Mortgage Tip: 10 Great Questions To Ask Your Lender

1- Will you provide me some real estate agent references?

2- Does your firm underwrite their own morgtages?

3- Is your company FHA approved?

4- Explain APR to me so I can understand it.

5- How often has rates been changing in this markt?

6- Do I need a 30 year fixed, or another type of loan?

7- Why should I use you?

8- Should I put a minimum down payment?

9- Will you explain the benefits of up front Mortgage Insurance?

10- How much home do I qualify for, even if I want to start with a lower number?

They Made Me An Offer I Couldn't Refuse

My objective is to provide buyers and sellers superior results. I am one of those agents that believes that the agent creates his or her success, not the broker or company we might be licensed with. Over the years I have been licensed with the nations largest real estate company, I have been a loan officer inside one of the largest local real estate companies. I had my own small real estate company and my own very large mortgage company. I have been the real estate director for a developer.
 .
With confidence I selected a company to license with that rewarded my expertise by providing me almost all of the commission. That confidence included believing I had the tools necessary to provide the success my clients needed.

.

Then along came MediaOne Real Estate. What you can offer is especially measurable in selling, or listing, a home. I offer terrific tools and service for buyers. When it comes to marketing a home there are numerous factors that determine the success. When homes aren't shown sellers end up being pressured to lower their prices. Simple things, such as the photos that are taken can eliminate great prospects. Difficult things like driving traffic require numerous strategies.
.

I would say that I had almost enough, an approach beyond many. And then along came an invite to understand MediaOne Real Estate. They use the shortcut M O R E. They offer more. How do I say it? My old confident situation has been overshadowed by new potential situation.
.

Just to name a few: 1- Newspaper advertising. My clients homes will be advertised each week, in full color in both The Deseret News and The Salt Lake Tribune. Statistics suggest that only 7% of buyers come from a home advertisement in the newspaper. That is important if your buyer is one of the 7%. MediaOne listings are on the market fewer days, therefore less likely to suffer price reductions, than the average in the MLS. 2- My listings will be Showcase Listings on Realtor.com. This is important as Realtor.com is the nations # 1 volume home search website. The more expensive showcase listings come to the top in searches, a big big deal. 3- I had over 30 websites I was setup to forward my listings to, now I have over  50. Perhaps the right buyer is in one of the other 20. 4- I have a support team, transaction coordinators to make sure the paperwork and deadlines are all up to snuff. Any concerned agent will be detailed oriented, but additional eyes and hands are valuable. 5- Each homes I list will be photographed by a professional photographer. Add this to Kathleen's staging and design skills and we have a winning combination.
.

These are just five. I mention them as part of an offer I couldn't refuse. And why I couldn't refuse is simple, they do a better job for my clients. If it's better for them it's better for me. No wonder I couldn't refuse.
.

So don't be confused. I have a lot of marketing pieces out there. They have my old brokerage, a good company as part of the advertising. New ones are soon to go out. It's a good thing.

Recommended Mortgage Lender

Aaron works they way I want a loan officer to handle my clients loans.

He has direct access to his underwriter. He uses automated underwriting. He never has a loan fail once in process.

To me these are two steps to success. First to quickly find out through the automated underwriting what conditions will be needed to have the loan approved. However, the final decision is based on the underwriters decision. Sometimes circumstances, such as job history or a super high credit score allow the underwriter to make a decision to accept a loan, even with high ratios for example. I had one loan approved with a 60% debt ration. In asking why the underwriter accepted the file the answer was simple, "They have enough cash in the bank to pay off the mortgage".

A good loan officer like Aaron will seek a one on one interview with the underwriter to review any item of the loan that seems possibly an issue. That is how I worked. One of my favorite banks actually, in fun, created my own in and out box, as I was there almost daily watching over my files.

Aaron's company is a direct lender, funding their own loans. So in his case his underwriters office is across from his office. Pretty convenient.

