Most will associate the term "Be Prepared" with the Boy Scouts, and it is a term that I am very familiar with since both my sons are Eagle Scouts.  But these days this term has taken on a new meaning for me with all of the changes and challenges that we are facing in the Real Estate Industry.  These days we in the Real Estate Industry need to adopt this term for ourselves as well.  In some regards we have always had to "Be Prepared" in Real Estate, because of the possibility of last minute things popping up, but lately the need to "Be Prepared" has increased significantly. With the constant changes in loan program guidelines, appraisal issues, and PMI requirements we have to not only be ready to act immediately, but to also anticipate any and everything that could developer during a tra... 05/27/2009

Yesterday I commented on a blog that Donna Bigda wrote on Condominiums, and she suggested that I add a couple of links for Buyers to have as a resource. The comment that I made was that most Condo Loans that I do are for First Time Homebuyer, and that FHA and Connecticut Housing Finance Authority (CHFA) are the two main loan programs that I use for them, because most First Time Homebuyers do not have much money to put down on a house or condo.  I also suggested that if a Realtor is working with a Buyer that will be using one of these two loan programs, that they need to make sure that the Condo Complex is on the Approved Condo List for FHA and/or CHFA.  This is very important step in purchasing a Condo with either of these two loan programs, because if the Condo Complex is not on their ... 05/26/2009

Most of us who have been in this business for a while, and plan on being around for a lot longer, pride ourselves in providing our Clients with great service.  Up until a couple of years ago I thought that providing great service was good, that is until I read a little book by Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles "Raving Fans". As I was reading this book it became very clear to me that just providing great service is not good enough.  That if I wanted to set myself apart from everyone else that also provides great service, that I had to create "Raving Fans" Creating "Raving Fans" is not easy, but if you do people will seek you out because of it.  Creating "Raving Fans" is not about price or rate, in fact if you create "Raving Fans" price and rate become a very minor consideration, it it is ... 05/25/2009

  ****************************************************************************************************************** Info about the author: George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com 05/23/2009

I don't know about everyone else but for the last two months I have been busier than I have been for a long time.  In fact the month of April was one of the best months that I have ever had.  I have been so busy that it has been hard to keep up with all of the Pre-Approvals, and Loans that I have doing, and I have had very little time to do other things that I know I need to do. When times are busy like this it is is easy to begin to take for granted that it will continue, and get comfortable with just waiting for the phone to ring.  But in reality it is when times are busy like this that we should be most concerned, and do what we need to do to keep the phone ringing, and not take for granted that it will continue to ring by its self. This leads me to the title of my Post "Who Moved My... 05/23/2009

  ****************************************************************************************************************** Info about the author: George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com 05/22/2009

  ****************************************************************************************************************** Info about the author: George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com 05/20/2009

  ****************************************************************************************************************** Info about the author: George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com 05/17/2009

The term "Seasoning Money" or Seasoned Money" is a very common term in the Mortgage Industry.  A simple definition for what is "Seasoned Money" is that it is a reference to the length of time that has past since funds were deposited in or withdrawn from a Bank Account.. Why is "Seasoned Money" important in the Mortgage Industry?  It is important because if a Borrower is applying for a mortgage, the Lender is going to require that they produce bank statements for a certain period of time.  These days any deposit or withdrawal of funds of $1000 or more, that are not a normal monthly deposit or withdrawal will need to be explained. This is not a problem if the Borrower can document where the funds came from.  For example they sold a car and can produce a sales slip and copy of the check, o... 05/15/2009

If you have not heard by now, the announcement by Shawn Donovan, Secretary of HUD, made on Tuesday 12, about a change to the $8,000 Tax Credit is at least for now no longer valid. In his speech on May 12, at the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Summit, Secretary Donovan made the following statement about the Tax Credit: “We all want to enable FHA consumers to access the tax credit funds when they close on their home loans so that the cash can be used as a downpayment. So FHA will permit trusted FHA-approved lenders and HUD-approved nonprofits, as well as state and local governmental entities to "monetize" the tax credit through short-term bridge loans. We think the policy is a real win for everyone, ensuring that borrowers can tap into the numerous organizations that are already ... 05/14/2009

  ****************************************************************************************************************** Info about the author: George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com 05/13/2009

I have been trying to blog about many of the changes going on in the Lending Industry, so that we can all stay on top of changes that are happening in the laws, as well as changes that investors, and PMI companies are implementing on their own.  These changes are critical to all of us because they are key to our survival these days. Not to long ago investors were focused on increasing the volume of loans they had on the books, but today this philosophy has been replaced with loan quality.  Loan quality has become so much of a focus that investors are increasing their requests (demands) for Lenders to buy back their loans.  This is happening because of loan compliance failures that are what could be an all-time high.  Investors are also beginning to direct more of their attention towards... 05/12/2009

