Archive for June, 2009

• Images from the Popular Graphics Collection of the Library of Congress
• Originally from the 1800s

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High quality reproduction of original photograph from the Popular Graphics Arts Collection of over 7,100 images from the Library of Congress. Please be aware that some of the prints in this collection depict popular biases and prejudices at the time of original publication and are considered extremely racist or otherwise offensive today. Library or archive stamps will be digitally removed. These are High Quality Prints offered by Blackstone Lithographs…. More >>

Home Insurance Company, New York … cash capital two million dollars

inflation.us After doing research on Loan Modification Default Rates and Shadow Inventory Rates i am in shock. This is very serious people. I feel very bad for all the responsible people who have been paying on their loans like clockwork hoping to use equity to subsidize their retirement. Can anyone say “poof” Links www.mgic.com mhanson.com

A jumbo mortgages is a home loan that exceeds the limits set by Fannie

Mae and Freddie Mac.

How are jumbo loans different?

What differentiates jumbo mortgage loans is the loan amount. At present, loan amounts that are higher than $417,000 are usually deemed jumbo mortgages. This determination is made by comparing industry standards for average housing loans as governed by the two biggest secondary mortgage lenders, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac set industry standards for ‘conforming loans’; Home loans beyond those maximums are regarded as jumbo mortgages. These two agencies cap the dollar figure for loans that they will buy (that’s where the $417,000 figure comes from). Larger loan amounts are funded by other investors such as banks and insurance companies. Note that the dollar figure set to qualify jumbo mortgages differs by locale, so the limit is higher in Hawaii and Alaska (and in some other states). In the majority of the U.S., jumbo mortgages are those larger than $417K.

Available Terms – 15 Year Fixed, 30 Year Fixed, or Variable 30 Year

Jumbo Mortgage

The terms for jumbo mortgages vary similarly to other types of housing loans. Buyers can choose between variable rates, like 3/1 or 5/1 ARMs, for a 15-30 year jumbo mortgage, or a 15 or 30 year fixed jumbo mortgagerate.

Whether a 15 or 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage or an adjustable rate is best for you will depend on your plans and situation.

A 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage is better for those whole plan to own the home for a very long time. With this type of mortgage, the rate will not go up but it will never go down, either – it stays the same for the life of the loan. This is good because the payment is predictable, and cannot rise sharply if interest rates do. On the downside, the 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage rate is higher since lenders know they can never charge more than the original rate.

The lowest jumbo mortgage rate is usually an adjustable 30 year jumbo mortgage rate. Lenders understand their potential to benefit from increases in rates over time, so they are willing to lend at a lower rate in the beginning. Although, the lower rate won’t last. A variable 30 year jumbo mortgage rate will be fixed for 3 to 5 years, and then will adjust annually according to an index. Even small increases could mean significantly larger monthly mortgage payments.

Going with an adjustable 30 year jumbo mortgage rate works well when a buyer plans to move within the 3 to 5 year fixed period. For a buyer more concerned with smaller initial payments, or who will likely refinance in the near future, the variable 30 year jumbo mortgage rate is better than the 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage. Why pay the higher fixed rate when the buyer knows this isn’t their long-term plan?

All jumbo mortgage products – 15 year, variable 30 year, or the 30 year fixed jumbo mortgage – have their benefits. A trustworthy mortgage lender with experience financing jumbo mortgages is a buyer’s best resource for determining which product is right for them.

The home buying process can be very confusting. Take a few moments and dispell some of the top myths surrounding this process.

Myth # 1: You can’t use a gift as a down payment.

This old saw has been around for decades, but it’s not true! You can use a gift from a family member or a non-profit foundation for a down payment. Lenders have found that new homeowners are especially motivated not to default on their mortgage, when a family member has invested in the property.

If you accept a gift as part of the down payment, your lender may want written proof that your relative is not expecting you to repay them. This is usually in the form of a letter or gift affidavit.

Myth # 2: You must have perfect credit to buy a home.

There is an entire segment of the mortgage industry built up around providing loans to people with less than perfect credit. It’s called the sub-prime mortgage segment. Yes, it’s true that sub-prime mortgages are usually at higher interest rates than conventional mortgages. However, usually you can refinance in a few years when your credit rating has improved.

Myth #3: You can’t buy a home for at least 10 years after declaring bankruptcy.

If you reestablish your credit, you can qualify for a conventional home loan in as little as 4 years after declaring bankruptcy. For government loans like those sponsored by the VA, the wait is even shorter. You can qualify for an FHA loan in as little as 2 years.

Myth # 4: You can’t use a loan for a down payment.

