We just won this for North County San Diego!
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Thursday, December 12, 2013
The 500 Page Mortgage Application?
A CNN Headline this morning caught my attention: The 500 Page Mortgage Application
The "500 Pages" is referring to is all the documentation needed to fund a loan. While, in actuality, its less, it can be overwhelming to new buyers. The income, assets, taxes, etc that Fannie and Freddie now require with the application. As the promise of "QM" in 2014 will only make that more true. The article talks about the need for everything from the borrower including the "source of large deposits" which is something we run into often with borrowers' assets. A lot of this can be avoided, or at least streamlined, at the Pre-Approval Process.
If I can give one piece of advice to you to pass on to your buyers it's this: get the loan officer everything upfront during the pre-approval process. The article reiterates that as well, stating:
"All this amassing and analyzing of documents costs both time and money. And new mortgage lending rules that are going into effect in January will make it even more complicated. 'New rules require you to triple-check everything,' said Jeff Taylor of Digital Risk, a mortgage processing company. 'The best thing you as a borrower can do to help yourself is to have all your documentation together before you apply. Get needed items like your credit report and get any errors corrected so you can get through the process as smoothly as possible.'"
Heres the article if you want to read:
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
FHA eases up on buyers with past short sales or bankruptcy on credit
If you have had a past short sale or bankruptcy there are different
timelines you must meet to buy again based on the new financing you are buying
with. For example, Conventional, (Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac), VA or FHA.
Fannie Mae will lend again 2 years after a short sale with
20% down or 4 years later with 10% down.
If you had a bankruptcy the timeframe is 4 years for a chapter 7 or 2 years
for a chapter 13 (from the discharge date).
VA loans require 2 years on a short sale, 2 years on a
Chapter 7 and 1 year past a chapter 13.
FHA is 3 years post short sale if you had mortgage lates leading
up to the short sale, (no lates the time
is less) and they are 2 years on a chapter 7 and 1 year on a chapter 13 However, FHA is shortening the waiting
period for some borrowers who had had previous short sales, bankruptcies.
For borrowers who meet certain requirements, FHA is trimming
down the amount of time that homebuyers must wait after a bankruptcy or short
sale before they may qualify for a FHA mortgage to 1 year. This is great news as the waiting period had
been 2 years after the completion of a bankruptcy and 3 years after a
foreclosure or a short sale.
Who can qualify under the new “back to work extenuating
circumstance” policy? Borrowers must be able to show their household income
fell by 20% or more for at least 6 months and prove the reduction was tied to
unemployment or another “economic event” beyond their control.
Feel free to contact me with any questions.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Investing in Haiti / Changing Lives
Many of you know I have a passion for the country of Haiti. You have supported my trips and efforts there with donations of supplies, finances and prayer. You often ask me how things are going in Haiti and want updates. The birth of my son and my wife's difficult pregnancy prolonged my visit back. But I have had the opportunity to help here in the US.
As you may know unemployment in Haiti is 80%. The older boys that live at Good Rest Orphanage have completed trade schools - but the opportunity to "go get a job" just isn't there. The result is more poverty and the older boys who want to get married, move out on there own and begin their life end up living at the orphanage instead.
These are young men that I have personally worked with side by side with. I know their abilities and desire to work. They have gone to school and now need to find employment. I have teamed up with Children's Heritage Foundation to help these young men begin their career. Our plan I simple; we are working together to raise funds to help them start their own company. But were not just giving them a hand out. Its a business loan. Once they've established their business they will begin to pay the loan back. Those funds will then be used to finance the next set of trade school graduates at Good Rest Orphanage.
These boys are not looking for a hand out. I personally know what its like to get a helping hand and I know that I am where I am today as a result of those of helped me. If you are interested in investing in these boys lives the return on your investment could be life changing. The posts below are a cover letter and our business plan for this endeavor. If you want to contribute you can contact me directly or review the business plan and see what you think. The final paragraph explains how to contribute.
Were looking for individuals who
are will to contribute financially to this effort. The funds received will go directly towards
the start-up activities of the company. We
have a start date of July 15, 2013.
Please consider making an investment in the economic well-being of these
young Haitians. Please mail your contributions to Children’s
Heritage Foundation and write “Haiti Construction Company” in the
memo. Children’s Heritage Foundation
991-C Lomas Santa Fe Drive, PMB 427 Solana Beach, CA 92075.
