Issaquah Undressed

Bought Or Sold A Home In The Last 6 Weeks?

New laws went into effect recently regarding appraisals of home sold. This was supposed to help consumers and solve problems of inflated appraisals in the home buying process. It is turning into a big problem for both buyers and sellers and home values.

Below is a link to a video that expains how this came about. There is a petition you can sign. This system is wrong and needs to be fixed. Please take time to watch the video. Larry Cragun

Click here for an important video:

If appropriate sign the petition.

Mortgage Update from Issaquah Branch of Loan Network LLC

My personal opinion is this good news for interest rates is temporary. Long term mortgages seem to be going the opposite way as the stock market. I believe that the supply of money being pumped into the market will eventually trigger a fear of inflatilion, the ultimate bad news factor for mortgage rates. Our Issaquah Mortgage Branch has been busy with refinances. In the meantime here is an update for today with the outlook for a surge in rates within the next few days unlikely.

There is no relevant economic news scheduled for release today. The first data of the week is March’s Goods and Services Trade Balance report early tomorrow morning. This report gives us the size of the U.S. trade deficit but likely will not have much of an impact on the bond market or mortgage pricing. It is the least important of this week’s data.The first important piece of data is the release of April’s Retail Sales early Wednesday morning. This is an extremely important report for the financial markets as it measures consumer spending. Since consumer spending makes up two-thirds of the U.S. economy, this data can have a pretty significant impact on the markets. Current forecasts are calling for a 0.1% decline in sales from March to April. A weaker than expected level of sales should push bond prices higher and mortgage rates lower Wednesday. However, a larger increase could fuel bond selling and lead to higher mortgage rates.

Overall, it likely will be a pretty active week for mortgage rates. Besides the week’s important economic news, look for the stock markets to be a major influence on trading. The most important day of the week is Friday with three reports on the agenda, including the CPI. But Wednesday is also important due to the Retail Sales report. I am expecting to see several noticeable changes to rates this week, and would not be surprised to see multiple intra-day revisions also. Accordingly, please be attentive to the markets if still floating an interest rate.

Who’s Your Loan Officer? Why? Is That A Good Choice?

Is your perspective on the mortgage process a little skewed?

This article was prompted by a neighborhood discussion on mortgages this weekend. We have great neighbors. Living in a condominium building here in Issaquah Highlands as we do offers us the social aspect easily attained when one of us posts a note on the elevator announcing a brunch or bring a treat event at their home.

Sunday was one of those nice days. Out of our St Paddy celebration I learned that some people have some incorrect information relating to banks and mortgage companies. I write this for you the reader and for my neighbors.

Banks and mortgage companies are similar in important areas. Knowing this information can help you make a good borrowing decision. 

Both types of lenders rely on Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac for the bulk of the money they lend. Therefore, Freddie and Fannie set the rules both industries follow. They want the loan they originate to be sellable on this the secondary market. To you the borrower there is no difference.

Both banks and mortgage companies pay their originators a commission. I have worked for two major banks. The differences that caused me to go the mortgage broker route were important. Neither bank I worked for tried to be a rate leader. Both banks I worked for required me to use their underwriters and submit the loan to them. Even when we had relationships with other mortage banks such as Countrywide, we had to get permission to use them. We couldn’t go to the current rate leader as a reason. I left Mellon Bank over a dispute with an underwriter. She turned a loan down that I knew was a good loan. I went to my manager and asked to speak with the underwriter. My answer, “you know we don’t let loan officers talk to underwriters’. That was it for me. I pulled my 14 loans in process and went to work for a mortgage company and all 14 loans were approved. Being a mortage broker gave me more flexibility in interest rate, in special progams, and left me the loan originator able to do what was best for my borrowers.

Using Mellon as an example I can also show you a couple more points that are not commonly understood. Note, Mellon is no longer in our market, but had a Wholesale office in Bellevue as well as several Retail offices. This is common in the mortgage and lending world. In other words I had a retail price sheet and their mortgage brokers loan officers had  a wholesale price sheet that was priced lower. They would then add their fees to the rate sheets and compete. We competed against each other using Mellons system. As long as I had the ability to compete on rate I could stay in business. That’s the way it is now in the market.

