rates: Southern California Refinancing: Mortgage Rates Fall Again
- 11/12/09 08:43 AM
The time for refinancing your home may never have been better. Mortgage rates have fallen again, sparking a rise in home refinance activity. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate loan fell to 4.90 percent last week from 4.97 percent two weeks ago. This is just fractions of a point higher than the lowest that rates have ever been. At the current 30-year rate, monthly borrowing costs for each $100,000 of a loan would be $530.73, or about $84 less than the same week a year earlier, when the rate was 6.24 percent. The average rate on a 15-year fixed mortgage fell … (2 comments)
rates: Congratulations To The LA Angels Of Anaheim- Overcoming Adversity With Another AL West Title
- 09/28/09 06:13 PM
When Anaheim Angel pitcher Nick Adenhart was tragically killed in a car crash the first month of the 2009 season, the team's year was in question. Adenhart was 22 years old and the top pitching prospect in their organization. He had just pitched 6 scoreless innings the night that he was killed. Led by one of the best managers in baseball, Mike Scioscia, the Angels came together as a team and rallied around their adversity. Tonight, they beat the Texas Rangers and clinched the American League Western Division. About 10 minutes into their celebration in the clubhouse, the Angels surrounded … (9 comments)
rates: Devastation in Los Angeles Schools- 5400 Layoffs Voted By LAUSD
- 04/14/09 03:51 PM
The State of California and Los Angeles County took another big hit today when the Los Angeles Board of Education voted to lay off as many as 5400 teachers and support personnel for the upcoming school year. This is another blow to the educational system in the LA area. LAUSD employees protested outside the meeting today, to no avail. LAUSD is the second largest school system in the United States. There is a $596 million budget shortage for the next school year. One ray of hope from the day... the board voted to save the jobs of over 1900 elementary … (1 comments)
rates: Gifts For Guns - Ladera Heights/Culver City/Marina Del Rey Station Event - May 2, 2009
- 04/13/09 05:27 AM
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has again instituted the Gifts for Guns program and is asking for local residents to safely surrender any firearms. This program, as in recent years, hopes to reduce the number of firearms in the community, which could potentially be stolen or used in criminal activity. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, with the assistance of local churches and community organizations, and with local retail stores are offering $100 gift cards to either Wal-Mart, Target, Von's or Ralph's Grocery stores ($200 for assault weapons) for each firearm surrendered during this program.The largest challenge to this program … (4 comments)
rates: Cost of the Worldwide Credit Crunch- Cyberdrifters
- 03/19/09 12:25 PM
Despite the state of our economy or our circumstances, we have to continue to be thankful every day for what we DO have. A statistic emerged last week that 45% of the world's wealth has dissapeared in the past year. This is a fascinating video about the way the credit crisis has hit Tokyo. As you watch, take a second and thank God for the many blessings we enjoy every day.
JB BROOKMAN SENIOR MORTGAGE CONSULTANT SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REFINANCE SPECIALIST CASTLE HOMES AND ESTATES 310.502.9877 WWW.TEAMJB.COM jb@castlehomesandestates.com Serving the cities of Beverly Hills, … (0 comments)
The Federal Reserve (FED) today announced that they will be purchasing long-term government bonds for the next 6 months to the tune of $300 Billion! The FED will also be purchasing more mortgage-backed securities (MBS) which are guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They will buy an additional $750 Billion (to bring their total purchase to an amount of $1.25 Trillion) in these securities. They will also be purchasing more of the Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac debt.
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CALL TO ACTION: If you have been waiting to act... STOP. If … (0 comments)
The guest speaker is retired Sergeant Early Lincoln. He will be speaking on Elder Abuse. The CAC chair, Lorinee Jackson, wrote that "this is an important subject to be informed about unfortunately is is happening more than you may think, maybe to an elderly neighbor or even a family member." Tens of thousands of elderly Americans are abused in our country every year. It happens in their homes, in their families' homes and even in elderly care facilities. By learning … (0 comments)
rates: Reminder: Spring Forward Tonight! Daylight Saving time!
- 03/07/09 04:14 PM
Just a quick reminder to set your clocks ahead by an hour as we enter daylight saving tonight at 2am. Did you know??? Officially, the spelling is "Daylight Saving Time" and not "Daylight Savings Time." The idea of Daylight Saving was started by Benjamin Franklin in 1784. He also penned the proverb: "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."
The law to preserve daylight and provide standard tie for the US was established on March 19, 1918 All Amtrack trains that are running on time will stop for one hour at 2am, in order … (3 comments)
After a monumental week of long negotiations, the state legislature sent the budget on to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday. I'll write more about this later. Expect higher taxes and lots of cuts in spending. The stock market fell again today, closing over 100 points down at 7365 (Dow Jones). This is the lowest close in 11 years. General Motors stock hit 74 year lows today. Mortgage rates continue to be very attractive for those who have solid credit, equity and employment.
rates: Obama Signs Stimulus Package Into Law, Stocks Fall Again- Notes On The Economy and Mortgages
- 02/17/09 07:41 AM
I'm writing this post in the last half hour of the stock market being open today... so, I'm trying to wait things out before posting the final numbers... Notes On The Economy and Mortgages (Week of February 17th) Today, President Barack Obama signed the $787 billion economic stimulus package into law. My opinion on the package? It's going to take time and patience to see the results of this legislation. We won't know for months and possibly years what the ramifications are. What we can do is continue to seek out professionals who will take the time to educate and consult … (4 comments)
rates: Stocks Plunge As Investors Not Buying Bailout/Stimulus Plan
- 02/10/09 09:33 AM
President Barack Obama's economic recovery plan passed the Senate today. Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada said the passage was, "the first step on the long road to recovery."
