MD Tech Expo

Kristin Abouelata - Home Loans asked:


With the current “mortgage meltdown” we hear so much about these days, your average consumer thinks that the days of 100% financing have gone by the wayside. True, you are hard pressed these days to find a bank or lender that will want to carry a second mortgage that combined with a first mortgage adds up to 100% financing. That’s because if there is a default, sitting in second lien position is particularly dicey. Too much risk is involved. And since, in recent history, that scenario of the 80/20 combo was the most common 100% financing vehicle available to a certain group of consumers (non first time homebuyers), there’s a misconception out there that 100% options are all but dried up.

But, a-ha! There is hope for someone who has great credit but prefers to invest his/her assets elsewhere when rates are so low. It’s called the Flex 100. And it can apply to purchases and refinance transactions.

I heard an analyst mention on television the other day that mortgage money is so cheap right now it’s like a sale at Macy’s. That made me chuckle, but it’s true. In which case, why not invest your money elsewhere if you qualify for 100% financing. After all, the homes are still appreciating in most areas, but not at the stellar rate we saw in the past.

The Flex 100 requires you to invest $500 of your own cash towards the transaction, so I guess it’s technically not 100% financing, but it’s pretty darn close. And no, you don’t have to be buying your first home to get this deal. You can actually have owned a home in the past three years! However, it does apply to financing your primary residence only. You can’t get this deal for that nice cabin in Gatlinburg you want to use on the weekends or for that great rental down the street you think you can get a good deal on. You’ve got to live in the house to qualify for this financing.

But you can do a refinance, as long as it’s not a “cash-out,” meaning you’re not paying off debt or taking equity out of the property. It must be a rate term refinance only. However, you can pay off that second mortgage or home equity line of credit you hate, IF you obtained that 2nd lien mortgage when you got your first mortgage (a piggy back closing, we call it). Or to make it clearer, you originally had that 80/20 combo mentioned earlier. If you got that home equity mortgage a month or two after your initial closing to build a deck or payoff a credit card, than it that won’t work for a Flex 100 refinance.

What about your credit score? Well, it will affect the price you get, but there is no “minimum” credit score required for this program. You just have to get an approval through the automated underwriting system required. But be realistic – if you’ve got “iffy” credit, you probably won’t get an approval. A borrower with a credit score below a 620 would probably have to have a low loan to value or debt to income ratio for a chance of an approval.

A Flex 100 may or may not make sense for you. But hey, at least you know it’s an option. Your lender should be able to help you determine if this opportunity to flex your mortgage muscle makes sense for you.

Home Remodelers Group asked:


Finding the right home improvement company to update or renovate your home doesn’t have to be a stressful and disheartening process. Yet most homeowners have no idea where to start because they are bombarded with bad press about contractors who are dishonest, inexperienced and downright unreliable. Homeowners today are wary of who they can trust.

Home Improvement Complaints and Scams:

“With lower-rate mortgages tempting homeowners to trade up to a bigger house, or to refinance and expand or repair their existing home, we’re finding that construction and home improvement activity is way up, and with it is the number of complaints in those areas,” said Consumer Protection Commissioner Edwin R. Rodriguez. (Consumer Affairs, January 2006)

“Home improvement complaints rank as the top consumer complaint in Connecticut and elsewhere across the country,” Rodriguez said. “While home improvements themselves can be expensive, any problems that arise often cost consumers thousands more to fix. Unfortunately, there have been many cases where a homeowner is left with a huge problem and has no financial means of getting it repaired.” (Consumer Affairs, June 2006)

Basic scams usually do not occur with accredited companies, so make sure the company you use is licensed. “The law requires home improvement contractors to register and follow certain procedures for a reason, to protect homeowners,” Rodriguez said. “This includes complying with state laws that assure consumers a level of financial protection.” (Consumer Affairs, June 2006)

Be Wary of Certain Sales Tactic:

According to the National Consumer Law Center at consumerlaw.org, unscrupulous contractors mostly target senior citizens. Do not fall into the trap of the following sales tactics that take advantage of homeowners:

• “Bait and Switch” - offers low prices for installed items like windows and home siding, and then tells the homeowner the item is out of stock and can only be replaced with a high-priced substitute.

• Misrepresent the urgency of a needed repair.

• Claim the item is more expensive than advertised because it has to be “custom made” to fit the home.

