There have been many scapegoats in history. Steve Bartman, the Chicago Cub fan who many believe cost the Cubs a trip to the World Series for the first time in nearly 60 years.Bill Buckner, who made an error at first base that Red Sox fans believe cost them the 1986 World Series.According to leg
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05/02/2008
People ask me weekly, "If I let my home go into foreclosure or sell it in a short sale, how long until I can buy again?" The answer is.... a long time. Plan on a minimum of three years and as many as seven or more.Fannie Mae, the largest backer of mortgages in the world, recently sent a harsh
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04/23/2008
I was a journalism major in college. I then went into real estate in 1994. I can remember as far back as my sophomore year, in Journalism 101, my professor, teaching us "Rule #1 in journalism." Confirm your facts and check your sources. Failure to do so, we were taught, destroyed the credibil
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04/19/2008
In our Las Vegas market today, more than 75% of all resales are foreclosed properties and short sales. I must hear this comment five times weekly. "Aaron, why does it take so long to get my short sale offer approved by the bank? I don't get it! It's FRUSTRATING!!!" In a normal real estate tra
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04/15/2008
On Tuesday, a real estate agent asked me to prepare a Good Faith Estimate for his client. The quote that day was 5.75% for a 30 year fixed. Very competitive.When I followed up the next day, the client said I was being compared to another large retail bank, that also handles his family's checkin
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04/12/2008
A good long-time client of mine suggested today that I was "too busy" for his referral business. This is because the last three times he has called me he has gotten my voice mail. In each case, I returned the call no later than a few hours later however he was discouraged I didn't answer imme
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04/09/2008
Recently a group of loan officers at my bank were gleefully boasting about developing a marketing strategy. They were going to be the "preferred lender" on foreclosure tour buses.The company had to remind them that, as a lender, to specialize in financing the purchases of foreclosures and short
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03/25/2008
What a crazy week. Good news with the FHA loan increases. Bad news in the mortgage markets.For those of us in the mortgage business a long time, it is very challenging to describe what we are going through. Last Thursday rates were near a 2008 high. On Friday they shot so low they were ne
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03/08/2008
I had a close friend in college named Phil. In the 1970's, Phil's dad, an immigrant, started a little Italian restaurant in Florida. It was a small family business and the food was terrific.As a young boy, Phil worked there with his family. Phil bused tables until he turned 16. At 16, he
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02/29/2008
I have a very good friend who lives in England. When Ricky Hatton fought Floyd Mayweather here in Las Vegas in December, he flew out with a group of friends....for the weekend.Now I have a personal belief that any flight over 3 hours requires at least a three-day stay-over. They flew about 10 h
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02/28/2008
