Almost Famous for Mortgages

  I recognize the fact that many homeowner’s today have been abandoned by their Lenders, Mortgage Brokers, or Loan Officers. I refer to homeowner’s who haven’t heard from their broker or lender, as “Orphaned Mortgages”. In other words, now that business isn’t booming for many mortgage professionals, they’ve left the industry, or have simply gone “out of business”.  So who would you call for questions or advice regarding your mortgage? Well, you can call a ”call center” and wait on hold, or you can have your mortgage adopted by my company, (I’ve recently co-founded), Marks & Marks Financial, and we’ll give you the personal attention you deserve.

My Mortgage Adoption Program is FREE and doesn’t require refinancing. I’ll simply review your mortgage, and offer advice on how to manage your debt. Beyond that, we’re here to answer any questions you may have about your housing debt. If you have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage, we’ll include you in our “Rate Watcher” program at no extra charge, to help you monitor and determine the best time to refinance out of your ARM. Furthermore, we have over 25 years of collective experience, and can help you purchase a new home, take out equity, or restructure your home loan.

Mortgage Adoption is a new concept with genuine intentions. We realize that with over 200 lenders closing their doors, or downsizing in the past year, many of you are without a real personal contact to help you manage your mortgage. At Marks & Marks Financial we’re family owned and operated and have taken the necessary steps to navigate through the downturn in our industry. It’s with this dedication to serving our current database, that we decided to create the Mortgage Adoption Program.

So if you need your mortgage adopted, or if you have friends for family who can’t find their mortgage broker, “Get Adopted” by me, at Marks & Marks Financial.

To Get Your Mortgage Adopted:

Email the following to marksmortgage@gmail.com

1. First and Last Name

2. Phone number

3. Address or Zip Code

Email Marks & Marks: marksmortgage@gmail.com

Thank you,

-Tony Marks

“Becoming Famous One Mortgage at a Time.”

As of March, 2008, FHA Loan Limit Caps have been increased. The new loan limits allow loan amounts as high as $729,750 for one-unit properties,(high-cost areas), and they open up additional home financing opportunities for consumers.

The maximum loan limits vary by geographic area. To determine the current FHA loan limit for your area, visit HUD’s Web site at: https://entp.hud.gov/idapp/html/hicostlook.cfm

Government Cheese gets a bad rap. Let’s face it, when someone says “Government Cheese“, they’re not being complimentary. In fact, beyond putting down your choice in cheese products, they’re often referring to “living on Government cheese”or government assistance to those who are in need of financial help. (As if that were a bad thing.) But I’m here to tell you future homeowners and homeowners alike, ”FHA: is not your government cheese.”

Ok, first things first. The history of the Federal Housing Administration is actually quite interesting. But, for the sake of this post, I’m just going to highlight some facts…

• Congress created the Federal Housing Administration in 1934.
• At the time when FHA was created the housing industry was in shambles. You needed 50% down, and the lending terms were difficult to meet.
• Less than 40% of households were homeowners. (compared to 68% in 2001).

It was obvious in 1934 why we needed a Federal Housing Administration, but what exactly is the FHA? And why is it relevant now? The FHA provides insurance on loans made by approved FHA lenders. Basically, in a nutshell, FHA is one gigantic insurance company. Because FHA is willing to insure, banks can lend with less risk. Over the past 5 years, (at least), we haven’t needed to use FHA insured loans because regular conventional mortgages were easy to obtain, and there wasn’t much risk. (so we thought.) Now, we’re seeing a tightening, or a “credit crunch”, and banks are less willing to bear the risk on certain mortgages.

FHA is relevant again! (and to the rescue.)

• FHA requires a minimum cash investment of only 3% and in some cases will insure loans for borrowers who have no funds of their own.
• Borrower’s can have little or no traditional credit references, and need not to have impeccable credit.
• If you’re a parent, you can help purchase a home for your child by being a non-occupant co-borrower.
• FHA can be used for purchases and Rate/Term Refinances. (CASH-OUT Refinances limited to 95% LTV).
• 30, 25, 20, & 15 year Fixed mortgages available.

“Say Cheese”.  I could go on and on about FHA and how it is a viable choice for homeowners. Today’s conventional mortgage market is credit score driven and it’s all about limiting risk for banks. Fact is, FHA isn’t your government cheese; it’s government cheese for lenders. So why not take advantage?

