Hear the Horror!

Tonight I listened to a masterful radio piece NPR did in May of 2008 regarding the mortgage meltdown and it is one of the best accounts I have heard or read on this subject. It’s one of those journalistic works that should be catalogued in the National Archives in Washington for future generations to access when they get that flyer in the mail, or should I say tweet, or text message about a million dollar home they can buy no money down as long as they have a pulse.

Click here to check out the full hour-long award-winning  piece – Well worth the time ( Giant Pool of Money – length 59:00)

Do me a favor and put this link in your calendar and check back in 10 years to see if we actually learned anything.

Slimy Mortgage Dude

I was reminiscing about party I went to a few years ago where I found myself talking to a very nice woman about a mortgage deal she was involved in at the time. She said in no uncertain terms that she was ready to cancel the loan because her mortgage guy was, and I quote, “slimy”.  As a local mortgage banker in Sacramento, I have been fighting this stigma for years.

My hope was The SAFE Act of 2008, that went into effect this year to protect borrowers from those slimy unscrupulous and poorly trained lenders, would have some real teeth. To comply with this act and continue as a lender I had to shell out almost $1000 for required classes, state and federal testing, a background check, credit check and even had to submit my fingerprints. I was shocked to find that my friends over in the big banks (your Wells Fargo and BofA types) were exempt from this requirement. Say What? Continue reading →

As a mortgage planner I am always looking at ways to save my clients money. Being in the thick of mortgage refinancing and purchases right now, I find that many of my prospective clients haven’t taken the time to analyze their entire financial picture. They are fixated on getting the best mortgage rate on their loan but don’t seem to care that they are paying 15% on their credit debt, and are earning less than a 1% on their cash in the bank.

With consumer spending slowing and the economy still in teetering on the brink of who knows what, even the smallest of savings add up over time. Amazingly people are still willing to make nothing in return for banks holding their money. Well don’t despair – you have options!  Continue reading →