Actually, this myth is partly true. You can’t get an advance on your credit card or an unsecured personal loan as a down payment. You can’t borrow your down payment from friends or family, either. But, there are a number of types of loans that are perfectly acceptable to use as a down payment.

These include loans against your retirement account, such as a 401K. In fact, this is one of the most popular sources of a down payment. If you have valuable possessions, such as art, jewelry, stocks or an investment account, you can use those as collateral for a down payment loan. These are called pledged asset loans, because you are pledging your assets to guarantee payment.

Myth # 5: Down payment assistance programs are only offered in the inner city or blighted neighborhoods.

Nothing could be further from the truth. There are thousands of different DPAPs or Down Payment Assistance Programs available in different areas. Many of them are offered by city, state or local governments. Others are nationwide. Still others are offered by non-profit foundations.

Myth # 6: You must have at least a 20% down payment.

This was true before 1934. That’s when the government first started offering VA and FHA loans with down payments as low as 3% to 5%. Today, there are dozens of different loan products available. Some require down payments as low as 5%. Others require no down payments at all. They’re called 100% financing, where you borrow the down payment as well as the mortgage amount.

If you have been planning to sell your house I am sure you must have come across plenty of articles based on home selling tips and guides. There is a plethora of advice available on the net and otherwise, so much so that by now you must be quite confused as to where exactly you must start. Infact even the big picture gets so blurred that most of you start wondering as to exactly how the process will progress and how you are supposed to cope with it.

The actual process may differ depending on the area; there are a few general steps that will work well for everyone.

You need to start with some basic preliminary planning. This may not sound like much but this is the first stepping stone that will lead through to the rest of the process. You need to be mentally prepared to hand over your home to another person; similarly you will need to make sure that your home is prepared to be handed over to a new owner. If you want to sell your home because you want to move into a new one, then I hope you know that you don’t have to wait to buy a new home, unless the older one is sold. You can very well buy another house before your current residence is sold.

When you are completely prepared to sell your home, the time has come to appoint a good realtor who will be with you through out this process. You can look around your neighborhood for a good agent or you could look for more experienced agents who have been quite successful in their field. You can meet a few of them before you decide to appoint one of them as your agent. You will need to ask about their marketing strategies and also about the various commissions that are on offer. Make sure that you are really comfortable with this person, as you will have to go through a lot together before the deal cracks through.

You now need to finalize the listing arrangements. There is a lot to choose from, but it is the best to choose a combination where your part is limited to the amount of work you would like to do during the process. Also you may have to think about what each kind of listing will cost you.

Whatever you decide on, remember that the cost of listing is integral to the cost of selling the house and should thus be incorporated in the asking price of the house. Be extra cautious when you decide the price of your house so that you can fix an ideal price. Anything too less or too much, soils the reputation of the deal in the eyes of the buyers. Use a rough analysis to get the value of your home, do not forget to add the expenses incurred during the process.

If the price set is good then before long you will have potential buyers contacting you or your agent for house showings. Incase you are going through an agent, make yourself scarce when the potential buyer comes for a house showing. Incase you are selling the house on your own, then go through the sundry advantages of your home and do not forget to point them out. Think carefully about what you are going to say.

If every thing goes well, you can expect the buyer to make an offer. You may involve an estate attorney here so that everything is smoothened out. Be very sure about what ,the buyer thinks, comes with the house and what is not part of the deal. You may or may not accept the offer or you may like to make a few changes to it.

If the whole thing is acceptable to both the parties, then viola the deal falls through and you are now very much at the end of the process of selling your home.

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This is a museum quality reproduction print on premium, semi gloss paper with archival/UV resistant inks. Date: c. 1909.Source Info: Original copyright by Stereo-Travel Co. HISTORY OF THE STEREOVIEWSStereoviews (aka Stereographs) consist of two nearly identical photographs or photomechanical prints, paired to produce the illusion of a single three-dimensional image, usually when viewed through a stereoscope. These prints come from the Library … More >>

Stereoview : City Hall and Home Insurance Building

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Need a mortgage but worried about the market? In Mortgages For Dummies, 3rd Edition, bestselling authors Eric Tyson and Ray Brown give you proven solutions for obtaining a mortgage, whether you want to buy your first home, refinance, or tap into your equity. You get the latest on sub-prime and adjustable-rate mortgages, finding the best lender, avoiding fiscal pitfalls and foreclosure, and much, much, more! This easy-to-understand, objective, and jargon-free … More >>

Mortgages For Dummies, 3rd Edition

It is not everyday home owners indulge in selling their homes. It is once-in-a-lifetime activity for many. By selling a home – the property built with brick and mortar or wood and iron construction – is converted into money. Why at all is a home sold? There are many reasons for this – including but not limited to – the following:

         Purchasing a new home

         Relocating to some other place for whatever reason

         Personal reasons like meeting financial commitments and in need of cash

and so on.

