The Good Faith Estimate

A good faith estimate (GFE) must be provided by a mortgage lender or broker in the United States to a customer.  The estimate must include an itemized list of fees and costs associated with the loan and must be provided within three business days of applying for a loan.  These mortgage fees, closing costs and

Home Buying Checklist

Have you ever been out looking at houses to buy and found that after about the 5th or 6th house, they all start to blend together?  You can’t remember the individual features of each house…what you liked and didn’t like about each of them.  Looking at houses can be a fun but a daunting experience. 

Veterans Day: It isn’t Just a Holiday

Veterans Day 2013                                                                  Honoring Those Who Served Veterans Day gives Americans the opportunity to celebrate the bravery and sacrifice of all U.S. veterans.

So…What happend to Mortgage Rates??

As we have learned…The Fed, The Economy and Wall Street are very similar to the weather here in New England, just wait 5 minutes and it will be different. In this case it was a True Nor’ Eastah!! The Fed, which can be a love hate relationship, has a strategy that has been open-ended, it

You do know the Valentine’s Day Legend??

The Legend of St. Valentine The history of Valentine’s Day–and the story of its patron saint–is shrouded in mystery. We do know that February has long been celebrated as a month of romance, and that St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. But who was

Another Reason to Own A Home

In case you need another reason to purchase a home for you and your family; Here is an article I just read in the National Mortgage Professional Magazine, “Study Concludes Homeownership Tied to Positive Outcomes for Children“.  According to a new study by professors Richard K. Green and Gary D. Painter at the University of

6 Things to Know About Credit Scores

By Jessica L. Anderson | Kiplinger – Thu, Jul 12, 2012 FICO isn’t the only number in town. The score that counts is the one your lender uses. 1. There is no single number. The compilers of the widely accepted FICO credit score allow lenders to customize their system, so different lenders produce different scores. Plus, each

What is a Business Cycle?

The “Books” say an average business cycle is 44.4 months and we have lived through many of them. Some longer than that and some as short as a season in New England.  A business cycle is like the exhibit from our youth…“What makes an ocean wave, wave” at the New England Aquarium.  In the exhibit,

How Do We Get the Message Out that Mortgages Are NOT Car Loans?

Here is an interesting article written by Brian Koss of Mortgage Network, Inc. Find out what’s really going on with the industry. There was a time in the late 90’s when all the focus was on getting the manufacturing of mortgages to mirror the manufacturing of car loans. The idea was that technology was the

Do I Really Need Title Insurance?

Title insurance is one of the important and least understood aspects of a real estate transaction. There are two types of title insurance; lenders’ coverage and owners’ coverage. Title insurance protects the lender and the owner against all types of title defects and also covers issues such as zoning, access, and protects the lender and