Tracking Down the BEST Realtor for YOU!
Yes, you need a realtor! A professional realtor is so much more than someone who shows you houses – they are acting as your representation in what will likely be the largest financial investment of your life. As a mortgage lender, I cringe when one of my clients says they don’t need a realtor (or…
How Long Should I Wait to Refinance My Mortgage?
Let’s do some refinance math! When the cost of refinancing is recovered in less time than you plan to retain the home, it makes financial sense to refinance. How do you know when your property value has increased enough to avoid mortgage insurance? That is where your realtor comes in! They are your best resource…
Student Loan Debt: My Story
Time for some real talk. Some personal sharing. In 2008, I went into graduate studies with very little debt, a teaching assistantship, and grand visions of academia. As sometimes happens, things did not go as planned, and I ended up with a ridiculous amount of student loan debt after two years of my master’s program.…
Applying for Your First Mortgage: What to Expect
If you’ve never been through a mortgage application process, or maybe it’s been a long while, you may be approaching it with some trepidation. The very idea of a stranger digging through details of your life history and finances can feel a bit invasive. While the process (and hence, your experience) will vary greatly depending…
Cash is NOT King!
The old adage “Cash is king!” may be true in some scenarios, but it doesn’t apply when buying a home. If you’re planning to get a mortgage you cannot use actual cash money for any of the down payment or closing costs. All funds used in your mortgage transaction need to be “source-able”; In other…
New Construction: What to Know Before You Buy
FULL DISCLOSURE up-front: No loan officer who is not in a “preferred lender” relationship with a builder can compete with new construction. Builders mark-up the sales price of their homes so that they can entice buyers with a rebate (which can be used to buy down the rate or cover some closing costs) in exchange…
Pre-Qualification vs. Pre-Approval
In recent pre-COVID times, a simple pre-qualification letter was enough to start your home search with and was the only letter most lenders would issue until you were under contract, but in today’s competitive, multiple-offer market (driven by lack of inventory), you had better be armed with a pre-APPROVAL from your lender of choice. What’s…
How to Best Today’s Mortgage Rates
I hate to break it to you, but barring another global disaster or pandemic, we are unlikely to see mortgage rates drop to the 3% playing field again in our lifetime. The COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns seemed to last an eternity, so mentally and emotionally what happened during those times seems like the way things…
Is OptOutPreScreen Legit?
Short answer: YES! OptOutPrescreen.com is 100% legit. Long answer: You’ve done our due diligence on choosing a mortgage loan officer, and now it’s time to complete your application. Within 24 hours of doing so, you find yourself bei ng inundated with phone calls and text messages from sales staff with other mortgage companies. Did the…
How to Choose a Realtor
We’ve all heard this saying, incorrectly said to originate from a Chinese curse, “May you live in interesting times”. While we all want an “interesting life”, times are easier in uninteresting times, when our day to day behaves in a predicable manner. I think we can all agree nothing has been predictable in life, and…