Business Plan to help young men in Haiti
Good
Rest – Haiti Construction and Re-development Company
Mission Statement
Our goal is to further the long-term economic well -being for
graduates of Good Rest Orphanage (Good Rest) and the Haitian community through
job creation and skills building.
Background
The unemployment rate in Haiti is currently 80%. For the young adults of Good Rest, more needs
to be done to fight poverty, secure a more sustainable economic future and
ensure a successful transition to independent adulthood. Although education is a top priority, with
such a high unemployment rate, they simply cannot just “go get a job” after
graduation. Children’s Heritage
Foundation, (CHF) in it’s continuing effort to bring an economic
self-sufficiency to the people of Haiti will launch a new construction company
in partnership with graduates of Good rest.
It will be operated by the young adult graduates of Good Rest who have
completed the appropriate construction related training.
Who will this help
and how will it be done?
No other industry in Haiti has more room for growth than
construction. As Port au Prince and
outlining communities rebuild after the devastated earthquake, the opportunity
for work and jobs will become more accessible to those with construction
related skills and knowledge. This work
will be made available through Haitian government funded projects and private sector
development. Each of the eight employees,
who will co-own the company, (referred to here as “employee/owners”) have
completed trade school in their related fields of construction. Mr. Chatlin, a prominent businessman in
Haiti, will mentor the employees/owners. He will use his contacts and broad
network to assist the company with securing a broad range of jobs.
They will also
receive administrative support under the direction of CHF’s American associate
in Haiti, Carl Fielstra. The employee
owned company will establish a trustworthy reputation of hard working,
knowledgeable and well trained employees who each own a share of the
company. Through this model we will to
build a “pride of ownership” in the work performed by the business.
CHF will utilize its contacts and associates, both Haitian
and American, to secure job opportunities across Port-au-Prince. The company will engage in some pro-bono work
in order to build the company’s portfolio and reputation in the industry. For
example, the company will provide the first day of work at no charge on certain
projects in order to give perspective clients a “no risk” evaluation of the employees’
skills and abilities.
Initial funding
The initial funding of the project will provide sufficient
financial support to allow the company to complete the medical building that is
currently under construction at Good Rest.
The completion of this project will not only benefit Good Rest but also add
to their business, a resume. The
project will also allow the employees/owners to refine their construction skills
and build team synergy.
Investing in the Fight Against Poverty
Children’s Heritage Foundation hopes to raise approximately $15,000
to $20,000 in startup capital to seed the business including: provide the
initial equipment and payroll expense while the company grows. Some of the initial startup funds will subsidize
payroll while employees seek to acquire projects and contracts. Salaries will be subsidized on a decreasing
sliding scale over 100 days. The decrease
in subsidized wages is expected to offset by income from news jobs. Eventually, all of the subsidized income will
be phased out.
The itemization of
funds is as follows:
·
Initial
wages for employee/owners $8,000-$9,000
·
Tools
and materials $2,000 - $3,000
·
Transportation
for the company (purchase of truck and its delivery to Haiti) $6,000 - $8,000
Our Measurement of Success
The start-up funds while not a loan, in the traditional
sense; will not be a gift either. The
company’s employee/owners will be expected to become completely self-reliant within
a 6-month period. Employees/owners are
expected to re-pay the initial startup investment over a period of 2 years. These funds will then be used in a modified
“micro-bank” model to fund and support other entrepreneurial endeavors by
current and future residents of Good Rest.
Our goal is to invest in the start up the company for a
limited duration of time. The goal is
for the company to become self-sufficient, teaching and allowing the employees
to be economically independent and self-reliant. As the company grows, builds a portfolio and
reputation of success, it will in turn benefit the community beyond Good Rest;
by job creation and hiring of other Haitians needing work.
Starting Now
Children’s Heritage Foundation is looking for individuals who
are will to contribute financially to this effort. The funds received will go directly towards
the start-up activities of the company. We
have a start date of July 15, 2013.
Please consider making an investment in the economic well-being of these
young Haitians. Please mail your contributions to Children’s
Heritage Foundation and write “Haiti Construction Company” in the
memo. Children’s Heritage Foundation
991-C Lomas Santa Fe Drive, PMB 427 Solana Beach, CA 92075.
My Haitian Friends
Haiti is currently the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere with 80% of the population living under the poverty line and 54% in abject poverty. The country population also suffers from low levels of education and a highly corrupt government. The unemployment rate for young males within the age group 18-35 is about 80%, the highest unemployment rate in the Caribbean.
