Home Loans Identity Theft Protection Could Hurt Home Sales
Identity theft has been a hot topic in the news during the last few years. Just a month or so ago, forty million credit card numbers were compromised due to a computer attack on a credit card processor. Consumers are rightly concerned, as it can take years to unravel the problems created when ... more...

Home Equity Is it Time to Cash Out and Move?
During the last five years, home prices have increased nationwide. In some parts of the country, notably California, home prices have doubled or even tripled. The median price of a home in the Los Angeles area is now nearly $450,000 and in the San Francisco area, the price is approaching $600,000 ... more...

Negotiating the Real Estate Contract
Negotiation is the process of communication back and forth in order to reach a joint agreement. There is no "one size fits all" strategy of negotiating a real estate contract. Many of our clients have been very experienced negotiators, and we have learned a great deal from them, as well as from ... 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...

Home Equity Foreclosure Often Not Necessary in Current Market
While driving around your community, you may have seen signs posted on telephone poles that offer foreclosure help. These seemingly generous offers to help financially troubled homeowners who are in danger of losing their homes to foreclosure are actually scams. Typically, the help comes in the ... more...

Change in Texas Law May Make Reverse Mortgages More Popular
Texas was one of the last states to allow homeowners to take out home equity loans. Laws going back to the nineteenth century strictly prohibited home equity lending, as legislators feared that unscrupulous lenders would take advantage of homeowners for the purpose of seizing their homes through ... more...

Home Loans -- Federal Regulators Warn Lenders to Be More Careful
Federal banking regulators have recently expressed some concern over the housing market as home prices in the United States have risen to record levels. While homes are more unaffordable than ever for many people, the lending market remains strong, mostly because of the introduction of new, ... more...

Mortgage Loan Closing Costs for Refinance Loans and Home Purchase
If you are going to obtain a mortgage loan, for whatever purpose (home purchase or refinance) you are going to pay closing costs...period. Let me clarify regarding a purchase of a home...the seller may pay some or even all the closing costs in a transaction, but it essentially works out to just ... more...

Mortgage Delinquency Facts and Fiction
Kenneth Harney, a highly respected columnist for the Washington Post, expressed surprise in his column recently because home buyers in high-cost parts of the country like California, Hawaii, Boston and Washington, D.C. are not leading the nation in mortgage delinquencies.Mr. Harney stated (in near ... more...

Mortgage Questions to Ask Your Lender
Buying and financing a home today can be overwhelming. Here are some questions to ask your lender so that you can make informed decisions.Are both fixed-rate and adjustable mortgage loans available? What is the interest rate?How long can I "lock-in" the financing at the current interest rate?Is a ... more...