So, when you give Wells Fargo a call for a refinance, as did one of my neighbors, you are dealing with a loan officer that is on commission, has a price sheet to give quotes from, and is under the control of that bank. Out of the commission, which is driven by the rate they charge you (the higher the rate they can charge the more they and the bank make) they get a piece of the profit. They may get half, in my case at one bank I got 40% and at the second bank I got 70% of the profit of the file.

To think you go to your existing bank and get a deal may be very wrong. In my job history some days we were competitive and some days we were pricey.

So to follow the theme of this story, who is your loan officer? Why? Is that a good choice? Here are some things to consider: competition is good so don’t just pick up the phone and call your existing bank. You are likely to get sucker punched. Yes, banks want as much money as they can get - you do know that don’t you? Loan officers tend to be mini banks in mentality, they too want what they can get. I sugget you do what a good friend just did to me. He called me and said he wanted to do business with me. He had a friend at local bank X  he had done business with but wanted to give me a shot. Well guess what? I made my margins thinner to get his business.

And PS: Pick someone who has something to lose by doing badly for you. The best way I have found to do that is to pick a real estate agent you trust and have that agent refer you to a loan officer they use. It may be a bank, it may be a mortgage broker. That loan officer is probably proven to not charge too high of an interest rate, to be able to finish what they start, and more importantly has much to lose in future business from that agent if he messes with you.

And thats my advice, may you have a good experience, you can call on me if you like - I will refer  you to loan officers that work for our branch that are among the very best, and would be glad to answer your questions on line or by email even if you are working with someone else. You don’t have to use us to get our solid opinionated advice here. Larry

The Future Has Almost Arrived For Mortgage Companies

Kathleen and I know the mortgage business well. Having been a top producer in a large mortgage company Kathleen once suggested I might consider starting our own mortgage company. Seeing her as wise and all knowing I started the process the next day.

We quickly became a large company in relationship to other mortgage companies. Within a year we were having months of 300 closed transactions. It was fun. But it was the past. Our company, Homes And Loans became a branch of a company that I see has the future figured out.

It is a well run hybrid of a mortgage company and mortgage bank. I see them as prepared for the day the mortgage company is an extinct business model.

Anyone in the business can see this happening. Surely they can. Certainly denial isn’t in this industry too.

Well here are some easy facts to support this thought. 1- Most major banks have stopped dealing with mortgage brokers. These include Bank of American, Chase and Included Washington Mutual for example. It will probably soon include Countrywide and others. When there are no more sources of money what will a mortgage company do? Die.

This is not good for the consumer. Why would a Bank cut off a source of business?  Easy is the answer folks. Using Countrywide as an example: if 90% of your business is out of your own branches and 10% of your business from brokers: by eliminating the 10% and raising your prices just by 1/8 th of a percent you have increased your profit by multiples. This is going to happen. It is not consumer friendly as it eliminates competition. The reality is that this storm is gaining full steam and will not stop until every mortgage company is wiped off the map. It is moving at a fast pace.

There are other parts to the storm. The mortgage broker has wrongly been given the blame for the crises. The banks and underwriters that created and approved the loans should stop the blame game. Even so, the mortgage industry lacks the clout to defend itself from legislative and oversight blame. Future legislation will give the mortgage companies an unfair disadvantage. The same blame comes from mortgage insurance companies and they are making the insuring rules tougher on mortgage company originated loans. These all add up to mortgage company fatality. It is just the way it is.

Unlike the changes I see in the real estate world being an end gain for the consumer, this storm benefits the banks resulting in an end loss for the consumer. In the meantime - we feel confident our move to close Homes And Loans and join forces as a branch of another great company leaves us postured to best serve our loan officers clients.

See related article  on Issaquah Highlands Undressed

Flickr photo by Vermin Inc

Does The Most Common Refinance Problem Have A Solution?

What is the problem?