It’s gone seemingly unnoticed over the past couple of weeks due to the holidays, time of year, etc., but we’ve gone from mid 6’s to: 5.75% on a 30 Year Fixed Mortgage. (as of 1/09/200

UPDATE: January 22, 2008: Federal Reserve announced a unprecedented 3/4% Rate Cut prior to their upcoming scheduled fed meeting. This suprised many, and resulted in an early morning sell off of the Dow to an alarming -400 points. The good news, (if there is any), is that we’re now at 5.5% for a 30 year mortgage.  I stand by my position of locking in your rate. Probably not the best quote, but: “The pigs get fatter; the hogs get slaughtered.”  Very few, if anyone, forecasted rates this low.  -Tony Marks

Considering risk vs. reward, the risk of mortgage rates rising after the Fed meeting Jan. 30th far outweighs the reward of locking in 5.75%.

If you have a mortgage application or are waiting for the right time to refinance your Adjustable Rate Mortgage, the time is now.

-Tony Marks

727-698-7264  marksmortgage@gmail.com

 As most of you know, I personally never dealt with subprime business. At First Horizon Home Loans, (my previous employer), we had a process of passing “subprime” borrowers to a specialized “alternative” credit department. Simply put, these loans would be shopped/brokered to subprime lenders. (all of which are now out of business). There were plenty of times I felt like I was losing income, or missing out on opportunities. (Customers were closing loans with other lenders, and I was left shaking my head. “How was that possible? There’s no way they could afford that loan.” ) But, in the end, I’m very thankful for staying the course, maintaining integrity, and providing ethical business. It’s with this clear conscience, I look forward to 2008. Here’s the link to the article: SUBPRIME

-Tony Marks  727-698-7264   marksmortgage@gmail.com

Hello, it’s time for a guest post from a well known Realtor, Jackie Colson-Miller of Keller Williams,  Author of the popular Tampa Bay blog: “Real Estate Sizzle”.   For any potential real estate buyers in the Tampa area, Jackie comes highly recommended. Enjoy the post. -Tony Marks

The Tampa Bay Area is experiencing the the most incredible “Buyer’s Market” in over 10 years.  It recently made the list of “Top Ten Buyers Markets” by Forbes.com.

So, if you are a Buyer in the Tampa Bay Market, what can you do to make sure you are making a wise home-buying decision?

1. Hire a Buyer’s Agent - Don’t attempt to navigate the process yourself.  An experienced real estate agent has up-to-the-minute recent sales figures to guide you in getting the best home, at the best price.  Since the agent’s commission is generally paid by the seller, there is NO reason to be without good representation.

2. Understand the price trends in certain neighborhoods. In some areas sales remain steady. In others, prices and sales are down more than 30% over last year.  If you are planning to be in your home less than 5 years, or there is the possibility that you may relocate, be sure to buy in a neighborhood with a steady sales record.

3. Know Your Credit Score -You credit score and credit history are more important than ever. The tighter underwriting guidelines have changed the type of loan programs you may qualify for. Most buyers can still obtain financing, but there may be more documentation required, or a larger down payment.  The higher your score, the wider your loan options will be.

4. Get Pre-Approved by a Lender.  Along with knowing your credit score,  getting a pre-approval letter from a lender will strengthen an offer when you start to negotiate. 

HINT: If your lender “qualifies”  you for a specific amount, i.e. $300,000, ask for several letters, one for $300,000, one for $275,000 and another for $250,000.  Why?  Because if you make an offer of $250,000, on a $300,000 home, you don’t want the seller to know that you can afford the $300,000 price, or you lose your  leverage in negotiating!

5. Make an offer. -Any offer.  In this market, a smart buyer will not wait until the prices start to recover.  Your agent can advise you about how long a property has been on the market and how motivated the seller may be to look at any offer. You can ask the seller to help pay some of your closing costs.  Is the roof over 12 years old? You may negotiate a new one.  An aging A/C system?  The sellers may be willing to negotiate, depending on their circumstances.  You won’t know,
until you try. But, if you wait until the prices are back on the upswing, you will pay a higher price AND have less negotiating room.

What are you waiting for??

