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A lesson in the dangers of distressed property purchases… December 20, 2007

A friend of mine contacted me the other day about a property investment opportunity that her brother-in-law (BIL) was placing in front of her and her husband. The property in question is located in the city and state where the BIL lives - and it’s far from the Seattle area at roughly halfway across [...]

Major Proposed Changes for Residential Closings in 2008 December 12, 2007

Alternative sexier titles to this post are: “Your Escrow Officer is a NARC” or “No More Quicky Closings” or how about “The Escrow Hills have Eyes”. There are some major changes brewing with how escrow will be practicing their business in 2008. Escrow companies may become “undercover” fraud agents for the [...]

Are you really preapproved or just prequalifed for a mortgage? Part 1 October 6, 2007

There’s quite a difference between being prequalifed for a mortgage and preapproved.   The letters that Loan Originators provide when requested for a prequal or preapproval may appear very similar.  In fact, I’ve talked to borrowers on the phone who thought they were actually preapproved, when all they really had was a Good Faith Estimate from [...]

No, Chicken Little, the sky isn’t falling… August 18, 2007

A friend of mine that works in a small town bank in Kansas called me in a panic the other day because the officers at the bank were freaking out during a meeting saying that Countrywide was going bankrupt. For them there is concern because Countrywide buys all of their residential loans. Apparently [...]

Confessions of a Zero-Down Lender February 11, 2007

This is a two part (well so far I’m planning a second post…their could be more) series of a couple of clients (names changed to protect identities, of course!) who have purchased homes utilizing 100% financing.   Both parties utilized similar programs but they wound up in entirely different situations.  
Mr. and Mrs. Spender eagerly wanted to [...]

Agent FIRED! - Lender Fraud January 16, 2007

Has Lender Fraud become the standard?
Very sad, but very true story. I received an email from a Rain City Guide reader yesterday. The reader happens to be a local agent who was fired, because of her efforts to both accommodate her Buyer Client, without committing Lender Fraud.
The buyer fired her for not wholeheartedly [...]

Beginning the Home Buying Process - Part 1 September 8, 2006

My friend “Matt” is a first time buyer beginning his home search/buying process. That is not his picture, or his real name, of course. By giving him anonimity, I can take him through the steps here on RCG, so that others can follow along with us. Think of it like a board game. The “Matt” [...]

No Credits “For Repairs” Allowed August 29, 2006

This excerpt from a recent comment to an old article of mine, deserves more than “comment back” attention.
“we said we would take $5,000 for…repairs…The addendum was signed by both seller and buyer….Our lender wanted us to take the word repairs out of the contact, but we wouldn’t do it, so our loan fell through…’
Lenders do [...]

How to Value a House August 23, 2006

While “market value” and “appraised value” are not always one in the same, calculating a home’s value is both a science and an art, whether the value is being ascertained by an appraiser or a real estate professional.
The purpose of the valuation can actually have some bearing on the value itself. If you have [...]