My New Blog

Re: Lisa Folwell

8/26/08

Both Lisa Shaw with VanDyk Mortgage & Dawn Ottinger of Lakeland Realty were very helpful. They made the whole process fun!!!!

Lisa Folwell

Clevland NC

In this extremely slow market the internet is the only thing that separates the "Haves from The Have Nots".

Experienced agents that are thriving right now are not relying on their local market but are claiming a larger market share due to a strong internet presence.

A good example of that is the case of Davie County North Carolina in June of this year. 15 homes sold in the entire county!!!! There were at the time 126 Realtors and 16 mortgage companies. Therefore many i agents & mortgage companies went hungry that month. If you are not tapping into the "World Wide Web" then how do you expect to survive?

Doing so requires more than a "Listing Book Account" or a sub domain from your current broker. Every agent that expects to survive until June of '09 must have a web site that gets good search engine results. ( on Google's First or Second Page ) If you as a Realtor do not have such a web presence then you can expect to be part of the 60% of all agents expected NOT to be in the business by the years end.

But how do you get to be an Google's first or second page without paying for each click?

The answer is in three little letters, SEO or "Search Engine Optimization. There is an entire industry that focuses on nothing else buy optimizing web sites to be "Google & yahoo Friendly"

Google & Yahoo Represent about 80% of all searches performed

In up coming Blogs we will discuss what SEO is and how you can use this valuable tool to separate yourself from the pack  

If this is the first time here on our blog check out some of the other topics or go to our main site at www.mtgbuy.com

Or if you would like to discuss how you can receive a free web site, just write me at:

john@mtgbuy.com

Greetings,

Re: A solution to Housing/Mortgage Crisis

I have been in the mortgage business for more years than I care to count and have never seen things so bad. The so called FHA fixes are not really helping anyone. All I do is FHA loans and yet not one client that has asked me about the new FHA programs to help borrowers has been able to meet the new guidelines to get the help!!!!

Too, since the industry has tightened up lenders who are doing standard FHA loans are NOT following FHA guidelines. For instance, there is not supposed to be a minimum score for FHA loans, yet almost to a man lenders are imposing their own guidelines that overlay what FHA guidelines call for. We understand why they are doing these things which is to offset the risk of the loan. However I thought that is what FHA was supposed to provide. The solution to national liquidity will be returning to TRUE FHA lending. We can get to this point by doing three things

1) Have FHA guarantee 30% of the Mortgage instead of 20% as it is now. This will get lenders into more of a comfort zone and allow underwriters to be more comfortable signing off on borrowers that actually qualify

2) Make lenders approved for FHA, FOLLOW FHA GUIDELINES. Right now they are making up their own guidelines and attaching them or overlaying them to FHA loans. Make it mandatory that if they are to continue to lend with FHA guarantees that they must follow the spirit of the guidelines of the FHA loan

3) Investors play a huge roll in this real estate market. I believe to keep many thousands of additional properties from foreclosure that FHA needs to create a product for investors. Guarantee 10% instead of 20% for the owner occupied bran

Without liquidity a business chokes to death. Is a government any different????

By doing these three things you free up money TODAY and make lenders more comfortable in covering their risks

Warm Regards

John Shaw

john@mtgbuy.com

www.mtgbuy.com

Starting today 8/7/08 we will be adding the name of any Realtor that we get a testimonial on.

At every closing we ask for a testimonial from the client on how they viewed the work we did for them.

Sometimes just the boxes are checked and sometimes they will actually write a few words expressing how they feel. When they express how they feel we post these on our testimonial page here on our web site.

Starting today we are adding another feature and including any testimonial that was said about the Realtor that served them. Our first such is found in a testimonial we received today.

7/30/08

Re: Connie Mick

Cornelius NC

Two other mortgage companies could NOT get this done.

Mara went out of her way to make sure all my needs were met so my closing could take place as planned. She went to bat for me in so many ways. I appreciate all she did for me!!!

President Signs Bill Locking Out 40% of FHA Loan Candidates, Further Slowing Economy

To add insult to injury to the dwindling middle class of America, this week the President signed H.R. 3221, Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, into law. This bill contains a provision which forbids FHA from insuring mortgages in which the borrower’s down payment comes from a private down payment assistance provider, beginning October 1, 2008.