Copyrights: Jackie Colson-Miller “Real Estate Sizzle”. Nov. 2007

Hopefully everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Now the countdown can begin towards Christmas. It also signals the countdown to 2008. For many of you, refinancing or buying a home in 2007, will save you money with taxes. Don’t procrastinate too long!  Happy Holidays.

Also, I have some great Realtors lined up for guest posts over the next few weeks. Keep checking in.

 Hello Everyone,

I’m excited to announce my complete dedication to “brokering” loans from now on. As many of you know, I’ve worked for a bank for the past 6 years, and although this experience has been phenomenal, the new mortgage market arena requires more diversity, and therefore, more independence.  How does this change affect you? Well, I’ve had the ability to broker loans the entire time, but now I have access to improved pricing, and I’m set up with just about any bank/lender you can think of. Better pricing? More creative solutions? It’s a win-win for all of us.

For all of my “First Horizon Bank” customers, don’t fret. I’ve enjoyed many years of managing your accounts, and will continue to do everything I can to ensure your mortgages are secured and properly adjusted to your financial needs.

For all of my City of Clearwater Employees, I will continue to be a recommended source for your mortgage needs. All discounted coupons will be honored.

Finally, for the time being, all questions and concerns should be directed to: marksmortgage@gmail.com and phone calls should go to my direct line: 727-698-7264.

P.S. Thanks to all of you who have already called or emailed to congratulate me on my new move! I’m continually grateful for everyone’s support!

-Tony Marks

 Becoming Famous, 1 Mortgage at a Time.

Almost Famous for Mortgages is excited to introduce Realtor Janis Gagliardi, Author of “The Port Orange Juice”,  a leading real estate blog gaining popularity for industry insights and community news. “Thanks” to Janis and her team at The Port Orange Juice for the following posting:

Mr. and Mrs. Seller, I’m not here to tell you what you want to hear; I’m here to tell you what you need to hear.”
If you are thinking about selling your home you  have probably spoken to several real estate agents. The agent comes to your home and  provides a market analysis which is an opinion of price. Usually, these opinions are all different but there’s a high one in the mix and that one sounds really impressive to you! Should you hire the agent that prices you above the market?

Most of us value our homes highly because we all get a little egocentric about our assets!  We think we have the best home on the block!! So you list your home higher than the homes in your area and after 30 to 45 days on the market you decide to lower your price because you haven’t had any showings. By this time, any buyers probably have moved on to something else because you were priced 10K higher than others in your community.  The house around the corner sells because it was priced to sell!

Don’t chase the market!!! In this market you have to price your home at just below market value. You don’t want to be the one to say, “I can’t sell my house.” It will sell if it is priced right!! Price your home right from the beginning and you’ll most likely have more initial activity and the potential for multiple offers. The first 30 days are the most important so do your best to price correctly from the start.
Tips For Sellers:

• Don’t list on the high side. You’ll chase the homes in your neighborhood as they lower their prices to try and sell. Let them chase after you!
• Sell now and take advantage of being a buyer! What you may lose on the selling side is often compensated on the buying side!
• Do not get involved in a weekly price reduction.  Just suck it up and reduce to the right price!
• Mum’s the word on why you’re selling. Don’t advertise  “Price reduced ” or “motivated seller.”  This screams out trouble and compromises your situation and makes you look desperate. Revealing your motivation to sell your home almost always gives the buyer a stonger negotiating advantage.
• Shop the competition on the market!

     In an earlier post, “Pepsi or Coca-Cola?”, I discussed the arrival of Trulia, and the changing of guard from the old school online real estate resources, to the new Web 2.0 versions of social networking platforms.  For those unfamiliar with “Web 2.0″, it’s really just the evolution of how we use the internet for social networking and business networking. Think MySpace or Facebook, and you pretty much have Web 2.0 platforms. For my industry, you have Trulia and Zillow  as examples of web 2.0 platforms. If you’re a homebuyer or homeowner, you should take advantage of these sites. Once you’ve gotten your feet wet and asked a few questions, or read a few of the “Trulia Answers”, you can take your new found knowledge and contact your local Realtor to help you take the next step. For specific mortgage questions, or help choosing a qualified Realtor, contact me directly for immediate responses: marksmortgage@gmail.com

Here’s an article by Michael V. Copeland and Tom McNichol, Business 2.0 Magazine:

“Tap the Wisdom of Pros”

The rise of online services like Trulia, Zillow, and Redfin loosened the real estate industry’s stranglehold on property information. Now these sites are adding Web 2.0-style social-networking features to further democratize the buying and selling process.