The 2010 earthquake also dealt a tremendous blow to this poor
nation, from which it will take years to recover. Millions are still without homes & the country is
fighting to achieve some level of economic recover.
Over
the last two-year we have working with a group of amazing Haitian young men on
several volunteer construction project in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. We have had
the privilege of assisting with the development of their construction trades
skills through hands-on training and leadership development through mentoring
and coaching. These young adults have great entrepreneurial drive, demonstrated
construction skills and creative ideas that they hope to use to create jobs for
them and for others.
In
spite of their excellent skills and commitment to hard work, it is almost
impossible for them to find a job in the local labor market due to the 80%
unemployment rate for young men. Therefore, CHF and partners have decided to
helping these young men use their skill and entrepreneurial drive to start a
small construction company. The company will focus primarily on residential
construction.
Children’s
Heritage Foundation is seeking partners (individuals a& businesses) who are
will to contribute financially to this effort.
The funds received will go directly towards the start-up activities of
the company. We have a start date of July
31, 2013. Please consider making an
investment in the economic well-being of these young men and their families.
Children’s Heritage Foundation (CHF) is a Christian
humanitarian charity organization dedicated to working to secure a more
prosperous future for vulnerable children and their families worldwide. Our work is motivated by a desire to show
God’s love through
Friday, June 7, 2013
Whats happening with rates?
Hello. Heres my disclaimer. I didn't write this. An account executive for a lender I work with wrote it. But it sums up whats happening in the market right now nicely. Were seeing rates go up - as result of "positive" things taking place in the economy. Whether its really happening or just psychology we will see... (when he talks bout "price" he refers to the price to buy the rate...so example, if a rate had no points and its a .25 point worse that means that "no point rate" now costs a 1/4 point.)
As a result, we had an uneventful Jobs Report and Unemployment Report. But if you recall, I said yesterday that the market would react more vigorously to today's reports because of all the volatility of late. I also said there was more downside to upside because signs of a strong economy reinforce Bernanke's new position to taper QE. So, even though the reports this morning were far from exciting, traders still reacted to it by selling off bonds.
And so, this morning has not gone according to plan. It's not what I was looking for - that's for sure. I was really hoping for some upward motion in the price of bonds, but alas, my prayers were not answered in that respect. I am also confused as to why the price of bonds increased over the last few days but we did not get an improvement in pricing...very odd that completely omits the logic. However, the good news it appears the harsh drop in bonds has leveled out. Even if we don't get back the 400bps we lost in May we have some hope that things will not get dramatically worse. And I can assure you the Fed will not be eliminating QE any time soon. That's what I'm taking into the weekend....
Jobs Report Has Bonds Down
- Prices Worse The 30-year bond is down after the Jobs Report came in pretty much
as expected. Pricing is worse from yesterday by 0.250 since bonds are selling
off...now down -37bps on the day...Interbank has already priced this fall into
this morning's rates.
The Jobs Report was not too far off
expectations. 170,000 new jobs were expected and it came in at 175,000 new
jobs...not monumental. Nevertheless, since there are more new jobs traders
figure the economy is strong and therefore they sold off bonds to invest in
stocks. When traders sell off bonds the price of bonds drops and lenders'
rates/pricing worsen. To counter the nominal uptick in new jobs was the
unemployment rate which went up slightly from 7.5% to 7.6%. An increase in the
unemployment rate means more people are claiming they don't have jobs...a weak
economic signal. But the increase was so small it had little impact. As a result, we had an uneventful Jobs Report and Unemployment Report. But if you recall, I said yesterday that the market would react more vigorously to today's reports because of all the volatility of late. I also said there was more downside to upside because signs of a strong economy reinforce Bernanke's new position to taper QE. So, even though the reports this morning were far from exciting, traders still reacted to it by selling off bonds.
And so, this morning has not gone according to plan. It's not what I was looking for - that's for sure. I was really hoping for some upward motion in the price of bonds, but alas, my prayers were not answered in that respect. I am also confused as to why the price of bonds increased over the last few days but we did not get an improvement in pricing...very odd that completely omits the logic. However, the good news it appears the harsh drop in bonds has leveled out. Even if we don't get back the 400bps we lost in May we have some hope that things will not get dramatically worse. And I can assure you the Fed will not be eliminating QE any time soon. That's what I'm taking into the weekend....
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