What a home seller wants?

Without exception, all home sellers want their property to be sold for the right price they are setting (asking price) and quickly without delay. They want the right purchaser to buy the home and make payment without any hassles.

Towards this objective, they resort to the help of a real estate agent and list their property for sale in the housing market of their area.

How is the present day US Housing Market?

“Down” is the right word to describe the condition of all US housing markets. For quite some years now, there is a flood of foreclosure properties made available for home buyers. The result is – it has become a strenuous task to sell off a home in the open market. Unsold properties are piling up in the inventory and for months they are unable to see a qualified buyer.

Overall, hundreds of thousands of homes are lying unsold for months in the sluggish US housing markets now. Obviously the strategies for home selling should also change. For example Norfolk is one of the cities consisted in the 9 cities of Hamptons Road Metropolitan Area in Virginia State. This Independent but small city of 234,220 population (steadily maintained more or less from the year 2000) has 86,210 households.

As on date Norfolk has in its record 2,143 residential properties listed for sale, apart from 801 foreclosed properties under “distress sale”.

How you can act smart in the present situation?

Home owners wishing to sell their properties come from different walks of life, apart from business – salaried employee; self-employed professional, teacher, nurse, artist or anything you can think of. Justifiably these people cannot be expected to be wizards in real estate business and know the “tricks of the trade”. All they want is to sell their property listed in the housing market, as quickly as possible and at the price they have set and count the currency.

Go to the Norfolk example again. The property you want to get listed – either through MLS or FSBO – should get the attention of the buyer flipping through the photos and virtual tour videos of 2,143 properties available for sale at Norfolk housing market. How to do this?

This is where Home Staging comes into the picture and helps you achieve the desired result.

Create ”Love at first sight” situation for your property.

When a prospective buyer sees a property, the first and foremost thing attracts them is the “curb appeal” – meaning how a property looks at the first glance. An Accredited Home Stage professional can make this happen. By magnifying the advantages of your home and reducing the disadvantages to the best extent possible, your property can make the buyer exclaim “Wow….this is what I have been looking for”. From the outside appearance to the interior decoration and arrangement, a professional Home Staging service can work like magic.

Is Home Staging a costly affair?

Not necessarily – an Accredited Home Staging professional works in consultation with you, to suit your budget and enhances the return on investment manifold.

For all your queries in respect of your individual Home Staging requirements, there is an expert – seasoned realtor-turned Accredit Home Staging professional – waiting to provide answers at http://xanadustaging.com/. You can get in touch obligation-free.

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This digital document is an article from National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management, published by The National Underwriter Company on October 21, 1996. The length of the article is 530 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

From the supplier: A $23… More >>

Calif. court upholds $23.6M quake judgement vs. Home.: An article from: National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management

Going on the internet is a great way to start a search for Colorado mortgage rates, especially if you want a true mortgage quote from a Denver mortgage company.

Getting a Colorado online mortgage quote is a practical answer for borrowers who are looking for a Denver mortgage company and has many built-in advantages.

The Ease of Getting A Colorado Online Mortgage Quote

Online, it’s easy to apply with a Colorado or Denver mortgage company. Colorado online mortgage quote applications will take borrowers only minutes to fill out when they

have their information ready. With an online application, there is no time on hold. Instead, you’ll get a call back with loan options and Colorado mortgage rates in just a short time. The process is made to save a borrower lots of time. Borrowers will have the ability to find out exactly what a Denver mortgage company needs, so there is no time wasted with a lender waiting for the right information needed to give a true mortgage quote.

Colorado Online Mortgage Rates Help A Borrower Get A True Mortgage Quote,

Colorado online mortgage quote providers give a better quote because they have a complete and accurate profile from a lender, which assists in getting a true mortgage quote. When a lender can see exactly what is needed to make a specific and precise quote for an individual Colorado mortgage rate. With all of the information, a borrower and lender can get a true mortgage quote.

Why does that make a difference? When customers contact a potential Denver mortgage company, they are looking typically at one thing — the rate. But Colorado mortgage rates are different for different customers. No two are ever the same. So a Denver mortgage company giving a flat rate is impossible. There is no way to guarantee to  rate without having information like the amount of the loan, the price, the credit and debt status. With all of this information ahead of time, like with an online application, a Denver mortgage

company can prepare a Colorado online mortgage quote based on the detailed facts, not assumptions.

