An email I got Tuesday November 28, 2006: My husband and I are not specifically on the market at the moment for a property but are always on the lookout for a great bargain. We have children, so school district is a big factor, but if the right place for the right price comes around, …
Continue reading “Solicitation for Fraud and Conspiracy, or Entrapment?”
I live in (City 1) and recently signed a work order on a semi-custom new construction house in (City 2). My wife and I make a combined 120K income and still can’t afford a decent place in City 1. It was preapproved rather quickly from both the builder’s mortgage company and a few outside companies …
I got a question about what I think about those online quote services. The answer is that they vary from okay to putrid. There are two sorts of online quote sources. The first is where mortgage companies have their rates online, and people come along and browse. Those are pretty much a waste of your …
A mortgage or Deed of Trust (they’re not the same!) is basically pledging an asset that you own as collateral for a debt. If you default on the debt, the lender takes your property. When you’re talking about real estate in the state of California (and many others), this is generally accomplished by use of …
Continue reading “Mortgages: General Concerns and Manufactured Housing”
First let me say that I really learned a lot from your postings/articles/website; its awesome that a resource like yourself exists. Now to the problem. I recently refinanced and the mortgage broker lied to me about many, many things. I was sold a negative amortization mortgage. The broker provided me a chart showing my payment …
Continue reading “You Only Need Negative Amortization Disclosures on Negative Amortization Loans”
I’ve written a lot here about how to manage your mortgage so that you control it instead of it controlling you. Let’s consider what happens when that project fails. If you don’t pay your mortgage, on time, no big deal at first. The lenders don’t like it, but there’s a grace period built in. Fifteen …
Continue reading “What Happens When You Can’t Make Your Real Estate Loan Payment”
We aren’t married. How do we buy a house together? Basically, the same way that married people do. The qualifications are exactly the same, provided that you both will be living in the property. If not all of the people who will be buying will also be living in the property, they have to show …
Banker loans are better deals – for the bank. Ken Harney had an article Study Shows Loan Brokers’ Better Side But now a new, independent academic study has concluded the opposite: According to a team of researchers headed by Georgetown University’s Gregory Elliehausen, home mortgage applicants with less-than-perfect credit pay lower financing costs when they …
Continue reading “Debunking “Banks Give Better Deals Than Brokers””
There’s a lot that gets written on this subject, mostly by loan officers looking for business. Well, don’t think I’m not looking for business, but not with this post. Or if anybody calls me because of this, at least I’ll know they understand how to do it right. The basic come-on is this: Your home …
Continue reading “Debt Consolidation Refinance – Doing it Wrong vs. Doing it Right”
One of the consumer attitudes I encounter constantly is the feeling that if you cannot afford the loan, the lender will not loan you the money. This safety zone common sense sort of reliance upon lender policy as a backstop is not only false, but one of the best ways to get in trouble with …
Continue reading “Changes in Lender Attitudes: The Push Towards Bigger Loans”