• Misrepresent that the consumer is receiving a discount because the home is selected to model the repair when, in reality, the consumer is paying market price or more.

• Misrepresent the energy savings, health benefits and value added to the home.

• Misrepresent the terms on which financing is likely to be arranged.

Practices to Follow for Finding the Right Contractor:

If you hire a contractor with a license and a good reputation (such as the Home Remodelers Group®), you are guaranteed to avoid unfinished work, financial wrongdoing and fraud.

The National Consumer Law Center has a list of suggestions for homeowners looking for a home improvement company:

• Do not hire an unknown contractor that solicits business by knocking on your door. Deal with companies recommended by friends or reputable building supply stores.

• Before agreeing to hire any home improvement contractor, get a second estimate for the same work from another contractor.

• Get references for the contractor and speak to those references. Ask about satisfaction and any problems that arose.

• Look at other work performed by the same contractor.

• Many states require contractors to be licensed and/or bonded. Check with the state licensing body to see if the contractor you are considering is licensed.

• Get a written contract describing explicit specifications of the work, the price (including details of any financing or credit terms), the responsibility for cleaning up, and the hourly rate for any added work. Ask for guarantees and other promises to be made in writing.

• If the written documents are different from oral promises, do not sign them.

• A 3-day right-to-cancel applies to door-to-door sales and home improvement loans even after the papers have been signed.

• Do not allow a contractor to begin work until financial arrangements to pay for the work are complete.

• Do not agree to pay the final payment until the project is finished.

• Do not consolidate other debts with a home improvement loan.

• If problems with a contractor or home improvement lender arise, get help from a lawyer or housing counselor immediately.

Take Care of Your Home:

The Home Remodelers Group® has been in business since 1964 and there is a simple reason for our longevity. We take great pride in helping our customers beautify their homes, we enjoy our work and we want our customers to be happy with their homes. The Home Remodelers Goup® is licensed and insured so you can feel secure when working with us. Before you sign any contract, we provide a written estimate and detailed information on the scope of the project. You’ll know exactly what you are getting before we do anything. We do this to provide our customers with peace of mind. We have survived in this business because we focus on customer satisfaction, attention to customer service and offer quality products at a fair price.

Think of your home like a child that needs a doctor. You would take your child to a licensed and professional doctor, not someone that comes to your door. So make sure your home receives the care it deserves by hiring experienced and well-accredited home improvement professionals.

For more information visit http://www.homeremodelersgroup.com/?source=articles

Home Income Team asked:


In order for your website to get a good search engine ranking you need to have people linking to you. There are several ways to do this that I will explain and this will help your home based internet business thrive with hits and sales

1. One of the best ways to raise your ranking by the search engines is by offering content that people need and they will naturally link to your site because of the information you have provided. Most people are looking for information, tips, and tricks that they can use. For example this article, if you did not already know, this article will give you ideas on how to increase your rankings and get more traffic to your home based internet business site.

2. Next big tip is to write articles about your topic of interest. People like new information so do search engines. Include a link to your site in every article you write. Not only is this an inbound link it will help raise your ranking. There are several places to submit articles to on the web. Do a google search and you will find several. Some of the most popular include this site. plus Hello article and Article Dashboard. Make sure you include a link to your site at the bottom of each article you submit. Then for the anchor words, use your keywords that you are trying to get a good ranking for. Example would be: "Profitable Home Based Internet Business".

3. Exchange links with other site owners or sign up at a reputable link exchange company - try and find sites with relevant information to your site, for example "profitable home based internet business". Whatever you do, DO NOT join a link farm. The search engines will penalize you for this.

4. Research your competitors links. Find sites like yours and see what sites link to them . For example if your keyword is "profitable home based internet business" you might want to go to google.com and type in that keyword. When the results come up check out which sites are like yours. You can go to google research and find what links to the url you are interested in.

5. Internal Linking strategy will also help you. Search engines like internal linking. For example if you have a five page website pages, you should have links to each page. In addition, if you have more than one website you should definitely link to them on each page.

Kristin Abouelata - Home Loans asked:


You hear quite a bit lately that “the Fed is cutting the interest rate.” Maybe you’ve been considering a refinance, and you’re waiting to move forward till the Fed takes action again. But be smart about waiting and watching. A Fed cut doesn’t directly affect long term rates (for instance a 30 year fixed mortgage), but it does impact long term mortgage rates. The problem is the impact might not have the result you’ve been waiting for.

