's talk a little about ethics in advertising...
One would think the average American would know when they are reading a line of advertising and be able to seperate it from a statement of fact. Additionally you would imagine there would be a stronger desire to advertise one's abilities and offerings more accurately in light of the recent changes to how the Federal Trade Commission is looking at every form of advertisement including … (51 comments)
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georgia home loans: Changing Face of FHA Streamline Refinance - What is Needed to Qualify?
- 03/26/09 09:20 AM
Once upon a time in a land where gas was 75 cents a gallon and bread was 33 cents a loaf interest rates were in the high teens. Of course I'm writing of the 1980's when our economic situation was not too unlike the one we have today although there were vast differences. Yet during this time and shortly thereafter the FHA streamline refinance was born with one purpose in mind: Get FHA borrower into a lower rate and lower their monthly cost of home ownership.
It was much simpler back then to see the savings. Many families came in to … (6 comments)
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georgia home loans: FHA and Fannie Mae Home Loans for Marietta, Georgia
- 03/25/09 05:17 PM
Marietta, Georgia is one of the most progressive cities in the South. Our schools in the city and surrounding county are rated some of the highest in the nation and our State School Suprintendent, Kathy Cox, was the first person to ever win $1,000,000 on "Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?"
If you are planning a move to Marietta, Georgia there is plenty of information avaiable. From condos and town homes to luxurious multi-million dollar mansions lining the Chattahoochee River the Marietta area is highly diverse in people, culture and opportunity. We have produced many great names and boast many … (2 comments)
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georgia home loans: Six Months of Reserves for ALL Properties?
- 02/28/09 01:02 PM
Yes. While Fannie Mae indeed recently raised the property limit back to 10 properties on credit (a smart move) they have limited the ability to acquire properties 5 through 10 to people who can truly afford them. Unlike the boom days of the mid 00's investors better bring something to the table or find some other way to game the system - and they are searching!
To acquire properties 5 through 10 using conventional financing the buyer will need a middle credit score of at least 720, to be able to fully document their income with the adjusted gross income on … (10 comments)
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georgia home loans: What Does It Mean to "Lock the Rate" or "Rate Lock"?
- 02/26/09 10:52 PM
Yesterday I had a customer who is an engineer at one of the largest cable companies in the world tell me he was feeling pressured from me to get his mortgage loan origination agreement so I could lock his rate. Just as I read his email a man was in my office to pick up my son's XBox360 and that man is a career firefighter. He overheard part of the conversation and looked at me questioningly. I said, "every job has details other people have no idea about. People have no idea what you do when you are not fighting a … (9 comments)
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georgia home loans: Guidelines and Important Information About Georgia FHA Streamline Refinance
- 02/24/09 07:59 AM
Chances are if you are a homeowner with an FHA loan in Georgia you have been contacted, solicited, hammered ... by out of state lenders offering you the opportunity to "refinance and close in a week with no closing costs and no appraisal". We've seen those quotes - here is a guideline for you to use to comparison shopping.
Credit Scores
You will be told, have been told and will read "FHA has no credit score requirements". Let me add - FHA does not lend money, they insure a portion of the loan. The lenders have credit score requirements. Currently the … (1 comments)
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georgia home loans: What Are "Discount" Points?
- 02/23/09 02:46 PM
Be careful when you answer because you may not exactly know the full answer. As an agent it is something you hear and something you learn about in CE classes from time to time but do you know exactly how they are determined? You will in five minutes. Some of you already do so you may be excused to continue Rain surfing but thanks for stopping in! There are also several readers who are not in the industry and really want and need to know this answer!
When you hear "discount" you automatically think of "something for sale which can be … (4 comments)
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georgia home loans: What is "PAR" rate and how can I meet or beat it? (Using golf as an example.)
- 01/22/09 04:20 AM
Golfers already know - par is when you reach balance with the score on the golf course. Many golfers instead of writing down the total number of strokes record the number of strokes over or under the par. In golf par is the standard to aim for. The same applies in mortgage lending and investment borrowing.
Not every golf player "shoots at par". Others actually beat par - they beat the standard. Tiger Woods has a bad day when he shoots a par score on the golf course and I am joyous when I'm within 15 points over par. In fact … (33 comments)
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georgia home loans: Low Loan Amounts Difficult To Fund
- 12/08/08 02:19 AM
We receive calls every day from people wanting to borrow $20k, $18k, or $27k to purchase an investment property. We simply cannot finance a property that low in price for multiple reasons and one of them is that we must make a certain amount of profit to stay in business. The other is that finding an investor to actually lend that low of an amount is a major task.
So what can we do?
We could look at tying up another property with a line of credit -which I never recommend unless you have a very strong exit strategy- like your … (3 comments)
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georgia home loans: How Do I Know It's A Good Time To Buy?
- 11/10/08 03:31 PM
This is a very simple question to answer and it is all based on need (demand) and choices (supply). Let me see if you answer yes to all five of these questions. If you answer yes to all of them then immediately call me to get qualified for a loan then call one of these great Active Rain real estate agents in your area.
