Complying With The Golden Rule (Still) Admittedly, it’s not a perfect analogy: I’m hardly suggesting that all Realtors are wizards, and that lenders are all witches (sometimes, it’s the other way around). But, at least from the perspective of a Buyer’s agent, clients (especially first-time Buyers) can seem a little bit like Dorothy, and the process...Read More
Reason(s) Not to Go With the Cheapest Loan/Lender By definition, all real estate is unique. Money isn’t. (In economists’ lingo, money — and other commodities like aluminum, corn, and lumber — are what’s called “fungible”). So, is there a reason for prospective home Buyers (and mortgage borrowers) not to simply get the cheapest loan they can...Read More
How Lenders (& Local Governments) Avoid Getting Left Holding the Bag First, a word about real estate’s better known — OK, less obscure — acceleration clause. Also known as a “due on sale” clause, it’s that little paragraph in very fine print at the end of each mortgage that provides if the homeowner transfers title...Read More
FHA Rates — and Especially Fees(!) — Soar Higher Prospective borrowers obviously care about the face rate on their mortgage, but what they should really care about is what’s called the “A.P.R.,” or Annual Percentage Rate. It’s the latter number that captures the various fees that the lender is charging, and reflects the true cost...Read More
Where’s All the Cash Coming From? “Using cash allows real estate investor Jeremy Rupp to pay less than the asking price, then after the deal closes, he gets a mortgage on the home to free up more cash to keep buying.” –Jim Buchta, “Cash is Still King“; The Star Trib (11/3/2013) Call it the real estate version...Read More
Changing Mix of Comp’s (“Comparable Sold Properties”) It may strike non-professionals as odd, but real estate market values are established by “looking through the rear view mirror” — that is, by scrutinizing recent, similar sales as near to the subject property as possible. Every rule has its exceptions, but the conventions in residential real estate are: ...Read More