Who is the Fed? Well, it’s really the Federal Reserve. And when the Fed cuts rates, it usually cuts the Fed Funds Rate, which is the rate banks lend each other money. However, when the Fed lowers the Fed Funds Rate, Prime Rate, the rate banks give their best customers, usually drops as well. Ok, that’s great. But what does that really mean to the average person on the street? It means that anything that has an interest rate tied to Prime is directly affected by the Feds’ rate cut. Typically, these are short term loans. For instance: a credit card or a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC). In general, these rates decline when the Fed lowers rates. On the flip side, a Fed rate cut means your savings will perhaps not yield as much interest and your CD (certificate of deposit) won’t be at such a great rate. So, it’s not all good.

Why aren’t mortgages directly affected? Because mortgage rates are typically longer term rates and are influenced by buyers and sellers in the bond market. Daily movements in the bond market cause mortgage rates to change. That’s why you might get a quote from a loan officer on Tuesday, and on Wednesday, your quoted interest rate has increased .125%. The Fed lowers rates to help stimulate the economy. Ultimately a healthy economy is good for the real estate market. Jesse Lehn, Senior Vice President for Mortgage Investors Group, believes, “…a liquid real estate market is beneficial for the mortgage market and that keeps rates competitive.” So, when the Fed lowers rates, indirectly it can help mortgage rates, but there is no direct correlation.

Another misconception is that mortgage rate changes occur in direct relation to when a Fed rate cut happens. In actuality, most mortgage rate changes, positive or negative, occur regardless of whether the Fed is actually meeting. That’s because the mortgage market anticipates what the Fed is going to do.

A good loan officer should have their finger on the pulse of the market, but again it’s a gamble. Remember to have a target interest rate in mind if you want to lock a loan but are watching the market. Trying to lock an interest rate on the day the mortgage rates have reached their lowest point in a year is like trying to get a royal flush in poker. It happens, but it’s not a realistic goal. It just means you were lucky. Just stick to your home financing goals and consider the big picture, and you’ll be fine.

Home Stager asked:


Hi there!  Lorraine here from HOUSEDRESSINGS Ltd AUCKLAND.

www.housedressings.co.nz

Here are some vital tips for presenting your home for sale.

1. De-clutter your living spaces. Start first on the kitchen area. Clear all clutter on bench tops,window sills and clean all surfaces. All papers,bills,debris, file neatly away.

MOTTO: When in doubt - chuck it out!  Or at least store it away!

2. Re-arrange living room for a good spacial flow & layout. Any pictures on walls should be placed at eye level and curb all the personal pics and effects scattered throughout.

Minimalism is best as most potential buyers can’t imagine themselves living in that space with your accumulated clutter.

3. Add some bright funky cushions to your existing sofas to modernize and enhance the setting and place a nice rug under the coffee table (maybe shagpile or something contemporary ) to complete and define the living area.

Lighting is paramount for ambiance, so include a modern standard lamp or side table and lamp.

Accessories and modern art play a huge role in creating the ‘wow’ factor and clever use of colour is most important.

These are the important factors which brings it all together.

4. Beds should be dressed up  with modern duvets/plump pillows/valances/ cushions/bedside cabinets and stylish lamps. These don’t have to be expensive-go for style.

5.Bathroom: Add soap pumps/quality towels and choose colours to co-ordinate the existing.theme.

6. Don’t forget the entrance area. This is the first introduction to your home. Add a hall table with a floral arrangement or maybe a candleabra with canvas artwork above. (Abstracts work well in most settings.)

When having an open  home - make sure you have some music playing in the background. Light jazz works well or easy listening classics. This helps curb the awkward silences and helps people to linger longer to create a ‘connection’ with prospective buyers.

If you feel you are out of your comfort zone in acheiving this, then call a Home Staging Professional.

HOUSEDRESSINGS Ltd   are experienced in putting it all together, taking into account the style of home, existing colour scheme, best spacial layout. and your budget .

Staging can be : Partial - just a living area and a bedroom to full staging of  your home, complete with outdoor furniture.

We can also pack and store your existing furniture while your home is on sale.

If you have any questions feel free to ask.

Visit our website and leave a message on our contact page.

www.housdressings.co.nz

Email: lorraine@housedressings.co.nz

Kindest regards,

Lorraine Wilson (director)