tag:searchlightcrusade.net,2024:/mt//feed/environment 2024-05-03T21:50:53Z Movable Type 4.21-en 218 1 218 tag:gockel.hmdnsgroup.com,2006:/~searchli//3.2477 2024-04-30T14:00:00Z 2024-04-30T15:24:11Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ Supply and Demand. Now that I've given the short answer, it's time to explain the macro factors behind interest rate variations. But I'm going to keep referring to those first three words. It is a tradeoff between the supply of... tag:gockel.hmdnsgroup.com,2006:/~searchli//3.2475 2024-04-22T14:00:00Z 2024-04-22T13:01:50Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ If you've been around the financial planning business any length of time, you've likely run into the saying "The biggest risk is not taking one." It is endemic to all financial instruments, indeed, all investments, that return is the reward... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2008://3.3770 2024-01-22T15:00:00Z 2024-01-22T17:05:39Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ I've seen many new home developments with vaulted ceilings, mini-vineyards, huge houses on little tiny lots...Why can't some developer built some homes for us regular people? A normal sized home with plenty of closet space and a decent (not... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2008://3.3767 2024-01-15T15:00:00Z 2024-01-15T18:40:47Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ One of the most common things I'm seeing as I roam about the East County looking for bargains: Agents not doing their jobs. Even when there were 40-plus sellers per buyer, single family detached homes that are priced appropriately were... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2009://3.4841 2024-01-01T15:00:00Z 2024-01-01T17:01:17Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ Expertise and attitude, not control of an informational chokepoint, is the way that things are going. Let's analyze this from both sides of the problem. The current owner looking to sell really needs a marketer. For better or worse, most... tag:gockel.hmdnsgroup.com,2006:/~searchli//3.2452 2023-10-30T14:00:00Z 2023-10-30T12:59:50Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ One of the most true sayings in the mortgage business is, "If you can't lock it right now, it's not real." But many mortgage providers will play a game of wait and hope. They tell you they have a certain... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2009://3.4831 2023-08-22T14:00:00Z 2023-08-22T15:10:03Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ If you read the papers and the congressional record on the housing crisis, you might think yield spread is the central culprit for the entire meltdown. You would be wrong. Yield spread is a beneficial tool, offered voluntarily by lenders,... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2009://3.4808 2023-02-13T15:00:00Z 2023-02-13T16:46:17Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ If I am buying a foreclosed home for 220k of which 200k is being financed, and the home comes back at being valued at 285k from my mortgage company, am I still required to pay PMI? If so, how in... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2009://3.4787 2022-09-19T14:00:00Z 2022-09-19T13:45:29Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ One of the hard things to get through to sellers is to understand the characteristics of the sort of buyers they need in order to have a successful transaction. If a given set of prospective buyers can't afford the property,... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2010://3.5029 2022-06-07T14:00:00Z 2022-06-07T10:14:36Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ Really. I know that most people who read that title are replying "no kidding" but you would be amazed at how many people act like there is such a fairy godmother. I got an email yesterday that said, basically, "Help... tag:gockel.hmdnsgroup.com,2006:/~searchli//3.2385 2022-05-17T14:00:00Z 2022-05-17T18:03:58Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ We have several rental properties that we own (more than 10). When we were younger, before we got married, we both moved around a lot and bought houses, moved, stayed a year or so and did it again. I... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2010://3.5026 2022-04-11T14:00:00Z 2022-04-11T13:42:53Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ Market segmentation is what happens when certain things are much more in demand than others. For instance in the hot market brought on by the tax credit of 2009, the central area of San Diego was in high demand,... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2009://3.4732 2022-02-21T15:00:00Z 2022-02-21T17:10:27Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ This is one of the biggest issues with my local real estate market. Because the San Diego market has very high demand and limited supply of property, prices are high. A reasonable two bedroom condo runs around $200,000. A 1200... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2007://3.3549 2022-02-14T15:00:00Z 2022-02-14T19:01:34Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ On a regular basis, I get emails that ask me what I think of a particular company. When I check out public forums, I see questions about particular companies every time. "What do you think of X Realty, or Y... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2010://3.5025 2022-01-24T15:00:00Z 2022-01-24T17:07:32Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ The first thing to consider is that maybe you shouldn't. You never want to get involved in a bidding war. There's a classic riddle I ask every single one of my buyer clients at least once. "How often does... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2009://3.4686 2021-10-20T14:00:00Z 2021-10-20T19:05:57Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ Every so often, I write about professional responsibility. Every month I get a couple of magazines because I'm a Realtor. There was a letter from someone who was proud of the fact that he had never asked someone if they... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2007://3.3499 2021-10-18T14:00:00Z 2021-10-18T15:48:08Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ "overpriced house offer rejected what next" (Before I get started, I want to make it clear that I am using the same definition of worth found in this article) The first thing to consider is the seller obviously didn't feel... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2007://3.3491 2021-10-17T14:00:00Z 2021-10-17T16:13:05Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ Got this search: "should I get a buyer's agent if I've already found a house" The answer is almost certainly yes, but I am going to examine both the pros and cons. Full disclosure: This is what I do for... tag:www.searchlightcrusade.net,2010://3.5018 2021-10-08T14:00:00Z 2021-10-08T13:15:22Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ It shouldn't be any surprise to anyone with the headlines of the last few years that shopping for a mortgage loan has radically changed. Indeed, a lot of the regulatory changes seem directly aimed at what were the best... tag:gockel.hmdnsgroup.com,2007:/~searchli//3.2916 2021-10-06T14:00:00Z 2021-10-06T14:02:23Z Dan Melson http://www.searchlightcrusade.net/ Many folks have no idea how qualified they are as borrowers. There are two ratios that, together with credit score, tell how qualified you are for a loan. The more important of these two ratios is Debt-to-Income ratio, usually abbreviated...