MortgagesUndressed

Condominium home owners dues are a part of your mortgage payment for qualifying purposes. Even though you may be purchasing a lower price place to live, there is this added expense. Using the most recent Freddie Mac rate of 6.375% for a 30 year fixed - not having a $400 home owners dues would allow you to purchase $64,100 more home.

He doesn’t know it, but his purchase is falling apart.

Why? He took off on vacation thinking FedEx could bring him the papers to sign.

We missed the closing date. It didn’t work. The seller wants out of the deal.
But the buyer is enjoying his vacation.

More on this on Monday.

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Yesterday I spent several hours listening to panels and presentations by the top mortgage lead generators. Some are names you are familiar with some not. You are probably familiar with Lending Tree and HouseValues.com. They were on the panels. There were others who sell to other lead generators.

Guess what? You are still prey. The lead generators want to capture you. And sell you. The want to categorize you. You may be aged. You maya be fresh. You may be cold. You may be hot. You may be exclusive. You may be non exclusive. Some want you badly, some not very badly.

However they classify you it takes one person to trap you. YOU! To become a … whatever they call you, it starts with your filling out a form.

In a previous sarcastic article I suggested lead companies sell your name 15 times for 15 bucks. I learned yesterday its only 5 times. I don’t believe them. Maybe if all 5 of the 5 sold you 5 it would be your name is sold 25 times. I believe many sell you over an over and over because so many tell me they fill out a form and they are barraged with calls. Then re barraged months later.

Be aware, they are out to get you.

Larry Cragun

Here is an article you should read: Loan officer or borrower. Thanks Christi Lundquist. CLICK HERE

Here is a part of it: As a consumer, the best protection that you can give yourself is education. Read all documentation BEFORE you sign. Don’t just trust that your mortgage broker or lender is going to be completely honest with you. Remember - their paycheck depends on the outcome of the transaction. If you feel uncomfortable, don’t give in to pressure

I was in a social setting last night. Someone asked me what I do. Of course I told him. His response, “go gettum”. His wife is a former loan processor. They recently bought a home and had a bad experience with their mortgage. They randomly picked a mortgage broker. They got a greenie. Their loan didn’t close on time, they lost their rate, and they wished they had selected another lender. His amazement was that they thought they knew what they were doing, she being a former loan processor.

I am telling you, use a lender referred by a real estate agent. It gives you someone with experience in executing on time. It puts you high in the priority list. If you want to use someone referred to you, get them to give you an agent referral. Loan officers work on priorities if they are busy. You want to be number one on that list. The lender understanding his reputation is a stake with a real estate agent is a big factor in this.

Loan officers, if you don’t like what I preach here there is a simple solution. Give out the names of agents you work with. Ask borrowers to call them for a reference. Sure it puts you on the spot, but it also give you credibility.

If you don’t have real estate agents you can use as a reference, go to work on that problem. It took me a year working for a bank before I had a realtor step forward to use me. I worked hard getting real estate agents business. It was in my opinion the only way I would survive past the refi boom I was witnessing when I started. Yes, refi booms happen in cylces too. Another will happen we just don’t know when.

Larry Cragun

Should I get an ARM rate until rates go down, then get a 30 year fixed?

The answer: There are reasons to get an adjustable rate, not the one you pose. If you are going to be in the home a short time is one reason. There is nothing that indicates we will ever see the recent low rates again. It probably will not happen in my lifetime. We hit lows that hadn’t been seen in decades. Many decades. Get used to it. It is a matter of what you are used to.

Yesterday was a day of questions and unsolicited comments. It was interesting, phone calls and emails. I will post a few. First, a question on a second from Terry. I have addressed this topic before. This man has a chance to pick up a home in foreclosure for $90,000.00. It is out of state. He needs a quick second. He has $250,000 in equity and is in a hurry. What lender can do this fast? He was hoping I would send him to a loan officer.

I sent him to his credit union. He has good credit. They do seconds. They charge no fees.

BankRate.com is publishing todays average 30 year fixed is a whopping 6.38%. Oh the pain of it all. What will we do, what will we do?

Those of us that financed at the time of Desert Storm paid 10.38%. Yep, we locked the morning Bush Sr. announced Desert Storm. It was in fear the rates were going to skyrocket. Does that make sense? Skyrocketing from 10.38%? It is all a matter of what you are used to. Remember there is no crying in selecting interest rates. So cut it out.