1. Do you have a need to move to a new home? (Tired of renting, growing family, closer to work, big/small yard)
2. Can you afford to make the payments on a new home?
3. Would getting … (0 comments)
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georgia home loans: News Flash: 100% Mortgage Money Is Available
- 10/27/08 02:00 AM
I know what you heard on the news ... I heard it, too. Once again, the media uses one source and misrepresents the truth by omission. It may be true that if you go to some of the largest banks in the nation you have to have 20% down to purchase a home. However, many lenders still have plenty of resources available to qualified buyers up to 100% financing. Yes, I did, I wrote 100% - which means no down payment.
But Ken, those loans are dangerous!
Sorry folks, the loan is not dangerous. The borrower may be but the loan … (6 comments)
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georgia home loans: Creative Finance for 2009
- 09/24/08 06:41 AM
When some people say "creative finance" they mean "mortgage fraud". You do it and I catch you and you pay. When I say "creative finance" I mean getting financing by thinking outside of the box but within the law. To help you get focused let's first give some examples of mortgage fraud that some people would class, wrongly, as creative finance:
1. Making a false statement on your mortgage application. This would include saying you occupy or intend to occupy the property as your primary. It would also include overstating your income, assets or employment. A very common piece of mortgage … (5 comments)
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georgia home loans: How Do "Approved" Loans Get Denied?
- 09/23/08 02:45 PM
It happens. And if you don't have a very firm grasp of the onion like layers of the loan process it is very difficult to understand why. Therefore to begin let's look at the steps in the process of a loan:
1. Loan Officer accepts an application from the borrower. In the case of a local broker the LO is the person who will be your liaison for the duration of your file. For the national behemoths the LO is more like an operator who just accepts your order.
2. Your credit history is examined and a preliminary credit decision is … (7 comments)
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georgia home loans: Why Did My Loan Officer Stop Answering My Calls and Emails?
- 09/19/08 08:46 PM
It happens. All too often if you ask me. A borrower believes they are doing the right thing by shopping around. They call one of the big guys who advertise on TV. They call a local bank. They call a local lender.
There are generally 5 reasons why a loan officer stops answering calls and emails:
1. They are dead. This is an acceptable excuse.2. They quit or were fired. In this case someone else should have contacted you.3. You are impossible to work with. In this case their "me" should have called you. That's my lovely job.4. They lied to … (16 comments)
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georgia home loans: Congressional Word of the Day: "Illiquidity" (Or: Here Citizens, Your Bill For Wall Street's Bail)
- 09/19/08 07:39 AM
If you are a sick individual, as I must be, you have all 3 C-SPAN cable channels going all day, Bloomberg on Satellite and your web browser pointed toward the WSJ. Just typing that makes me want to go wash my hands.
Today's action word is illiquidity. It is not, by any means a new word, just that the market has increased the use of the word over the last several months until today. Today it is in the mouths of even congressmen who have poor control of the English language. One "gentleman" from Massachusetts is bringing me a slight chuckle … (5 comments)
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georgia home loans: Jeff Belonger Mentioned to Audience of 9750 !!! Congrats Jeff on your DPA Efforts (Video too!)
- 09/11/08 01:23 PM
Today during our conference call with Scott Syphax, president of Nehemiah, he mentioned our Jeff Belonger in a very good company. Jeff helped very much with the organization of the rally in Washington DC which made other headlines as well.
Here is Jeff speaking with the Capitol in the background:
… (6 comments)
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georgia home loans: What Are "Fannie Mae Guidelines"?
- 07/29/08 07:01 AM
When I used to attend church regularly, as opposed to irregularly, I noticed we developed our own little language that didn't really mean anything to those who attend church rarely or never. Likewise, some years ago, I worked for a headhunter agency and each niche of employment had its own buzz words and patent phrases.
We do the same in the mortgage banking industry.
Today I had a meeting with a very successful broker who has over 240 agents and a large percentage are highly active. I used the initials "DTI" and she squinted, as though forcing the answer from her … (4 comments)
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georgia home loans: Walking the Violation Tightrope - Ethics Gone Missing
- 06/18/08 07:12 AM
I have a rule of thumb: avoid any process that involves a loop hole in regulatory matters.
There are three things happening today in the wide open that I predict will be completely eliminated with or without federal prosecution of violators in the near public. In the mean time just because everyone else is doing it doesn't tempt me in the slightest. Surely some who read this will be either supplier or consumer of these services and I have no intention of personally offending you if you do. I do, however, call these practices into question and lobby for their cessation. … (3 comments)
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georgia home loans: FHA Down Payment Assistance Under Fire ... Again
- 06/16/08 05:28 AM
It has just been a short while since Nehemiah, the not-for-profit corporation who has long helped families and single borrowers get into a home using FHA and their 3% down payment assistance. According to FHA chief, Brian Montgomery, said, "In these transactions, home sellers - or any entity that would profit from a sale - give 10% or 20% of the sale price to buyers, who can then use that cash as a down payment."
10%? 20%? Wow - we never did one over 3%
So what do you think? Should programs such as Nehemiah, be allowed to continue? If allowed … (9 comments)
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Top Ten Reasons to deal with a local loan officer:
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