Aaron offers these tips for your review:

Academy Mortgage is respected nationwide for their commitment to responsible lending practices. They are focused 100% on retail mortgage banking, which provides greater stability and predictability.

Buyers Benefits To Really Appreciate

For both buyers and sellers communication is a big deal. I provide buyers several advantages in the communication effort.

1- My mortgage experience is a big deal. I know the issues you might face and more importantly if a problem arises am able to discuss in detail how to solve those problems. I speak the lender language. This can also help in negotiations, sometimes being able to overcome seller resistance to paying for closing costs.

2- Another is to be able to communicate on this website in a general way. If I see a problem that makes an interesting article, up the article will go to be read at your convenience. I won't say it in a way to be personal, but it's there for you to digest.

3- I keep a log of all I do on software that I make available specifically to you and to my broker. Only the three of us have access to it. It's very secure. You can review all we have seen and done. It's pretty darn convenient. Any documents signed, homes seen, suggestions offered, etc. will be logged in on this site.

4- The photo below is a snip of the customized buyers plan website I provide.

5- My goal is to answer the phone when you call, if busy make it a high priority to get right back to you.

You have a ton of things to accomplish to assure a smooth closing. Forgetting or delaying one can be a crucial issue. I not only provide a pre-purchase plan but detail every step you go through, with dates when they must be accomplished. As an example, your purchase contract will very specifically date when your loan ap must be submitted, your approval of an inspection contingency, loan approval, and most important of all meeting at the escrow office for settlement. I don't want anything to fall through the cracks for you. I don't want it to be overwhelming. I want to be there with you all day every day = ha ha - and in fact can be there through this website. If you need a person to person contact, no problem, both call me and hit the Ask your agent button in the website.

Remember, if this home is for mama, if mama ain't happy, no one is happy: not the agent, the hubby, the lender, or the seller. "I want everyone happy" So with these benefits, "Don't Worry Be Happy". Larry

PS: It also helps keep me on track. My job is to make sure all involved do their job. It gives me tasks to do too. It keeps critical dates in front of me.

It makes us all more efficient.

Buyer Tip - Ask Your Loan Officer Your Max Payment

My first loan officer job was working for a major bank. I was thoroughly trained, on salary thank goodness, and then placed inside a large real estate office. I quickly learned that agents want no failures because of the loan. They were often uncomfortable with pushing a purchase into a gray area.

I have written that I consider that searching for a home us comparable to a treasure hunt. In this light I want you to find that treasure. I found that all too often buyers started with a fixed in their minds payment number.

So here lies the paradox. When heading out for a home hunt, just how high can you go?  Will you settle for something less than you can have?

Click here for the entire article on the MediaOne blog:

Garden Towers Condos: Updated

Garden Towers

141 2nd Ave

Close to Temple Square

These photos are taken from the Garden Rooftop

Update: June 21, 2014:

A sold unit is now past the inspection contingency, leaving two nice units on the market.

One of the units just dropped their asking price by $10,000 to $385,000.00. This gives me an opportunity to emphasize a couple of points I try and make that makes my practice different.

1- This is a really nice home. It is kept in showing condition. You can immediately tell a young family lives here as the children's toys and things are many. Note, I said it is kept in showing condition. However most of us wouldn't know, including me, what my designer - staging expert wife points out. This is that with so many children's items in the home it is difficult for a potential buyer to relate to it. When people look at your home they go through a mental process of deciding if it will work for their things.

I refer back to this article Kathleen wrote in the staging category where she said Clean Up….Clear Out…..Fix In…..Fix Out; click here for that category link 

Were we to counsel this family we would go through the home with them and look to see what could be taken to the storage unit. I do understand, as we have sold a few homes of our own, that having your home on the market is a major pain. The condition of this home says that this family gets it as to the importance of how the home is presented. This takes a big effort on each family members part. Yet, in this case, there are important steps yet to be taken.