What to Watch Out For When Shopping for Colorado Online Mortgage Rates

Getting an Colorado online mortgage quote doesn’t dismiss person-to-person communication. Instead, it is a tool for accuracy and a faster way to get an accurate quote. A borrower must still communicate with a live Denver mortgage company associate. There is still a need to look over all of the information carefully to ensure there is the best overall Colorado online mortgage quote for the borrower, with not only the Colorado mortgage rate, but closing costs and other fees. A borrower should also make sure that the lender is a Denver mortgage company with the knowledge of Colorado real estate and not just an out-of-state company with out-of-state contacts.

No matter who a borrower chooses or how they start the process, they will need to put the company they ultimately pick to the test and ensure they will get a true mortgage quote and a flexible product.

nrma.com.au Does your home insurer offer great prices across NSW? NRMA Insurance Does. Does your home insurer pay the most claims? NRMA Insurance Does. So unless your house takes care of itself, it’s time to get a better deal on your home insurance. For all the savings and benefits you could be missing, call NRMA Insurance on 132 132 or visit your local office. Offer excludes commercial policies. Insurance issued by Insurance Australia Limited ABN 11 000 016 722 trading as NRMA Insurance. This is general advice only so before making any decisions, make sure you consider your own circumstances and the PDS available from NRMA Insurance.

How to Find Honest Advice About Colorado Mortgages

It’s safe to say there are many places to find a deal for a Denver mortgage or Colorado mortgages these days. But the mortgage crisis has made things a little more complex. It’s not just about finding the best deal, but finding someone to work with who will give you honest advice and help you get into a mortgage that you can afford. But are there experts out there you can give you that sort of Colorado mortgage advice? Is there someone who will get you into the best Denver mortgage product, while still remaining ethical? The answer is yes.

Watch Out When Colorado Mortgage Experts Offer The World

One of the problems that got so many people into a mortgage mess is that their Denver mortgage expert or Colorado mortgage expert made them an offer that would fix all of their problems. These mortgage experts put customers into deals that just didn’t work out and now people are liable to lose their homes. If you want to get into the right mortgage product now, then you need to look for someone who will look at the Colorado home loans available and tell you the ones you can’t have.

Sounds strange, doesn’t it? But that’s the way you can tell a Denver mortgage lender with credibility from one who is more unethical.

In the recent past, when it seemed like everyone was buying a home, too many Colorado mortgage professionals weren’t being honest with their clients and the result was bad loans that have turned into foreclosures. The lenders involved weren’t looking out for their clients, instead they were just interested in getting them started on a loan which may have been low at first, but now has turned into trouble. Instead, a mortgage pro has to look at what will happen to a customer now and in the future.

How do Ethical Denver Mortgage Professionals Work?

In the midst of this crisis, ethical Denver mortgage professionals are working hard to gain back the reputation lost by bad lenders. Unfortunately, the names of everyone working in the business were hurt by the people who worked on bad loans. It will take hard (and ethical) work to repair that.

If you are a potential customer, then you need to be looking out for the professionals who are out there, coming up Colorado mortgages while fighting to be ethical. They have good products that will help a homeowner and they are working in that person’s best interest. Seek out the Colorado mortgage experts who are client-focused and who have been in business for a long time thanks to that philosophy. You want an expert whose business focuses on:

• Selling reasonably priced Denver mortgage products

• Finding many good options in Colorado mortgages for customers that will last throughout the years

• Making sure the clients remain credit-worthy homeowners

• Putting customer service first, so their business grows thanks to referred and repeat customers

The mortgage crisis may have knocked some bad mortgage providers out of the business, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t still traps for customers. They need to keep looking for reliable home loan experts. The key is the kind of Denver mortgage advice you get and whether it’s honest enough to really tell you what kind of program you can get into. If an offer is too good to be true, it probably is.

This article is written by J.B. of 1st American Mortgage and Loan, LLC, a Colorado mortgage lender who offers access to information on obtaining a Colorado mortgage loan as well as other information on loans in Colorado online mortgage quotes, and rates through his website TrueMortgageQuote.com http://www.truemortgagequote.com).

For those people severely tempted to take out More Than’s home insurace because of his sexy northern tones…

There is a certain something to be said for having confidence when purchasing a home. The financial concerns that come with home buying can be a confusing thing to deal with at first. However, there are a few steps that a new home buyer can take in order to build their confidence and streamline the buying process.