It’s the shrinking value of your little bungalow. Yes, that is what our mortgage business, “Homes And Loans” is facing, many clients where the only problem is the lower home value.

An example: Bob and Carol put 10% down two years ago. They have a 6.25% mortgage rate. They still have good credit, the same employment, and want to lower their payment. The problem - their home value has gone down 10% and no lender is willing to loan 100% any more.

Example 2 is even more concerning. Is there are solution to this? Bob lost his job.

Here are two surprising options for folks like this.

1- FHA may save the day. An FHA loan allows a loan with only 3% equity in the home. When you need a refi and think you have almost no equity it is possibly worth taking a run at a real appraisal. Appraisals are often not an exact science. Determining if you have 3% instead of 0% equity by having an actual appraisal may save the day.

2- Two is big if available, “Streamline Refi” is the term. Many banks do them, VA and FHA do them, and some of the larger mortgage banks are bringing them back. The concept is simple. They have your loan. You have been making your payments on time. Why not reduce your payment for you with a simple streamlined refinance. This would save Bob, even though unemployed. This would overcome an appraisal problem.

Saving money on your mortgage payment is a good thing. Check with us or a trusted loan officer to determine your will allow a streamlined refi. See if it is worth the effort to use the insured FHA loan process. A nice bonus, the costs are lower.

For everyone: rates are volatile. A great rate at 10AM may be gone at 11:AM. Last month many valiant efforts to lock in a great rate were vaporized by the system. I wrote about this on the Seattle P I Real Estate Professionals blog and I suggest you consider its points seriously if you want to be ready to pounce on a good rate. Here is the link to the P I article; Now You See It Now You Don’t Then You Saw It Now You Don’t.

Larry Cragun

Will Mortgage Rates Go Even Lower?

Mortgage

Originally uploaded by Rev Dan Catt

Some of you may have picked up on the fact we are in the mortgage business. This has been a roller coaster type ride for us. At the peak we had 100 loan officers and were one of the largest brokerages in the state. It was fun. It was stressful.

We and a few of our favorite loan officers are now a branch of Loan Network LLC. Kathleen and I manage our branch and direct those in need to one of our skilled loan officers. Which one depends on your needs.

I offer this as a preamble to the question, will mortgage rates go even lower?

Yesterday one of my favorite competitors Rhonda Porter quoted under 5%. Yep, that is where it is headed - down baby down.

I am fortunate to get daily information from some pretty sophisticated economy and market experts. People I respect as they are often right on.

Their belief seems to be that the answer is yes. They believe the market is headed for 4% for a 30 year fixed rate.

Unbelievable eh? Contact me if you want to be emailed when rates hit a specific number.

New lending policies have changed things for locking rates. You must be ready to move to capture a rate. Locks must be done on real deals. If a loan officer locks the loan he or she is expected to deliver. A fax request won’t lock a loan. The file must be electronically input into the system to lock. That means you must have selected a lender that has your complete data.

You won’t need the appraisal completed, but you may find your loan officer won’t lock the loan without the appraisal. So that could leave you rushing to get that part completed.

These are trying times. Many have people in the industry are gone. Volume for many was less than half this year over last year. We just experienced a surge. In times like these you should be working with full time, hard working, well connected loan officers.

Fortunately for you, that is about all that are left.

Loan Modification

Photo is not of the type of modification of the subject article, by rick from Flickr

I am aware there is a lot of discussion on line and off about loan modification. As there are a lot of borrowers in financial trouble it is both pertinent and a haven of bad information. As many know of me as a loan officer, mortgage broker, and branch manager I am often asked about the topic.

Here is our company position on loan modification: Loan Modification is OK if done properly and through an attorney.

We do have the services of an attorney we trust to consult for you, a friend, or family member. He will handle all of the direct and consulting letters to the lenders. He will investigate any RESPA issues.

Few loan officers, real estate agents, or brokers have the ability to fight well for suffering borrowers.

I will return on December 7th. If any of you know of anyone who believes loan modification is appropriate you may have them contact me and I will put them in contact with this attorney. Larry

Winners and Losers Of The Fannie Freddie Takeover

From Reuters  

The Fed Takes Over Fannie and Freddie, Now What?