2- No matter how agents present their marketing plan they all boil down to two approaches. In 99.9% of the time what I call plan A is used. Plan A is to do what happened here, if it doesn't sell in a reasonable time it must be the price that is the problem. In this case the price dropped $10,000.00, almost half the amount of the commission. Dropping the price $10,000.00 only costs an agent $300.00 to $600.00 depending on whether or not the agent becomes a dual agent by selling and listing the home.

I despise this approach. I believe it places the entire burden of the sale on the home and the decisions of the sellers on what price to ask. So what happens in another 73 days? Do you drop the price again? I saw a home go up over a year ago in our building. It started at $290,000.00. Everything that you can image was wrong with the whole for sale situation. Eventually the home sold for $240,000.00, a pretty serious 17+ % price drop. The seller wore out.

There is always a range agents can select for coming up with a price they believe in. They usually select a few comparable sales to justify what they recommend. I know agents that push for the lower price so it is more likely to sell. Whatever price is selected most you will find start pushing for a price reduction. It didn't sell, what is the other option?

I have what I call plan B. I don't broadcast it as it is different. It's a conglomeration of things I have learned over my many years in real estate. It is different. It's goal is to earn my commission by selling in the higher range. It's goal is to never ask or hint that you should drop your price.

By the way, I wont be presenting you a fancy pre-packed book. I will have facts and a plan. You will get your monies worth.

From June 4, posting:

Currently there are 3 units on the market at this time, actually two as one just went into contract subject to inspection..

The other two are listed at $645,000 and $395,000. I would classify both of these units as best buys on the current market. I would be glad to show them to you.

More detail:
$395,000: 2028 square feet, 2 bedroom. Corner unit.

$645,000: 2326 square feet, 2 bedroom.

Walkable Is Quite Possible In Downtown Salt Lake - To Temple Square and City Creek

Parts of The Avenues are on a hill.  The downtown area is basically flat. Most of these condominiums are in the flat area. Some, like Zion Summit are on a short steep climb. I would guess not an issue for the young crowed, the retired crowd would feel some pain.

Many of our neighbors live in downtown because it is walkable to Temple Square and shopping. City Creek is a recent bonus. You can catch Trax in several places that are walkable. I am publishing a list of condominiums that I call located to be walkable to these central sites. You may disagree as I have one friend that walks everywhere. For the less ambitious I use my list.

As of June 16, 2014 there are 19 condominiums for sale (walkable as described) between the price of $200,000 and $249,999.

This  a portion of a simple report I can pull from the MLS

I go into great detail in evaluating a range a home could be priced in.

Both buyers and sellers should have a thorough understanding of homes on the market.

It's about both what things sell for and what is the current market inventory.

 

Walkable Listings On The Market: June 16, 2019

19 from $250,000 to $299,999

15 from $300,000 to $349,999

15 from $350,000 to $399,999

13 from $400,000 to $449,999

  4 from $450,000 to $499,999

  2 from $500,000 to $549,999

  4 from $550,000 to $599,999

  2 from $600,000 to $649,999

  8 from $650,000 to $749,999

  1 from $750,000 to $849,999

  1 from $850,000 to $999,999

 13 over 1 million

How About A Little Truth Today?

I have a huge to do list today and wasn't going to post an article. I started my day with a short trip to the cleaners and I saw a bill board that upped my temperature a bit. Not this billboard, a loan officer billboard. It was big and bold, in a setting like this one.

The message on this particular billboard was implying that when you get a loan from him you don't pay for appraisals, credit reports, lender fees, etc.

That alone might not have set me off except for the fact that I had the radio on. On came an advertisement from a national mortgage company touting that they had the number one customer satisfaction rating from another national company, a rating and research company.

So my temperature rose again, and here you get this fun article to read.

Read the full article on the MediaOne Real Estate blog: CLick here

Homes For Sale In The Avenues

As of today, June 14 2014 there are four single family homes for sale in "The Avenues". I can add you to an automatic update if you contact me. This will provide you with price changes, new listings, listings off the market, etc.

SOLD ON APRIL 17, 2014