Pre Approval

Careful Shopping

Title Insurance

Home Inspection

Liens & Easements

The financing process is the step that usually causes the most stress and worry for new home buyers. People wonder if they will be able to afford the home of their dreams. Pre-approval for financing is the quickest way to qualify your interest in the home market. A pre-approval will let you know exactly what you can afford and what you can’t. So many eager home buyers have had their dreams crushed after falling in love with a home only to realize that it is far outside their financial reach.

The next issue is careful shopping. If you know what you are looking for and what you can afford before the search starts it will be far less stressful. Make a few lists detailing what you cannot be without and don’t be afraid to seek these homes out. A confidant buyer is one who is willing to take some time to find just the right home. After finding a good candidate, view the house as many times as you need to make a smart choice.

Another thing that you should never be without is title insurance. This comes in handy if there are any “weak links” in the chain of ownership that your house has gone through. Of course, you are making a legitimate offer on the home and are investing a huge amount of money. The last thing you need is a title concern from owners previous to cause trouble for you.

Home inspections are an extremely important step in acquiring a home. Without a proper inspection you may never know about structural problems, concerns with plumbing, heating or sewage systems, mold and other concerns. Most home offers should be made contingent on the home’s passing of an inspection. Be wary of sellers who do not want an inspection done on their home.

Finally, be sure to find out about any liens or easements on the property. Likely any liens will come up during the title search, but easements are more ambiguous. Easements can be as simple as a fence line that has been agreed upon for many years or a community access road. An easement is quit simply a “right to use” a certain area of land that is owned by another party.

If you are mindful of these things when purchasing a home the process will lose much of its confusion and fear. Be sure of what you want and don’t be afraid to go for it!

In a perfect world, every buyer would apply 20% of the purchase price toward a down payment on a loan transaction. They would have 720 credit scores and have worked at the same company (which they do not own themselves) for the past 10 years. They pay their credit card balances off every month, own their car outright, and have a savings kitty equal to their yearly income. Trust me, these people do exist. We lenders just don’t see them every day. But doing a loan for these individuals is a walk in the park.

Most of us try to save what we can. That’s important when buying a home. However, many mortgage products allow for varied down payment options from 20% down plus closing costs to coming to the table with no money at all.

To come to the table with no money at all, you must either be a first time homebuyer or your income is under a certain mandated amount. These programs are designed to boost the home buying segment of our population and allow modest income receiving individuals to be homeowners. Providing they have a good credit and work history and haven’t owned a home in the past three years, they are perfect candidates for 100% financing. If the value of the property allows it and the seller is willing, oftentimes the seller can contribute anywhere from 3-6% if the closing costs. Mortgage insurance (MI), incorporated into the monthly payment, will be required by the lender, and normally it’s at a reduced rate. If you’re income is below a certain level, you can deduct the mi from your taxes. That’s how you can show up, buy a house and put no money down.

The next common tier for consideration is a 3% investment. An FHA loan is the first product that pops into mind when hearing the 3% thresh hold, however there are conventional products that also allow this minimal investment, too. Again, mortgage insurance will be required regardless of the chosen product, but other factors such as credit score and loan amount must be considered when deciding if this a good fit for you.

With recent changes in the industry, a 5% down payment is the most typical rule of thumb for no strings attached financing that one sees today. When I say no strings attached, I am talking about applying the most encompassing guidelines or umbrella under which the largest segment of homebuyers can fit – self employed, stated income, etc., included. The widest cast net, if you will. And, the mortgage insurance requirement will still apply.

If you can come up with a 10% down payment, you can probably avoid mortgage insurance by financing another 10% of the purchase price with a subordinate, second loan. Lenders refer to it as an 80-10-10 loan. That means a base loan amount of 80% of value, a second loan of 10% of value and the remaining 10% down payment comes out of your pocket. If your income is above a certain level, this route is attractive because it allows the consumer the benefit of writing off interest on the second loan since they can’t write off mortgage insurance. You can also come up with more than 10% down payment and obtain the appropriate secondary financing to hit that 80% threshold that avoids mortgage insurance.

Why wouldn’t you always put all of your savings toward a home? Because your money may be spent or invested elsewhere and serve you better. For instance, if you qualify for a first time homebuyer program and have $1000 that you had tucked away for a down payment, you could finance the entire purchase price of the loan at a 6% interest rate, your realtor can negotiate with the seller to pay a portion of the closing costs and in turn, you could eliminate that nasty credit card debt that you are paying 13.9% interest on. Make sense?

Of course, your mortgage lender should be able to assist you in examining and choosing which down payment is best or perhaps, necessary for you. Be forthcoming about your goals and needs, and the down payment question should be easily answered.