Author - Jonathan

We are often asked about whether borrowers should take out a 15 or 30 year mortgage. You may have noticed rates on a 15 year mortgage are amazingly low. Lower rate is better right? Well its not quite that simple. Most people actually get a 30 year mortgage. Lets review the pros and cons.
The main pros of a 15 year mortgage are the aforementioned lower rate. You are also paying less in interest over the lifetime of the loan. For example a $200,000 mortgage at 15 years with today’s current rates you’d be looking at less than $45,000 in interest. While the same loan at 30 years you’d pay over double that, over $100,000 in interest over the life of the loan. You also have the benefit of paying of the loan free and clear in half the time.
Sounds great, why don’t people do it more? Well the kicker is higher monthly payments. Most people are looking for lower payments. The above loan for 30 years would have a monthly payment around $850, while the 15 year loan would have a monthly payment of over $1300. That’s a big difference to most people.
If you’re already saving comfortably for retirement, college, have savings and little other debt then the 15 year might be the call. But most people are looking for financial flexibility and the much lower monthly payment, hence the popularity of the 30 year term. But either way rates are low and we recommend taking advantage, so fill out the free consultation on our website and we can see what program best fits your needs!

You’ve probably heard that interest rates are currently at record lows. You’ve probably also heard 2020 is a year like no other. Many people are asking about cash out refinancing or getting a home equity line of credit.
Here are is quick breakdown of the similarities and differences between the two loan types.
Both allow you to get cash out immediately and in both cases you are borrowing against the equity in your home.
The major differences is with a cash out refinance, you are replacing your first loan with a new one and the home equity loan is a second loan to your existing first mortgage and an additional payment.
Cash out refinancing generally has a lower interest rate, as it replaces the existing first loan and is seen as less exposure to lenders.
Please contact us for a free custom evaluation and we can quickly review your case to see how much cash you qualify for and see what program works best for you!

If you’re self employed getting a mortgage secured is a slightly different process than traditional mortgages. It often comes with additional requirements and red tape.
Here are some tips to help you get organized and approved if you’re self employed!

Apply For A Mortgage When Your Income is Up
We know this is easier said than done but lenders will look at your last two years income most closely, and if you’re income fluctuates its best to apply on an up year. This can help you qualify for a greater loan amount and lower interest rate.

Get That DTI Lower
Your debt-to-income ratio is one of the key factors in getting approved. So you’ll want to try to pay down debts (both business and personal) as well as avoid opening new lines of credit a few months before applying.

Don’t Mix Business and Personal
Keep your business and personal finances separate. Have separate bank and credit card accounts for your business and personal use. This will help lenders easily see the business income and expenses as well as show you are running your business in a professional manner.

Contact A Mortgage Professional
Give us a call or contact us from our pre-qual app and we can see what product best fits your needs. You may be a candidate for QM (Qualified Mortgage) or non-QM lender, either way we can review and help you get started!

If you are about to purchase a house – you are going to be excited and maybe a little nervous. Here are 5 things to do to help lower any anxiety or future surprises.
1. Look For Wet Spots
Check the ceilings for wet spots (rings or circles) and discoloration around windows. They can cause issues down the road and be hard to fix!
2. Check The Wiring
Turn on the switches, dimmers, check the doorbell, garage door, basically check it all. If things are not working right, there could be an overall wiring issue.
3. Inspect the Bathroom
Again look for water damage around toilets, showers and tubs. Also make sure everything is working properly, flush the toilets, check the showers and faucets to make sure the hot water works.
4. Test the hardware
Basically check everything from fans to the washer and dryer. Make sure it all works.
5. Run the heat and AC
You want to make sure the heat and AC are working properly – turn them on and let it run a few minutes.
Finally make a checklist for all the items to be included in the sale and have the owner signoff or initial it so there’s no confusion or disagreements at closing.

Fall is officially here (even if it doesn’t fell like it 🙂
Here are a few tips for getting ready for the changing of the seasons and colder weather.

First you’ll want to rake up your leaves as leaving them on a lawn can cause mold and damage the grass. Next clean the gutters as leaves somehow have a magnetic ability to get stuck in them (if you do it yourself make sure to practice good ladder safety!)
Check your windows and doors for leaks – this can you really help keep cold air out. If you find a leaky window, you may want to apply caulk to the frames.
If you have a fireplace and chimney and haven’t had it cleaned lately call a chimney sweep to clean it before you start your first fall fire!
If you have other fall prep tips you like, let us know as we’d love to hear them 🙂

As some high-demand markets and areas are red hot with limited inventory, we are seeing bidding wars with multiple offers on a house or property which can result in a bidding war.
Here are a few tips to win a bidding war and if you’re the seller how to pick a winner. Don’t forget to get feedback from your real estate agent as they may have important knowledge about the seller. And don’t get too frenzied where you bid yourself to a point where its going to break your budget!

