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Matching entries from Dan Melson's Website
Excerpt from What Consumers Need to Know About Mortgages
Sorry this is late. There was some behind the scenes drama; the server the website was hosted on had a crash and the website had to be migrated and for boring technical reasons I couldn't log in to some functions...
Excerpt from Moving The Pieces
So Armageddon was upon us. There was no point in contacting the rest of the Advancement teams; they'd all received the same message we had. They'd know what it meant, same as we did: The war we'd all been preparing...
Empire of Humanity: "in-rank" versus "in-fact" and Civil government
Service points drive rank in the civilian government as well as ability to bid on government contracts. They are earned in three ways. Members of the Imperial military on active service earn three service points per year, regardless of...
Politics of Empire: The Price of Power
Since I'm working on the third novel in this series, might be a good idea to bring people up to speed on the set up The Price of Power is the second novel in the series. It has been about...
Service Points and Civilian Government in The Empire of Humanity
Service points drive rank in the civilian government as well as ability to bid on government contracts. They are earned in three ways. Members of the Imperial military on active service earn three service points per year, regardless of rank....
Economics and Resources and Scarcity
I just got done reading a bad science fiction novel. Part of the reason it was bad was because the author did not understand economics, being so eager to mock capitalism that he got caught up in things that capitalism...
Project VALOUR-IT
(This will remain on top through Veteran's Day. Scroll down for newer posts) I think that one charitable fund raiser per year is both reasonable and an absolute limit, so I have to be very picky as to which...
Real Loans for Real People September 18th, 2009
The Best Loans Right NOW Based upon "average credit", not absolutely perfect credit. People who do have better credit get even better rates! Conforming Rates Thirty Year Fixed Rate Loans 4.875% 30 Year fixed rate loan, with one total point...
General Consumer Articles: Weeks in Review April 20th-May 10th
I've been letting this slide for several weeks due to one thing or another, during which time I've done a few important new articles and republished quite a few important older ones. Therefore, I'm going to limit the review...
General Consumer Articles: Weeks in Review March 29-April 19, 2009
I've been letting my weekly article review slide for several weeks due to one thing or another, during which time I've done a few important new articles and republished quite a few very important older ones. Therefore, I'm going...
FHA Approves Using Tax Credit for Closing Costs
Very interesting. Unprecedented even FHA Ok with Up Front Tax Credit or, in other words, using the tax credit money at closing. We all want to enable FHA consumers to access the tax credit funds when they close on their...
General Consumer Articles:Weeks in Review January 26 - February 8, 2009
Newly Written Articles Be Careful Moving Your Down Payment Money talks about problems that can be generated when you don't have an adequate paper trail. Jumbo Loans and The Current Market (January 2009) talks about why lenders want people...
Project Valour IT
(This will remain on top through Thanksgiving. Scroll Down for newer entries.) This cause means a lot to me. It seems the absolute minimum I can do for these wonderful people who are essential to this country. Project Valour IT...
Is San Diego Market Underpriced or Overpriced? - A Thought Experiment for August 2008
Let's do a thought experiment. Any market in any commodity has two components: The demand, or willingness and ability to pay for that good, and the supply of that good. Let's consider the demand half of that first. Specifically, ability...
Stand Alone versus Piggyback Second Trust Deeds
Second Trust Deeds are something few real estate loan officers really understand well, mostly because the good ones don't make much money on them. Predatory lending laws in most states, limiting total compensation and total expenses to a given percentage...
What Happens After You Buy A Vampire Property?
Dear Mr. Melson, I was wondering if you could offer some insight re: the other side of the equation: what to do *after* you've bought a vampire property. We bought one, quite by accident, despite a house inspection by...
Pre-Payment Penalties and Second Trust Deeds
Hello Mr. Melson, Let me start off by saying that I am a big fan of your "Searchlight Crusade" website. I happened upon it a while back after I had already purchased my house. I've found a lot of...
Real Estate: Getting From Where You Are To Where You Want To Be
When I'm driving, and get to busy main streets, I hate turning left unless there's a light there. Traffic is coming hard both ways, usually at high speeds, and with only intermittent breaks in each direction. If you're turning left,...
The Lure and the Trap of Debt Consolidation - and the Possible Benefits
A while ago I did an article entitled Debt Consolidation Refinance - Pros and Cons. It's a good article, if I do say so myself. Nonetheless, I think there's more to say on the subject, not just from a point...
The High Cost of Waiting To Buy A Home
A couple of weeks ago, I got an email asking Save For A Down Payment or Buy Now?, and I wrote a two part article on the subject. Part 2 of Save For A Down Payment or Buy Now? Gave...
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