Already people have been contacting me about the Fed take over of Fannie and Freddie. What will that do to us or for us is the question? ………..From Dan Green who I respect: Sunday, the government announced that it will takeover Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and assume their respective operations.  Mortgage-backed debt is now government debt.But for all the front page stories today, there’s suprisingly little coverage about how the news impacts homeowners in need of a mortgage.Mortgage rates are down sharply today, and possibly forever.…………..another good article:  These are potential benefits:

• Lender balance sheets will be cleaned up and thinned out.
• Mortgage rates and fees should get cheaper as a result.
• Mortgage paper will be turned into Federal paper, establishing much needed confidence from foreign investors.  Its a global market, keeping foreign investment money flowing through our economy is vital to its existence in 2008 (and going forward).
• Federal paper will allow borrowers to potentially ‘work out’ their delinquent loans with far more flexibility than they could with lender owned mortgage paper.

Loan ‘work-outs’ were/are generally not in the interest of lenders, especially those who’ve retained mortgage servicing companies or run the divisions internally, since these profit centers are paid to keep homeowners in their current situation and/or handle the foreclosure process.  If the business model is to keep borrowers making payments they can’t afford and/or pushing them into foreclosure, well its easy to see where the misalignment of objects and conflict of interests arise.

The government can effectively work with homeowners to restructure payment terms any way they see fit, keeping more people in their homes, substantially reducing the number foreclosures that have fostered the rapid depreciation in many housing markets around the country.

• Reduction of Wall Street volatility in what has historically been a stable segment of the bond market.  Consumer confidence needs to be restored to the mortgage market, volatility and consumer confidence usually don’t coincide with each other.

Many speculators made a lot of money by short selling Fannie and Freddie’s stock, accelerating their devaluation.  The SEC put a stop to this in mid July 08, by then the damage (or rewards) had been realized.  Months late and billions short(ed) I will be linking other valid articles to this article over the next few days, so come back and check if you are interested. Visit Agent Genius for the completion of the text above. …..From the Garrett-Watts blog: They will still be in business Monday, but with their existing shareholders no longer owning it.We tend to think there will be minimal impact on the day-to-day selling of loans to them.We can envision three things happening after there is a thorough review by the Treasury Department of all aspects of their operations.………………………………………. FHFA Director Lockhart Remarks on Housing GSE Actions From The Big Picture:I am still working my way through the details of the GSE takeover by Treasury, but here is my initial read of the details:

• FHFA will act as conservator of the two firms — meaning the US government has day-to-day control of Fannie and Freddie;• The conservator’s goals are to (1) put the company in a sound and solvent condition, and (2) carry on the company’s business and preserve and conserve the assets and property of the company.

• There is an immediate moratorium of the firms’ lobbying activities. 

Have You Been On The Fence Over Interest Rates?

Again I ask, have you been on the fence over interest rates? I offer 3 tips.….

It may be time to get off. Today is a great example of how rates work.If you went price shopping this morning and locked a rate, you made a mistake or two….1- don’t price shop over the phone. Your friendly loan officer would  have been able to pick up an extra $3000 or so as rates came tumbling down this morning: depending on the size of your loan. ….2- use a lender and a real estate agent as a team. Use a lender referred by an agent. That puts all future business with the  real estate agent at risk if they mess with you or fail you. Your one loan carries less weight than 3 a month. Three a month is what I used get from a good real estate agent when I was a loan officer…. 3- pick your lender before you want to lock, have the application filled out and have written assurance your loan is approved. How long will rates stay where they are right now? Who knows. Today our mortgage company has received an opening price and two price drop notices from our market leading mortgage bank. If your loan isn’t in the processing system (loaded in the software) most banks won’t accept the lock. You don’t want a verbal you want proof you are locked.I started our first blog, MortgagesUndressed.com strictly to provide great information to consumers. I saw so many people get burned by online lenders that I wanted to help some that found the blog. I wanted to help them learn how to make good mortgage decisions. The tricksters in the mortgage business were numerous back then, and you should assume some are still out there. Back to my title: Todays plunge may be temporary. Call me if you want a referral to a great loan officer. I will make sure they know I am watching out for you. Photo courtesy of Flickr and by code poet

Mortgage And Loan Officer Tips

For a Mortgage Update: click here - Let us help you with your mortgage needs. 