Perhaps the best of the Web 2.0 apps is Trulia Voices. Launched in May, it’s something like a Yahoo Answers for real estate. Questions about local housing trends are submitted by home sellers and buyers, and answers are provided, for the most part, by real estate agents. “It taps into a deep knowledge base about local real estate that’s already out there,” says Trulia CEO Pete Flint. “Today, people are asking more questions.”

The housing downturn has made buyers and sellers even hungrier for information about their local market, while prompting previously Web-phobic real estate agents to offer free advice in the hope of attracting clients. Questions range from “Should I increase the buyer’s agent’s commission?” to “In what neighborhood are the best elementary schools?” Experts are ranked according to who provides the most relevant answers as judged by the participants. “The real estate industry has been late to adopt technology,” Flint says, “but now we’re seeing a real turnaround.”

Here’s a website that I couldn’t resist posting about: Bembo’s ZOO.  Grab your kids, (or even if you don’t have any), just take 5 minutes and enjoy clicking on the alphabet…I know it sounds strange, but we all need a break every once in awhile!  Click Here

This is what they’re saying about Bembo’s ZOO:

“This high-concept abecedary, the picture book debut for deVicq de Cumptich, should delight collectors of stylish picture books and afficionados of the graphic arts.” - Publishers Weekly

“In this first book for children, de Cumptich…has created an abecedary of animals of animals made entirely from Bembo letterforms and punctuations marks-nothing else. And you know the conceit works.” -New York Times

Ok, now back to work!

Can’t find a 100% Financing? 

“My Community Mortgage” (Community 100 and Community 97) offers affordable mortgages through Fannie Mae.  These fixed rate products  include 30 and 40 year terms, Fully Amortized or Interest Only. But, they’re limited by 100% of area median income.  (unless you’re in a high cost area). Click here to learn your areas median income.  To learn more about how a “My Community Loan” can benefit you, feel free to contact me directly. 

Lastly, My Community offers enhanced versions to further benefit Teachers, Firefighters, Police Officers,  and Healthcare workers.

Almost Famous for Mortgages’ recognizes Realtors who do exceptional work and also have insightful, unique voices within their community. From time to time we invite such Realtors to “guest” write on our site, and today we’re proud to introduce Maggie Dokic, a licensed Real Estate Broker from Miami. She’s the author of “The Blog That Ate Miami”  and truly has an “almost famous” personality with an impecable knowledge of the Miami-Dade county area.

Maggie Dokic, Realtor, Author of ”The Blog That Ate Miami”:

“A Is For Absorption Rate And Every Market Has One”

In real estate we have something called the Absorption Rate.  Very simply put, it is the number that results when you divide the number of homes available for sale by the number of homes that actually sold in the preceding month.  It’s an excellent indicator of the health of a market.  I like to think that it’s to the real estate market what the heart rate is to the human body, at least symbolically.

Allow me to give you an example of how an absorption rate is figured out.  Paradise Point, Paradise (fictitional, don’t try to book a cruise) has 100 homes listed for sale right now.  In the last month, 20 homes sold in Paradise Point, Paradise.  We take 100 and divide it by 20.  We get 5 as our Absorption Rate.  Paradise Point has 5 months’ worth of inventory, or, to put it another way, it would take 5 months to sell all the homes available at the rate that they are selling right now. 

A buyer’s market is considered to be an Absorption Rate of 6 or above.  So if there are 6 months’ worth of inventory, or more, we are in a buyer’s market.  The following is a visual of the present numbers (as of October 4, 2007) in my market area, Miami-Dade County:

Please look at those numbers carefully.  The entire county of Miami-Dade has enough homes listed to last us 54 months, or 4 1/2 years!!  Let me repeat that in different words in case it hasn’t sunk in, at the present rate of sales, we have enough homes listed in Miami to last us almost 5 years.  ::I am pausing now to let the sobering effect of those numbers sink in::

Note that the Condos/Townhomes market has a higher Absorption Rate (63) than Single Family Homes (44).  But yet more Condos/Townhomes sold (394) than Single Family Homes (355).  That, of course, is due to the fact that there are a heck of a lot more Condos/Townhomes listed for sale than Single Family Homes.  Does this surprise anyone?  Unless you’ve had your head buried in our Miami sand, I’d have to say heck no! There’s been a glut of condominiums and townhomes built in the last few years and this is the result.

