Mortgage brokers are threatening massive layoffs of loan officers if a new federal rule takes effect April 1 that prohibits them from earning a larger commission on mortgage loans with high interest rates. The regulation is part of the Truth in Lending Act and Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act aimed at protecting consumers from [...]

Closing on a home, especially the first time, can be intimidating.  You’ll feel like everyone is taking money out of your pocket.  But being informed can take much of the fear out of the process.  Here is a list of the most common mortgage fees you’ll see – and what you can do about them. Application [...]

The post-bubble housing market and all-time low interest rates make this a great time to buy a house.  But it’s still the expense of a lifetime, so you want to make sure you get your best deal on that mortgage. Check Your Credit. Before you even apply for a loan, find out what lenders will [...]

Millions of people around the world have felt the pinch of the economic downturn. As unemployment rises, more and more people find themselves without a job. Many of those people find also their financial health quickly deteriorating. This economic cycle has played out many times throughout our history. Unfortunately, the economy often improves faster than [...]

Tonight CNBC is (re)airing an amazing show called “Marijuana Inc.: Inside America’s Pot Industry.” CNBC has aired the special a couple times now, but if you’ve missed it, or haven’t heard of it yet, you should check it out. It’s an interesting look into what CNBC calls a “thriving industry…raking in what’s estimated to be [...]

CNBC has a pretty interesting series called American Greed, during which they detail legendary white collar crimes and how they were planned and carried out. Tonight (Wednesday, Jan 7th, 2008) at 9:00 pm American Greed covers the story of Matt Cox, Rebecca Hauck, and Alison Arnold, who engineered a classic mortgage scam that took advantage [...]

Former NASDAQ Chairman, Bernard Madoff has allegedly been running a Wall Street ponzi scheme of epic proportions, bilking investors out of an estimated $50 billion. Madoff is the founder of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC and separately managed money for high-net-worth individuals and hedge funds through an investment advisory business he oversaw. Madoff was [...]

In shopping for the best rate and lowest closing costs on a mortgage, the idea of low to no-cost loans capture the attention of even the most skeptical of borrowers. Advertisements abound with promises of no points and there is a lot of advice out there encouraging people to pay as little as possible toward [...]

Recent News On HR3915 To Outlaw YSP, Among Other Things If you follow the mortgage or real estate markets at all you’ve probably heard about HR3915, the new proposition to, among other things, outlaw Yield Spread Premium (YSP) in mortgage transactions. If you haven’t heard about it, just do a Google search on HR3915 and [...]

You may have never thought twice about how mortgage companies generate business; I sure didn’t until I got into the business. What I learned was definitely not what I expected; what I expected was pretty simple, I always thought companies, including mortgage companies, generated business through their own marketing efforts, but that turned out not [...]

A while back I wrote an article about paying points to refinance and why, even though we tend to hate the idea of upfront costs, it can be a huge benefit in the long run. In that article I said that you’d benefit from paying points upfront “when the cost of the buy-down pays for [...]

Ok, if you’ve ever refinanced, you’ve probably wondered at some point just what the hell goes on between the time you complete an application and the time your loan funds. I mean, if you’ve had a half-way decent loan officer, he or she has probably given you a little insight, but nowhere near what I’m [...]

Because both lenders and brokers will lie to you.
Because Interest Rates Change Every Day, Sometimes Several Times A Day.
Because You Really Don’t Know Who You’re Talking To.

Why in the world would anyone want to pay $10,000 to refinance; especially when there are all kinds of lenders advertising “free” loans? Well, because the idea of a “free loan” is a little misleading and lenders use this to their advantage when advertising these programs. If the idea of paying closing costs makes you cringe, you need to read this.

If you’re unfamiliar with LowerMyBills, it’s similar to Lending Tree, and if you’ve watched any TV at all, you know that Lending Tree markets itself as a place where you can have banks compete over you. It’s a great concept, but the companies that call you in response to your applications on these sites are [...]

This is the third installment of the Mortgage Shopping series. In the first installment, I went over how Rate Shopping can Hurt Your FICO Score. In installment two I reminded you of a forgotten concept in mortgages: You Get What You Pay For. I left a major question unanswered, “If I shouldn’t be shopping, then [...]

So in the last installment, Rate Shopping – The Story of the Too Low FICO, we went over how rate shopping can hurt your FICO score. We went over the one way to shop for a mortgage and still save that FICO score of yours from dropping like a rock. Now we’re going to talk about a simple concept that my grandma taught me, and I’m sure she’d like me to pass it on. What is it?

You get what you pay for.

It’s true, rate shopping can hurt your credit score. “But why should I be penalized for being a sophisticated investor trying to find the best deal?” Well, the short answer is you won’t be; the long answer is you will. Ok, that wasn’t so long, but keep reading.

A basic tennet of capitalism is that competition is good for the economy. It helps prevent price gouging and ultimately leads to a better product for the consumer. Well, that sounds great and all, but that doesn’t always hold true; especially with mortgages. Don’t get me wrong, I’m in favor of competition. What ends up [...]