Friday 04/04/2008

Happy Thursday connected to Friday!

Mortgage rates jumped up a little this week as I'm sure you all have seen.  The 30 year fixed mortgage rose 17 basis points to 6.12 percent, according to the Bankrate.com national survey of large lenders.  The mortgages in this week's survey had an average total of 0.4 discount and origination points. One year ago, the mortgage index was 6.25 percent; four weeks ago, it was 6.32 percent.

The 15 year mortgage also rose 17 basis points to 5.7 percent.  The 30-year jumbo rose 15 basis points to 7.52 percent.

Thats all I have for today.  Make your day a great one!

Wednesday 04/02/2008

     It is an absolute beautiful Wednesday here in Indianapolis and I hope its the same for everyone else out there.  We are way past due for nice weather here as in the last 10 days this is the first sign of sun! 

     Rates are a little bit up today as the DOW is up almost a record high 400 points today.  This could be a great sign for a little releif in the credit crisis, but I don't think its over.  It will be quite a while before this mess gets cleared up but as for now this could be a great opportunity for investors.  Take care and make your day a great one! 

     Happy April Fools Day!  I'm sure you've all seen the 100% SISA new programs out there from all your lenders.  Thats not even an April Fools Joke since we all know we can't do that but hey, trying to bring a smile to everyones face.  Below is an article posted on Yahoo Finance this morning that is very interesting and can be very helpful to some, or all of your clients who may not understand why it is so imperative to have a high credit score.  High Credit = money saved!  Take care and make your day a great one!

 http://biz.yahoo.com/ibd/080320/funds.html?.v=1&.pf=banking-budgeting

Monday 03/31/2008

     Hope you all had a great weekend!  At the start of a new week this morning we run across more changes in the industry.  Announced today, HUD Cheif Alphonso Jackson will be resigning as of April 18, 2008.      

     Henry Paulson, Treasury Secretary, today proposed a set of changes to the nation's financial market system, including an expansion of the Federal Reserve's authorities, which could easily be the biggest engine overhaul of Wall Street since the Great Depression.  This plan comes as concerns on the housing and credit crisis fallout in the financial system and continues to call for change in Washington. These changes, if acted upon, would be  invisible to consumers but would drastically change how the financial services industry is regulated.

     Hope you all have a great Monday!

Sunday 03/30/08

Saturday 03/29/08

     Happy Saturday to all!  For those of you who actually take time to read my daily blog I thank first and far most.  I also apoligize as yesterday I SLACKED!!!  Yes yes I know.  I need to kick it into gear and get back on the never ending blogging trail. 

     Most of you who took time to look at rates on Friday probably noticed quite a hike in rates.   Anymore, seems like no matter what lender you use, there are so many pricing adjustments on Conforming products.  A nice 6% 30yr fixed rate could easily go to 7.375% just for being a Cash Out transaction, and borrowers score under 680.  FHA!!!!!  This is the way to go!  No pricing adjustments!!!  I admitt, some conforming products are fit for the right borrower, but realisticly anymore FHA is taking over the old Sub-Prime with great rates!  Just interested in eveyone else's opinion!  Make it a great one!

Thursday 03/27/2008

     Today I would like to discuss a very interesting subject and would appreciate your comments and thoughts in return.  If you had a chance to read yesterdays blog, this co-insides with what I discussed yesterday. 

     Every single day, as we all know, you see more and more borrowers who run into trouble and cannot make their monthly payment.  I personally have run into a couple of cases where borrowers have told me they have taken a significant amount out of their 401K to make payments due to loss of job, injury, etc...  Although this saves their credit, or even saves their house, is this really the smartest thing to do in that situation? 

     My personal thoughts on this are as follows.  If you can't afford it, get out of it!  Why take what you have saved for retirement, plus pay a penalty, to save something you can't afford any way. 

     I ask you all to please respond as I am very interested in eveyone else's thoughts!  Thanks and make your day a great one!

Wednesday 03/26/2008

     Below is a great article for borrowers who are or might soon be having trouble making their mortgage payments.  Just thought I would share with you all.  Many borrowers out there tend to "freak out" as we call it, and do nothing about the situation.  Many feel embarrased about their position and possibly think there is no way out of the situation.  Make your day a great one!

     What you should do if you can't make the mortgage payment

by Lita Epstein Nov 12th 2007 @ 9:00AM

Filed under: Debt, Home

     Your mortgage payment re-set to a higher interest rate and you can't afford the new payment. Or you lost your job and can't pay the mortgage. Or you're facing surgery and don't know how you'll have enough money to pay the mortgage. These are the three most common reasons people can't pay their mortgage, and your reason may be even different.