Many are concerned that Congress has chosen not to address the need for DPA in this bill, even though HUD estimates that almost 40% of all down payment funds comes from DPA sources. The elimination of a large segment of the housing market such as that will have devastating results. It also means that more than 300,000 working class families will be locked out of homeownership in the next year alone. DPA has the overwhelming support of Congressional Black and Hispanic Caucus Members, Mortgage Bankers Association, U.S. Conference of Mayors, National Association of Home Builders, National Association of Counties, and many, many others.

The bill which is hailed as housing aid helps only a small "needle in a hay stack" few, yet absolutely knocks out 40% of FHA candidates from purchasing homes a further blow to the already staggering economy

Congress Signs Bill To Slow The Economy Even Further

Is DPA Gone For Good?

The Senate & House appear to have reached a compromise on a large housing bill that includes language eliminating downpayment assistance (DPA).

The Housing & Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (H.R. 3221) is rumored to be on the agenda for discussion and possibly a vote this week. Section 2113(c) of H.R. 3221 contains a provision that would eliminate downpayment assistance. If this bill passes and is signed into law DPA will no longer be available. Although President Bush is threatening to veto the bill, many believe he will sign it if it gets to his desk.

40% of FHA loans GONE

The consequences will be devastating! By FHA's own estimates, DPA comprises nearly 40% of FHA's volume. This means more than 300,000 working class families will be locked out of homeownership in the next year alone. Communities across America will take the brunt of the $50 billion in lost real estate sales, not to mention the indirect impact on the real estate, mortgage and building sectors that will be forced to shed tens of thousands of jobs due to this dangerous legislation.

The current Bill will have little if any affest on refinancing or saving anyone in the US. As a mortgage  broker we have done exactly 0 of the current "FHA Secure Program" that was supposed to save so many families has such narrow requirements that we have yet to find someone who qualifies. This new program is basically the same and requires that a lender "Want" to write down or off the difference between what the home is worth and what is owed. Gee I wonder if the will "want" to do that???

So ultimately this boils down to more and more laws from people who don't understand what they are doing.

I propose a concensus from the industry on what should be done. Leaving DPA alone is a good start as this will only cause an even slower economy.

I guess people in the upper middle class and top 3% wouldn't know about DPA like we do here in the trenches.

Read the next blog for further suggestions and please give your opinion as well. the more minds on this matter from people actually in the industry can only help. 

Congress Signs Bill To Slow The Economy Even Further

Housing Bill an Immediate Threat to Downpayment Assistance!

The Senate & House appear to have reached a compromise on a large housing bill that includes language eliminating downpayment assistance (DPA).

The Housing & Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (H.R. 3221) is rumored to be on the agenda for discussion and possibly a vote this week. Section 2113(c) of H.R. 3221 contains a provision that would eliminate downpayment assistance. If this bill passes and is signed into law DPA will no longer be available. Although President Bush is threatening to veto the bill, many believe he will sign it if it gets to his desk.

The consequences will be devastating! By FHA's own estimates, DPA comprises nearly 40% of FHA's volume. This means more than 300,000 working class families will be locked out of homeownership in the next year alone. Communities across America will take the brunt of the $50 billion in lost real estate sales, not to mention the indirect impact on the real estate, mortgage and building sectors that will be forced to shed tens of thousands of jobs due to this dangerous legislation.

It is the oipinion of this company that the only way to cause true liquidity in the economic markets is to adjust FHA from guaranteeing 20% to guaranteeing 30% of an FHA mortgage. The effect of this action will be to calm the markets over risk and make lenders who sell FHA loan products to feel more comfortable to continue doing so. Right now lenders are overlaying their own guidelines over the top of FHA mortgage programs and thus are creating high bred FHA programs.

After HUD was to makes the changes to guaranteeing 30%, HUD would need to add teeth to current standards for lenders approved to sell their FHA guaranteed mortgage products, making it punishable by losing the right to sell FHA if they do not follow "True FHA Guidelines".  The added risk can be offset by the upfront MIP that FHA charges each client using risk based pricing 

7/14/08

Re: Charles Simmons

1) Q Was the closing performed professionally and efficiently? Yes

2) Q Were you kept informed during the loan application process?  Yes

3) How would you rate the staff? Excellent, friendly & Helpful

4) Would you recommend our company to other Yes

5) Did you receive the loan product that was recommended to you? Yes

7/22/08

Re: Anabel's handling of the Golgamez' family home purchase:

 Anabel Was Very Helpful and worked very hard to make my loan happen

Thanks A LOT!!!!

G Galgamez

Charlotte NC