The markets did not react so favorably. The Dow Jones fell over 4 percent today- down 382 points! Wall Street seemed frustrated with the perceived lack of specifics from Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. Fed Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke also testified at a House Financial Services Committee hearing and did not elaborate any further. This seemed to further extend the stock market slide. The financial sector led the losses with 10.9% overall … (9 comments)
rates: Today: Stimulus Package Test Vote Makes It/Obama's First News Conference
- 02/09/09 06:44 PM
Today- Monday February 10, 2009 Today the proposed $838 billion economic stimulus bill barely made it through the test vote in the Senate. 60 votes were needed to send it on to tomorrow's probable passage. The vote ended up at 61-36.
President Barack Obama held his first prime-time news conference tonight. The President said, "The plan is not perfect,. No plan is. I can't tell you for sure that everything in this plan will work exactly as we hope, but I can tell you with complete confidence that a failure to act will only deepen this crisis as well as … (1 comments)
rates: Unemployment hits 7.6%- Congress Divided Over Stimulus Package
- 02/07/09 05:35 PM
"The time for action is now. If we don't move swiftly to put this plan in motion, our economic crisis could become a national catastrophe."- President Barack Obama Unemployment numbers came out worse than expected, while the Senate continue to bicker over the proposed $827 Billion (plus or minus) stimulus package. This week, Congress will vote on the package. 598,000 jobs were lost in January. This is the worst number since 1974. 7.6%- up from 7.2% last month. There's talk that included in the stimulus package is a $15,000 tax credit, which aims to lift the slumping housing market. Definitely an … (3 comments)
rates: $819 Billion Stimulus Package Passes House- On To Senate- Big For President Obama
- 01/28/09 04:39 PM
The House of Representatives passed the $819 Billion stimulus bill today by a margin of 244-188. This marked a big victory for President Barack Obama. Not a single Republican voted YES on the bill and 11 Democrats voted NO. The bill now moves on to the Senate and may take a week or two to be voted on there. There should be a lot of lobbying going on in the next week. One negative to the day was the lack of bipartisan support. More news on the market reaction to the bill tomorrow...
JB BROOKMAN CASTLE HOMES AND ESTATES SENIOR … (6 comments)
rates: President Barack Obama and the $825 Billion Stimulus Package: Vote Today
- 01/28/09 04:24 AM
The House of Representatives will vote on President Barack Obama's 825 Billion Dollar Stimulus Package today... word is, between 3 and 4pm Pacific Standard Time. The Dow Jones is up this morning as a result of the news... Will share the results of the big vote as soon as we have them...
rates: Ladera Heights/Culver City, CA: Westfield Fox Hills Mall Rennovation
- 01/27/09 05:59 PM
Here's a great website for residents of Ladera Heights, Culver City, Westchester or anyone interested in the plans, renderings or updates on the Westfield Fox Hills Mall: http://westfield.com/newfoxhills/home.html The transformation of the Westfield Fox Hills Mall, in Ladera Heights/Culver City, began in January of 2008. We are just 9 months away from the scheduled grand opening in October. Highlights will include: Adding 340,000 square feet of new retail space. Adding Target as a new anchor store. New architecture and outdoor dining. The mall continues to be open during renovation.
JB BROOKMAN CASTLE HOMES AND ESTATES SENIOR MORTGAGE CONSULTANT www.teamjb.com jb@castlehomesandestates.com … (0 comments)
rates: Get In Line!!! (Your Refinance, That Is!)
- 01/24/09 02:14 PM
As a mortgage banker and mortgage broker, I am a witness to the clogged up pipelines of all of the banks and investors. It has been said that the amount of refinance business is near the levels of 2003. At that time, banks were fully staffed. Obviously, this is not currently the case and families are being forced to wait longer and longer for their loans to close. The FED has pledged to purchase $500 billion in MBS (mortgage backed securities) through the end of June. Despite interest rates inching up this past week, we must take into consideration that they still have … (4 comments)
rates: 4.5% on a 30 Year Fixed Rate???... YES, it's real!
- 12/17/08 06:58 PM
Today, rates fell again and homeowners with great credit and income were being quoted and locked in the 4.5% range! It's definitely a great time to review your mortgage with a true mortgage consultant and see if refinancing is a good option for you. My advice... do NOT wait... as nothing is ever guaranteed... Including historically low rates staying this low.
The time for refinancing your home may never have been better. Mortgage rates have fallen again, sparking a rise in home refinance activity.
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