     Whatever the reason, when you know you no longer can afford your mortgage payments, don't go hide in the closet. The best thing you can do is to call your mortgage servicer (whether it's the bank you first took the loan through or a new bank that is now collecting the payments) and let them know you have a problem and what the problem is. Many loan servicers will tell you they can't do anything for you until you miss at least two payments or are more than 60 days late. If you can't get help from your mortgage service, don't give up seeking help.

     Your next call should be the the Center for Foreclosure Solutions at 888-495 HOPE (4873). This hotline handled more than 50,000 calls in the third quarter of 2007, so you're not alone. The center is a collaboration of housing counselors, mortgage servicers, investors and other mortgage participants.

     If you have trouble getting through or don't find the help want, you should then call a HUD approved Housing Counseling Agency at 800-569-4287. If you prefer, you can find one near you using the HUD website.

     You may find that you don't even want to open the mail you receive from your lender. Well don't give in to that temptation. The first notices you will receive will be critical information about how to prevent foreclosure. Later notices will focus on pending legal action. Failure to open the letters will not give you a defense in court.

     Pull out your loan documents and read them to find out what they say regarding missing your payments and the actions your lender will take. You also may want to contact your state government housing office to find out what the foreclosure laws are for your state. Every state has different laws.

     Remember, after the basics of life -- food and health care -- keeping your house should be your first priority. Too often I've seen stories of people who made their minimum payments on credit cards, so they wouldn't be closed, and skipped their mortgage payments. Remember, credit card debt is not secured against your home, but your mortgage is. Your mortgage payment should always be a higher priority than your credit card debt.

     Think about assets you may have that you may be able to sell, or possibly a second job you can take. Let your lender know that you are willing to make sacrifices to keep your house. A lender is more willing to come up with a modification of your loan package if they know you're serious about making it work.

     Don't seek the easy way out by paying fees to a foreclosure prevention company. An authorized HUD counselor will provide those services for free if you call them. Also, don't sign any document appointing a firm to represent you and act on your behalf. These people are scam artists. You will be signing over your title to your property and becoming a renter in your house.

Tuesday 03/25/2008

     Here we are on a very chilly Tuesday, I thought it was Spring, and rates are still standing pretty strong.  As I read daily mortgage market news it is evident that we are heading towards older lending times with significant amounts of money down to obtain a mortgage.  For many buyers this can and will create many problems.  Keep looking for those assets as I posted in one of my daily blogs last week, as liquid assets will save many deals.  Everyone hang in there as there are many lenders and investers out there to lend money so we can all make that money! 


Monday 03/24/2008

     Hope you all had a great weekend!  I have some pretty good news here that I would like to share with you.  The National Association of Realtors reported that sales by homeowners rose 2.9% in February.  It was the first month-over-month rise in annualized pace since July.  This is a great sign that housing's problems are getting addressed. 

     Although we are selling more homes now, the prices of these homes has fallen dramatically.  Sales prices have now fallen 15% from their peak in July 2006.  The median price of a single-family home dropped as well, falling 8.7% to $193,900.  That was the largest drop in prices since the trade group began tracking them in 1989!  WOW!  Just some food for thought.  Make your day a great one!

Sunday 03/23/2008

     Happy Easter to all!  Here is a little Easter poem I read and felt I should share it with everyone. 

      "Easter comes but once a year

       But when it does, we all know its here

       Children filling themselves with chocolate

       Dad's down the pub for a pint of beer!"

      "We go to the church for the wine and bread

       Dad's half asleep, and jerking his head

       Baby sister is here too, munching away

       On the free Easter egg the Priest gave us today."

       "But remember we must, that the Lord died for us

       And ascended into heaven to give us fresh lives

       For each and every one of us."

    HAPPY EASTER!

Saturday 03/22/2008

     GOOD MORNING! 

     I hope you are all haveing a great Saturday morning.  I was following up on my daily finance news this morning and found an artice on Yahoo that I would like to share with everyone.  This article deeply explains in vast detail exactly staight and to the point why the market has the position it has.  I hope you all enjoy reading this very informative article as it can answer any questions you might have.  Have a great rest of your easter weekend and look forward to catching up with you all on Monday!  



Friday 03/21/2008

      Happy Good Friday to all!  What a crazy but interesting week in the markets.  Rates, stocks, and markets have been all over the board in every known direction.  Tipically, after the Federal Reserve cuts the Key Interest Rate, we will see a little jump in rates.  This happened on Tuesday the 18th, but only for a short while.  Wednesday, the 19th, morning through today, rates have been very attractive and very strong.  There is still time out there for those of you who have ARM refi's in your pipeline to really help these borrowers out and put some extra money in your pocket at the same time!  

     Also remember Verifiable Liquid Assets save deals!  It seems that if your borrower is under a 680 FICO, you can't do a loan anymore.  But, if your borrower has 30K in assets, this can easily take a 625 FICO to Approve/Elligable on DU.  Sounds pretty obvious I know, but I see alot of people giving up on deals that could possibly make them a lot of money!