Understand a Real Estate Appraisal
Happy New Year. Make a difference this year. "Pay it forward" as in the movie. If you haven't seen it, WOW, do.If you buy a house or refinance one, through a lender, you will have to have an appraisal. The reason it is required is FHA insures the loan, VA quarantees the loan and conventional loans ... more...

Home Equity Loans - Friend or Foe?
Home equity loans are advertised on the airways, newspapers, magazines and just about anywhere else a homeowner may see or hear the advertisement. Some people feel that home equity loans are trouble waiting to happen. Others feel that home equity loans are a key to opening a stronger financial ... more...

A Singles Game of Real Estate
This discussion leans toward answering questions asked most often by our youthful men and women in there early twenties. They often begin to ask themselves the question, Should I consider buying a home, condo/town-home or some other type of real estate that I can call my own? Due to the fact that ... more...

Build Your Own Dream House!
So you're thinking about building your own house, are you? Well, you've come to the right place! It's a lot of fun (hard work and eventually fun!) to build your own home and it will save you thousands of dollars(we saved over a Hundred Grand by doing it ourselves - that's pretty significant cash!). ... more...

Home Equity Loans in Texas
A few notes of importance: This only applies to a homestead property, that is the customers primary residence LTV refers to Loan to Value, meaning the loan amount as compared to the value of the home. As an example, a loan of $75,000 on a home valued at $100,000 would be a loan at 75% LTV. These ... more...

How to Finance and Build Your Dream Home
If you have always dreamed of building and living in the home youve helped design, its time to seriously consider putting your dream into action. In todays mortgage market, a specially designed loan for just such a homeowner, the construction to perm loan, includes the construction loan to ... more...

Federal Housing Administration (FHA)
FHA loan programs:FHA AccessFHA Cal GoldFHA Rural GoldFHA Mutal Mtg. InsuranceFHA 203 (k)FHA 203 bFHA 251FHA Title I programFHA MIP RefundThe Federal housing administration was created by Congress in 1934 as part of the national housing act. The purpose of the act, and of the FHA, was to generate ... more...

Six Simple Steps for Getting More Applications
When I first started out as a loan officer, one of the things I found to be the toughest, was taking an application over the phone. I just didnt seem to have the skills, nor did I have a plan. I was literally calling people on the phone and saying something to the effect of; Hello, my name is Jay ... more...

How to Convert Your Real Estate Notes into Quick Cash
If youre a real estate investor needing quick cash, selling your notes could offer a fast, easy solution. It can happen to anyone. You find yourself in a situation where you need a chunk of cashinstantly. Maybe you have to handle an emergency or simply want to free up funds to invest elsewhere. ... more...

Basic Home Loan Terms Explained
The wonderful world of home buying can sometimes overwhelm the first time homebuyer. They are inundated with information riddled with terms of art. ARMS, points, interest rates, good faith estimates, pay-downs, lock-in dates, so on and so forth. Though some or all of these terms may seem ... more...