Photo: Your blog writer and grandkids.

It’s been a while since I have made note of this: we own a small mortgage company. I bring this up as the industry has gone through tremendous change both nationally and in Washington State.

I provide you a list of important tips for you.

1– Mortgage Company Loan officers are generally independent contractors. They often pay a flat fee and/or a file fee to their broker, keeping the bulk of the fees for themselves. This gives them the ability to charge what they want on your loan.

2– In these times of greatly reduced business, some loan officers want to make a killing on one loan (like yours) while others are building a reputation of being competitive.

3– My experience is that online mortgage companies aren’t your best source of loans, even if they quote a good rate. Many just sell your name as a lead, taking a piece of the pie. They care most about closing you and least about you as a source of referrals.

4– Using a lender referred by a real estate agent is the best way to keep the loan officer in the mode of being competitive. It also places your loan as a high priority. The reason, the loan officer wants to look good to the real estate agent, hoping to deserve a steady stream of mortgages from the agent. I built my career as a loan officer on this concept. I had agents that trusted me.

5– This is a bad time to use a part time loan officer. Even me. People that want me to do their loans don’t get me. I know it is in their best interests to have me refer them to a competent loan officer. The lesson is important here, don’t use a loan officer that is part time.

6– In many cases, especially first time home buyers you may be best to use a loan officer that can quote FHA loans. Actually, use one that is very familiar with FHA.

7– Don’t go with the cheapest rate quote lender. Rates these days are volitale. By the time they take your ap rates will have changed. You are prey in the waiting if you choose a lender by rates. The chances are almost 100% you won’t get the rate you are quoted if you shop and pick that way.

8– Don’t be afraid that rates are too high to buy. They are higher than in recent months. However, prices are buyers market prices in most of the Puget Sound.

9– Don’t go shopping without a full loan approval. That means they have drawn your credit report and submitted you to an underwriter.

10– This may seem to contradict #9 – don’t go get a mortgage approval without having done some window shopping. You should know what neighborhood and price range you are happy to own. Do drive byes, pick up flyers, drop in on open houses (tell the agent you have an agent so you don’t get high pressured too soon), search the local webisites that have MLS search. Then talk with an agent for a lender referral.

An Educated Look At The Mortgage Mess:

This isn’t short but it is informative. An 83 minute panel on the problem and solutions.

“Click for Video on How We Got Into this Mortgage Mess and How We Get Out.”

• Alan Blinder, Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University
• Zanny Minton Beddoes, Economics Editor, The Economist magazine
• Peter Orszag, Director, Congressional Budget Office.

Location: Princeton Club of New York. Co-sponsored by the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University, and The Economist Magazine

Tags: mortgage, implosion, bubble

If You Know Someone Who Is Thinking Of Walking Away From Their Mortgage -

If You Know Someone Who Is Thinking Of Walking Away From Their Mortgage -encourage them not to.

I have seen many businesses pop up to make money helping people come to grips with the mortgage crises, where the end result is walking away. The message is, hey just do it.

If you know someone thinking of this tell them not to do that. There are a lot of moral reasons not to, lots of reasons to buck it up, and a reason Fannie Mae warns:

From Kenneth Harney: “

The country’s two largest sources of mortgage money have a blunt warning for anyone thinking about joining the growing “walkaway” trend, where homeowners stop making payments and months later send the house keys back to their lender: You will feel the pain.

On March 31, Fannie Mae sent out new guidelines to lenders intended for walkaways and other foreclosure situations. Fannie will now prohibit foreclosed borrowers from getting another mortgage through the giant investor for five years, unless there are “documented extenuating circumstances.” In those cases, the mortgage prohibition is for three years.