Up the Ante
Of course if there are multiple bids on the property, increasing your offer is going to help. In addition you can make a larger down payment on the mortgage to make financing easier, especially if the purchase price goes above the appraised value. And the old saying cash is king is applicable here as well. Paying in cash shows you’re serious and it also can make for a faster closing.

Preapproval
You’ll want to do this anyway but definitely make sure you are preapproved as it shows you are a viable buyer. Please contact us for a pre-approval letter whether you are in a bidding war or not!

Escalate
You can also add an escalation clause where if someone matches your offer you will raise your offer above it!

Write a Letter
This may sound hokey but we have seen a lot of cases where sellers want their house to go a buyer that is going to care for and appreciate the house. Tell them why the house is special to you and you might not even be the highest bidder and still have the winning offer!

Picking a winner
If you’re lucky enough to be on the selling end of a bidding war here are some tips to pick a winner. Again cash is king. Cash offers give you a lot more certainty that there won’t be surprises during the closing. And if its not a cash offer review the buyers offer, make sure they are preapproved before starting. Also review special offers and escalation offers like an offer to waive some contingencies or beat matching offers.

Many people are finding their house has turned into a virtual office and a virtual school. Making sure your kids are properly learning through zoom and at the same time making sure you are working productively can be a juggling act! 🤹‍♀‍
Here’s a few tips to help keep the balls in the air!
Make Clear Schedules
Your kids need to know your schedule and if there are important meetings not to interrupt and you need to make sure you know your kids schedule including online class schedules. A great way to do this is with google calendars you can make one for each parent and child and share them with each other.
If the kids are younger you can make it old-fashioned and do it on a whiteboard for them to clearly see.

Make School and Work Places
You can have designated areas for work and school, maybe a desk or table that is the work table during the day. If you’re tight on space consider having in home cubicles (ok that doesn’t sound fun) but you can get an inexpensive divider screen or even just some posterboard!

Block Off Time To Work
Ideally you can set up chunks of focus time that are roughly the same time for you and your kids to have focused work and studying. You can try 45 minute or one hour blocks of focused time to get things done.

Become An Early Bird
Try getting up early, a couple of hours before your kids. This will help you get things done and be organized and have more time to help them during the day. That means turn off the tv AND especially the phone a little earlier at night (we recommend this anyways 🙂

Get Some Fresh Air
If possible schedule a daily walk with your kids. You both will need a break from being inside and in front of a screen all day, plus some fresh air and vitamin D are always good!

Have a safe and Happy Labor Day!

The federally chartered Freddie Mac is reporting that interest rates are holding near record lows below 3 percent!
They reported an average rate on 30 year fixed mortgages of 2.93 percent with 0.8 percent average in closing costs.
What does this mean for you?
Well if you are considering buying – you have basically never seen better rates.
And there’s a good chance you can refinance into a lower a rate with lower monthly payments.
Contact us today and we can review your situation and calculate how much you may be able to save!

Should you remodel your bathroom?
If you are planning on selling a home and want to know if remodeling is a good idea, generally the answer is actually no. Statistically, you will get about 70% of the price spent back in terms of purchase price. Now a remodel can help you sell faster and if you’re bathroom is very old or in bad shape, needing of repairs then it can be a good idea!

If you are moving into a new house and want to remodel your bathroom that’s a completely different story of course, but either way here are some guidelines to start with….

Budget
Set a budget first (this actually might be a good rule of thumb in most cases 🙂
Bathroom remodeling can go from low to high cost faster than you can find parking at home depot.

Type and Layout
Decide if you’re going with a traditional standard bathroom, half or wet. Then figure out the layout. We generally recommend keeping the existing layout if you want to keep costs down! If you have to replumb things costs can go up quickly. Things to keep in mind do you want a bathtub – stand alone or built in with the shower – if you’re splurging or space is at a premium a wet bathroom can be fun (but not cheap).

Lighting and Outlets
You want to make sure lighting is flattering and well placed – a light right over your countertop can cause reflections. Also make sure there’s enough light for activities like applying make-up.
And don’t forget the outlets! Imagine finishing up and then realizing you don’t have a place to plug in the hair dryer or electric toothbrush 🙁

Plan and Communicate
If you’re not DIYing this and hiring a contractor then we cannot stress communication enough. You want this planned out, written out with dates, scope and materials to be used. You might think you went over it and the contractor understood everything and then on installation day you’re not on the same page – don’t assume – that and set a budget will get you far 🙂

What about a mini-upgrade?
Sometimes just upgrading a few fixtures like lights and faucets can actually make a big difference so especially if you’re selling consider a mini upgrade instead of remodel!