Does this mean these homes will still be waiting to be sold in 5 years?  No, of course not.  What it does mean is that competition is fierce.  Look at the sales.  Sales are taking place.  For those of you who hear that nothing is selling…pshaw!  Things are selling.  But there is so much available for the buyers to choose from that a smart seller will price his home right and make sure it competes, both in price and appeal. 

If your home is up for sale and you’re not the best of housekeepers, now would be a good time to call Merry Maids.  If you think your granite countertops and polished concrete floors merit a higher sales price, I ask you to look again at the numbers and ask yourself if the buyer who looked at your home will remember those features when he looks at the other 53 homes that are competing with yours?  Chances are he might, but he’ll find a better deal and go with the one that makes most sense to him.

Is the market dead?  No.  People will always need to move, want to move, or be forced to move.  If you’re going to play the game this time around do yourself a favor and look at your Absorption Rate.  If you don’t, you might just want to sit this round out and save yourself the trouble.

©Copyright 2007 Maggie Dokic

Here’s a little info about Komen:

Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying sister, Susan G. Komen, that she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer forever.

In 1982, that promise became Susan G. Komen for the Cure and launched the global breast cancer movement. Today, Komen for the Cure is the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists fighting to save lives, empower people, ensure quality care for all and energize science to find the cures. Thanks to events like the Komen Race for the Cure, we have invested nearly $1 billion to fulfill our promise, becoming the largest source of nonprofit funds dedicated to the fight against breast cancer in the world. 

The Almost Famous for Mortgages’ traditional “blue” sky will be PINK  for a few days in honor of our annual participation in the  Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure, on October 6th, 2007. We’re looking forward to a great 5K walk, and I appreciate everyone who has signed up or donated money this year. A few facts to know about breast cancer:

• An estimated 178,480 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in American women in 2007
• In 1975, the incidence (the number of new cases) of breast cancer was 107 per 100,000 for white women and 94 per 100,000 for black women. Twenty-eight years later in 2003, the number of new cases per year had risen to 125 per 100,000 for white women and 116 per 100,000 for black women.
• Even though incidence increased during that 28-year period, mortality (the rate of death) for white women decreased. In 1975, 32 per 100,000 white women died of breast cancer, but by 2003, the figure had declined to 24.6. For black women, though, mortality increased over the same period, rising from 30 per 100,000 black women in the population in 1975 to 34.1 per 100,000 in 2003.

I’ll post more facts as we lead up to the 5k on Saturday. Thanks again for everyone’s involvement.

The recent downturn in the Real Estate market, and the obvious problems surrounding sub-prime lending, has created a virtual mortgage crash.  So let’s take a moment and imagine the mortgage industry as a speeding car. Racing down the highway of the American Dream with the momentum of $2 trillion+ worth of residential loans a year.  Suddenly, the car loses control and crashes.  Insert the now famous “Mortgage Lender Implode-o-Meter”, and you have Rubber Necking for the Mortgage Industry. 

I’m not going to discount the timing or efforts of the Implode-o-Meter’s website. They actually do a great job of keeping up on lenders who are ”ailing”. But, I believe they have unwillingly created a virtual rubberneck for potential homebuyers and consumers who are gripped with fear of the “credit crunch”. 

Here’s a better way to visualize the current mortgage and real estate industry. Again, let’s say we’re driving a car, cruising at a speed of 80 mph, in a 70 mph zone. (a little too fast) There’s some traffic ahead, and so we slow to 65 mph.  We just slowed down by 20%. But we’re still going 65; you’d agree that’s still a pretty significant speed at which to travel in a car.

That’s precisely how we’re moving in the mortgage and real estate industry. New home sales reported a 20% slow down. But that’s down from all time record highs….so why all the rubber necking?

Implode-o-Meter only lists lenders who are suffering. So you won’t find any true bank backed lenders, or banks for that matter on their site. First Horizon, Wachovia, Suntrust, Bank of America, etc, all operating, all funding loans for homebuyers.  Sometimes slowing down to 65 mph is just a necessary move to safely get you home.