Even after five years, borrowers with foreclosures in their files will be required to make at least a 10 percent down payment, and will need minimum FICO credit scores of 680.

Freddie Mac, Fannie’s rival, counts foreclosures as major credit blots for seven years, and a senior official said the company is now aggressively pursuing some walkaway borrowers “to preserve our deficiency rights”

Some people think take the easy way out: this one may not be so good.

Tags: walk+away, foreclosure, mortgage

So The Fed Made A Cut, So What?

What is the result to the mortgage consumer, really, because the Federal Reserve Board cut the federal funds rate -.75%.

We had a mimi cut in mortgage rates that lasted it seems only hours.

The big benefit is how the banks reacted in the Prime Lending Rate; from 7.25% to 6.50%. It’s the largest single drop since 1991 – (from 7.50% to 6.50% on 12/23/91); and, the lowest the Prime Rate has been
since 09/19/05!!!

This does affect some ARMS and most of your seconds and lines of credit. New or existing of these should go down proportionatly on the next adjustment. You credit card rates may go down also.

Tags: prime+rate, fed+cut, interest+rate

Here Today Gone Today

Yesterday I posted that rates were way way down and no one knew how long it would last. How long dit it last? A few hours. Some of our lenders upped rates 5 times during the day.

So what do you do if you missed the opportunity and want to be ready? Start the application. Have the loan in the system so if it happens again it is merely a computer transaction, fast and furious.

Mark this site. The first thing I do each day is look at rates. If I see the sub 5% is back, or close, I will post it here. Larry Cragun….. Remember I don’t do loans, just real estate sales, but we do own a company with select loan officers. Several of them serve people locally here in Issaquah.

Tags: interest+rates, issaquah

You Haven’t Been Thinking About Mortgage Rates Have You?

Here are a couple of articles from Las Vegas Undressed author, Mark Clawson to consider.

What does it mean when the Fed cuts rates?

I mentioned that weakness in the stock market can help mortgage interest rates

Tags: mortgage+rates, las+vegas, bond

There Are 0 Down Loan Programs

Recently I received a comment implying one had to put 20% down to obtain a mortgage now. That is incorrect. O down programs are still availabe and FHA 3% down is important.

Mark Clawson who is licensed with our company in Washington and has run from the rain to Nevada writes on Las Vegas Undressed about a Fannie-Mae 100% program.

Here he describes detail to MyCommunityMortgage.

There are a lot of common sense programs if you can prove your income and have decent credit.

Marks local number is 206–999–2009

Tags: o+down, mortgage

This May Date Me, But I Will Forgive You For Your Youth And Inexperience

In my teen age days there was a song that wouldn’t make the charts today, it was cute and fun not loud and dumb. It was called Mr. Custer. It goes like this.

(That famous day in history the men of the 7th Cavalry went riding on)
(And from the rear a voice was heard)
(A brave you man with a trembling word rang loud and clear)
What am I doin’ here??

Please Mr. Custer, I don’t wanna go
Hey, Mr. Custer, please don’t make me go
I had a dream last night about the comin’ fight
Somebody yelled “attack!”
And there I stood with a arrow in my back.

Please Mr. Custer, I don’t wanna go (forward Ho!!)–aaww

SPOKEN: Look at them bushes out there
They’re moving and there’s a injun behind every one
Hey, Mr. Custer-you mind if I be excused the rest of the afternoon?
HEY CHARLIE, DUCK YER HEAD!!
Hmm, you’re a little bit late on that one, Charlie
Hooh, I bet that smarts!

(They were sure of victory, the men of the 7th Cavalry, as they rode on)

(But then from the rear a voice was heard)
(That same brave voice with the trembling word rang loud and clear)
What am I doin’ here??