I keep hearing about Buyers getting last minute surprises before their loan closes, and this is something that should not happen if everyone does their job during the loan process.  The reason why there are surprises are because the necessary steps were not taken, someone tried to take a shortcut along the way, and those involved in the transaction did not pay attention to conditions that needed to be met in order for the loan to close. It all starts with a Buyer being Pre-Approved for a loan correctly.  You can read a blog that I wrote recently "It Is A Great Time To Buy ........... Get Pre-Approved Today!!!!", where I identify the necessary steps that must be taken from the very beginning.  If a Buyer is Pre-Approved correctly it will eliminate most of the surprises along the way, and... 05/11/2009

  ****************************************************************************************************************** Info about the author: George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com 05/10/2009

The effects of slow sales in the last two quarters of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009 are beginning to be felt more and more on recent sales. Despite all of the recent changes by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and PMI Companies, the biggest obstacle that I am having with getting loans approved recently is appraisals. Because of the slow sales in the last two quarters of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, Appraisers are having a difficult time in finding Comp's to support recent sales.  I wrote a blog at the end of last month "Slow Sales Causing Appraisal Problems", in which I shared this problem on a property that I was doing a refinance loan on.  But this issue is becoming an even bigger problem with recent properties under contract, especially if the property happens to be unusual in an... 05/09/2009

Brent Bell, CRS | RE/MAX Premier, Realtors | 860-614-8927 111 DeKoven Drive, Middletown, CT Visit # 206 Saturday, May 9 from 1:00 until 3:00 OPEN HOUSE 2BR/2BA Condo offered at $155,000 Year Built 1989 Sq Footage 1,041 Bedrooms 2 Bathrooms 2 full, 0 partial Floors 1 Parking Unspecified Lot Size Unspecified HOA/Maint $373 per month DESCRIPTION Updated kitchen & bathrooms plus fresh paint make this move-in ready! Visit the Open House on Saturday! Great southern views from the unit. Enjoy a convenient location--walk to the Connecticut River at Harbor Park, restaurants, shopping and Middlesex Hospital. see additional photos below PROPERTY FEATURES Central A/C Central heat Walk-in closet Living room Office/Den Dining room Dishwasher Refrigerator Stove/Oven Washer Dryer COMMUNITY FEATURES Gu... 05/08/2009

This is a great time to purchase a house, the prices and interest rates low and Sellers are motivated to sell.  So Buyers whether they are First Time Homebuyers or have bought several homes in the past, need to get Pre-Approved for a loan first to determine what price range they are qualified to purchase in.  A Realtor will most likely not take a Buyer to see a house unless they know that the Buyer is qualified to purchase a house in that price range.  So it is important to get Pre-Approved as early as possible so that neither the Buyer or the Realtor are wasting their time looking at houses that the Buyer can not qualify for a mortgage on. It is not only important that a Buyer get Pre-Approved before they start to look at houses, but it is equally important that they contact a Loan Off... 05/06/2009

We are right now in what is called a Refinance Market, because of the low interest rates.  If you took out a mortgage more than a year ago, the odds are that your interest rate is now about 1% lower than when you took it out.  A 1% percent difference in the interest rate is in my opinion when a Borrower should begin to inquire about refinancing if you are just looking to lower your monthly payments, but there are other things that you need to consider besides just the lower interest payment. For example if they are refinancing because they need to take equity out of their property for improvements to the house, consolidate bills, or even for their kids college tuition, the decision of whether or not to refinance has fewer things to consider.  The reason why I say that is that they have ... 05/05/2009

Back in January 2007 I did a series of blogs on First Time Homebuyer Seminars that were very well received, so I thought that it would be useful to make those who were not around back then aware of these blogs.  In these blogs I covered everything from advertising them to what material to cover during the seminar. Below are outlines of each of the blogs and links for each of them. First Time Homebuyer Seminars…..Part #1. This first blog was an initial introduction into the series. First Time Homebuyer Seminars…..Part #2 Do they really want to own their own home. The advantages of owning a home. A place of their own Stable housing costs Increase in value Tax benefit (under this I also talk about the $8,000 tax credit that is available now) Can they afford to purchase a home (in other wor... 05/04/2009

  ****************************************************************************************************************** Info about the author: George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com 05/03/2009