With a recent announcement from MGIC, a leader in the mortgage insurance industry, it could very well be possible in the coming months that you can get a conventional loan on a 3- or 4-unit property with only 5% down if the property is your primary residence.  Yes, you read that correctly!   Right now, there's an option to get into a 3- or 4-unit property as your primary residence with a 3.5% down payment, but that's an FHA loan, and the mortgage insurance will never go away as long as you have that loan.  If you want to avoid an FHA loan, you're required to put down 25% - and when you put that much money down, mortgage insurance isn't required.   MGIC has floated out the possibility that they're willing to insure a 3- or 4-unit property (with it being your primary residence) if you put as little as 5% down.  Now, just because they've signaled their willingness to do this doesn't mean that a bank will do it - but if someone like MGIC is willing ...

We use and hear the term "don't put the cart before the horse" quite often whenever someone is doing something out of order.  In the real estate world, there's a similar saying that REALLY needs to catch on and be found on the lips of everyone and their dog (you know, for those who have talking dogs): "don't go looking at houses or call a realtor until you've been prequalified by a lender."  (Granted, it's not quite as catchy as the cart-and-horse bit, but give it time.) Let me break it down into a very simple analogy: you, as a 12 year-old child, want to go to the store to buy a candy bar.  You know that your parents won't let you go to the store unless your friend goes with you.  You tell your friend that you'll give her part of your candy bar if she goes with you - she's in!  The two of you make the trek to the store on her bike; you're sitting behind her on the seat.  At the store, you walk in, pick up the candy bar,...

There's an old song by The Clash called "Should I Stay or Should I Go?" that has a very fitting line for so many in the potential homebuyers pool, and it goes like this: "This indecision's bugging me."  I'm not talking about indecision that results when you're faced with having to choose between going to Olive Garden for the endless-salad-and-breadsticks combo or Red Robin for the bottomless basket of French Fries.  Nor am I talking about an indecision that occurs because you're forced to choose between a mid-century modern or a rambling ranch home.   The indecision that so many potential homebuyers are experiencing is the result of just not knowing the down-and-dirty facts - and while they are hemming and hawing, they continue to rent and home prices continue to increase.  Let me give you an example: On a house that costs $200,000, do you know the difference between the monthly payment if you put 3% down versus 10% down on a 30-year m...

The good folks at BMO Harris Bank recently commissioned a company called Pollara to conduct a study of projected home-buying habits for potential buyers.  Here are just a few of their findings - interesting stuff! Among likely first-time buyers, 80% plan to get pre-approved before making an offer and 10% are already pre-approved  Approximately four out of five will set a budget BEFORE looking for a home More than a majority (65%) of those looking to buy a new home will consult a real estate agent, while 61% said they will visit online real estate websites and 38% will seek recommendations from friends and family Among those surveyed, they are willing to pay an average of $277,000 for a home Over half (54%) of Americans say they are likely to buy a home in the next five years If the numbers above reflect ACTUAL behaviors, today's home buyers ARE far better prepared as they'll be getting pre-approved in record numbers and setting a budget BEFORE they even start loo...

W hy are social media like Facebook and Instagram so darn popular among real estate and mortgage folks?   Hint: the top reason might be an endless supply of memes, cat videos, and the chance to be snarky, but the other reason runs a VERY CLOSE second.   Give up?   Answer:   They’re free – and they really help even the playing field by enabling a one-person shop look and market like an organization who employs an army of wordsmiths and graphic artists. This new century is glorious, right?   With that in mind, let me re-introduce you to a centuries-old concept that is equally glorious – and can help IMPROVE the playing field for you, regardless of the size of your team: karma.   On the subject of “free”, I’m not suggesting that you work for free, but when you freely give of yourself and your knowledge, you’ll see a greater payoff, I promise! Recently, an agent came to us with a question: she has a client who is looking to sell his condo.   It...

Any mortgage company that . . . exists won't lend on a house with a kitchen that looks like this, right?  And that's the reason investors who have the cash (or have a connection to someone who does have the deep pockets) are able to come in and snatch up these properties - quite often in good neighborhoods - for REALLY low prices.  Until the new kitchen is installed and the house goes up for sale because it's now "lendable" in the eyes of the mortgage industry, many investors who have limited funds have to wait to recoup their cash to move on to the next project, all the while they're watching other great opportunities being gobbled up by someone else - UNTIL NOW! If you're a fix-n-flipper, there's a way to get your cash back IMMEDIATELY once the rehab is completed and BEFORE you sell it.  If you're a buy-n-holder, there's a way to get your cash back AND THEN SOME.  Let me show you: FIX-N-FLIP You buy the house for $85K in cash a...

Each week I try to write something that will either make you think about a rather humdrum mortgage/real estate topic in a new way or at least clear the cerebral cobwebs.   Admittedly, some weeks I’m better at accomplishing that than others – my apologies for those “off” weeks.   As I’ve been trying to come up with a topic for this week’s missive, it’s not so much that I’ve been hitting a brick wall that’s been keeping me from inspiration, it’s that I’ve felt sort of “dragged down” by so many things that have been happening here in our own backyard over the past few weeks that have been . . . less than inspiring.   It seems that wherever you turn – TV, radio, Facebook, Instagram , newspapers (they still exist) – one party isn’t happy unless the opposing party is proven wrong and/or devastated.   I’m not advocating the philosophy that “everyone’s a winner and should get a trophy just for showing up” – I’m an advocate of just the opposite when it comes to c...

I recently came across a survey conducted by a company called CentSai that involved 2,050 Americans aged 18-34.   The major upshot: Millennials are far more traditional about home buying than previously believed.   Let’s take a look at some of the stats from the survey:      • 91% will use an online site or mobile app to research neighborhoods, homes, and prices (nothing earth shattering about that, but I thought it would be nice to start off “soft”)      • 75% said they will use a LOCAL real estate agent instead of an online agent (interested yet?)      • 71% said they will use a LOCAL lender (does that mean they’d rather have face-to-face interaction over a matter that will most likely be the biggest financial decision in their lives up to this point?)       • 56% plan to purchase a home in the next two years While you attempt to stop your head from spinning off your shoulders, let me add so...