Please Mr. Custer, I don’t wanna go
Listen, Mr. Custer, please don’t make me go
There’s a redskin a’waitin’ out there, just fixin to take my hair
A coward I’ve been called cuz I don’t wanna wind up dead or bald

Please Mr. Custer, I don’t wanna go (forward HO)–aaww

SPOKEN: I wonder what the injun word for friend is
Let’s see-friend– kemo sabe, that’s it
KEMO SABE!, HEY OUT THERE-KEMO SABE!
Nope, that itn’t it
Look at them durned injuns
They’re runnin’ around like a bunch of wild Indians-heh, heh, heh
Nah, this ain’t no time for jokin’

Now here is my short re-do.

That famous day in history the men of the management of WaMu went riding on)
(And from the rear a voice was heard)
(A brave you man with a trembling word rang loud and clear)
Why did a stay workin here??

Please Mr. Killinger, I don’t wanna go
Hey, Mr. Killiinger, please don’t make me go
I had a dream last night about the comin’ flight
Somebody yelled “attack!”
And I felt like ther was an arrow in my back.

Please Mr. Killinger, I don’t wanna go (forward Ho!!)–aaww

SPOKEN: Look at them bushes out there
They’re moving and there’s an investor behind every one
Hey, Mr. Custer-you mind if I be excused the rest of the afternoon?
HEY CHARLIE, DUCK YER HEAD!!
Hmm, you’re a little bit late on that one, Charlie
Hooh, I bet that smarts! You should have taken that job with Boeing.

(They were sure of victory, the men of the WaMu employeary, as they worked on)

(But then from the rear a voice was heard)
(That same brave voice with the trembling word rang loud and clear)
What am I doin’ here?? I really could have worked for Boeing?

Please Mr. Killinger, I don’t wanna go
Listen, Mr. Killinger, please don’t make me go
There’s a Chase Manager a’waitin’ to lob, just fixin to cut my job

A coward I’ve been called cuz I don’t wanna wind up both broke and bald

Please Mr. Killinger , I don’t wanna go (forward HO)–aaww oh, no!

SPOKEN: I wonder what the Chase code for friend is
Let’s see-friend– kemo sabe, that’s it
KEMO SABE!, HEY OUT THERE-KEMO SABE!
Nope, that itn’t it
Look at them durned Human Resource hackers.

They’re runnin’ around like a bunch of wild Indians-heh, heh, heh
Nah, this ain’t no time for jokin’

Please don’t sell to Chase, please no no no nono.

Please you know what WaMu stands for: Washington Mutual

If you sell to Chase it changes to MaMu: Manhattan Mutual.

We don’t want no stinkin MaMu…Larry Cragun

I Encourage You To Use Your Real Estate Agents Loan Officer

I think that owning a mortgage company gives us an important insight. There are different degrees of skill level and product knowledge from one loan officer to another. We know this as we had as many as 100 loan officers at a time. Probably the single best decision you can make in picking a lender is to contact your Realtor (c) and get one or more recommendations for who you should use for a mortgage.

The call to the lender should go something like this. “Hi Joan, Larry Cragun, Realtor gave me your name as someone I could trust to do a good job on a mortgage for me”.

This accomplishes several things. The loan officer knows his total relationship with the Realtor is at risk. That is the way it is in real estate. No agent wants his or her transaction to fall apart because of a sloppy or unskilled lender. Even a good loan officer that gets too busy and goofs up closing, or is late to close, or doesn’t deliver the rate, term, fees, or program promised is in danger of losing all future business from the Realtor. It should play a big role in assuring you delivery as promised, a decent rate, and priority attention.

If any loan is going to be neglected or procrastinated, it won’t be one with a real estate agent involved.

So your job is to lock in a relationship with both the agent and the loan officer as a team. Communicate with the real estate agent how it is going, how it went.

I don’t do loans anymore, I don’t feel I am your best choice. But if I am your agent it is my job to make sure the person handling your financing is a professional in every way. So if you bring an unknown lender to me, or to any agent in fact, be prepared for an effort of persuasion to use a loan officer that agent knows is skilled.

What do I do every time I am asked for an out of area referral on a loan officer, I call a real estate office in that area. I ask the receptionist who is the top Realtor that I could speak to. I ask the real estate agent, for a referral of a lender. I do exactly what I suggest you do.

So, please do as I ask, I want you to have a good lending experience.

Larry Cragun

PS: You are welcome to call me for a referral, I will make the call for you.

An In Depth Look At Reverse Mortgages

The Reverse Mortgage Issue is picking up steam. I began covering this topic on our Real Estate Undressed and Mortgages Undressed blogs in 2006. I first posed the topic unsure of it but interested. In over a year of review I conclude, it can be a great help to many people. There is an FHA version that is somewhat restrictive. Like in regular mortgages, there are conventional and Jumbo Reverse Mortgages.

The one thing to watch out for is the fact the costs are high enough you should expect to keep the loan for 7 years or more. It is a loan.

You might find some recent comments interesting:

From Peter G Miller

I am not part of the reverse mortgage industry. I am a journalist and have certainly discussed the matter of negative amortization. As an example, I wrote on August 1st that:

“With all the news about failing lenders, you don’t hear much about problems with reverse financing.

“The reason: We’re not going to know how risky reverse mortgages are for a number of years.

“Reverse mortgages are really nothing more than negative amortization financing. Monthly payments do not cover the interest cost, so the unpaid interest is added to the loan balance. Of course, with a reverse mortgage there are no required monthly payments at all.”

My reverse mortgage blog — BestReverseMortgage.com covers reverse mortgages from an independent perspective and routinely discusses subjects not found on lender sites.

Craig Castle Says:

I think the term “risk” is the wrong one to use with regard to reverse mortgages. Because they are non-recourse loans, there really is no “risk” as such to the borrower. But, it is true that interest rates, which change, effect the overall cost of reverse mortgages.

You are correct to say that a reverse mortgage does not make sense for everyone, and that the length of time the borrower plans to remain in their home is an important consideration.

The truth, however, is that many older Americans have few other assets available to help ease financial problems. With residential real estate losing value over the last year, it is not a good time to sell. And those who do, will not find affordable rentals, either.

Reverse mortgages allow seniors to access equity without losing their place to live. By saving the cost of paying for other housing, they can often recover the cost of a reverse mortgage loan.

Peter runs a great website, I link to it as well, but I have to disagree with this comment… “The reason: We’re not going to know how risky reverse mortgages are for a number of years.” Yes, reverse mortgages are neg am loans but remember the lenders are only allowing seniors to take roughly 60% of the equity out of their homes. These arent the 90% LTV neg am loans that we have seen the past few years. It doesnt get much better than a 60% LTV loan with a Gov gaurantee even with neg am.

1. Just my two cents……
2. This would apply to FHA Reverse Mortgages
3. Karen of Loan Smart Says:Never fear. Just attended the NRMLA (National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association)conference in San Diego this month and heard from the director of HUD that they are working on decreasing the up front costs for a reverse mortgage. This product is one of the best things ever offered for seniors and can dramatically change their lives for the better.

Philip Vernot Says: With so many Seniors struggling to make ends meet combined with the adage “You can’t take it with you”, a reverse mortgage makes a lot sense for many of the Seniors today.

John of Reverse Morgage Daily Says Larry, The costs are higher with a reverse mortgage but remember half of the costs are due to the 2% MI premium which offers the borrower protection if they end up being updside down on the house. As the reverse market evolves you will start to see the origination fees become lower as lenders start to pay on the back end.

1. Tom Evans Says:As Marketing Director for the Senior Lending Network, I have had a chance to speak firsthand with literally thousands of seniors who have taken Reverse Mortgages. In the overwhelming majority of cases, seniors have changed their lives for the better with a reverse mortgage. Many, in fact, go so far as to say that their RM “saved their lives”.I came into the mortgage industry from an entertainment background, and at first, I too thought that Reverse Mortgages were “too good to be true”. But to quote one of the testimonials from our latest campaign - “This is one of those things that IS good and IS True, and the government is backing it.”I was a skeptic, but I would proudly recommend a reverse mortgage to anyone in a position to benefit from it - even my own parents. Thanks………………………………..Click Here for those written on Real Estate Undressed.com …..and Here for those on MortgagesUndressed.com