Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Reverse Mortgages for Coops

Bank of New York Mortgage (owned by Everbank now since Chase and BNY did an asset swap) has introduced a jumbo reverse mortgage product for coops. They are one of 2 lenders offering this niche product. The other is Indymac's Financial Freedom (though I couldn't find any information about that on their site).

Tomorrow I attend a workshop about reverse mortgages on coops, so I will know more about them and how they work.

One thing that comes to my mind with these mortgages is: Is there really that much liquidity in the market that institutional investors are willing to just sit on a loan for x number of years without collecting any payments until the loan is due? That's incredible to me.

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Pay mortgage payments with your credit card

American Express announced that you can now pay your mortgage payments with your American Express card. They've teamed up with RBC Mortgage (owned by Royal Bank of Canada) and American Home Mortgage to have your mortgage charged directly to your credit card, once they've originated it.

I'm sure this is just one of many partnerships to pay your mortgage this way. I think Citibank also does the same thing with its credit cards too.

Go get those miles and take a trip, or wallow in more debt at a higher interest rate, the choice is yours Ms. American Consumer.

Thursday, May 17, 2007

What 2007 is shaping up to be

The Cooperator has some ideas on what 2007 will bring. Only one surprise- housing prices will rise nationally while NYC housing prices decline. Seems that everyone here in New York City is expecting the good times to keep on roaring ahead, so this prediction by Davis Stiff, Fiserv’s chief economist, will come as a shock, and probably piss some people off.

For more on this check it out here.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Deal Killing Mortgage Broker

Helping a friend sell an apartment (I'm a licensed RE Broker as well as a Loan Officer) in the Riverdale section of The Bronx has been interesting.

By interesting, I have an opportunity to hear what my competition is telling their clients. Today was interesting. I had an appointment with a prospective buyer to show her the apartment in the listing below. She called today and canceled. The Washington Mutual loan officer with whom she is working told her that a 20% down payment was too much.

Perhaps the prospect doesn't have the money. That would be understandable, one needs about $66,000 to buy this apartment ($44,000 down payment and $22,000 in post-closing reserves). That's a lot of money.

But if the loan officer actually did tell her that putting 20% down on a property is foolish, then the mortgage industry has not learned from their mistakes. Since when is it a problem to actually have some equity in your home?

Sunday, May 13, 2007

1 BR Riverdale Coop for Sale

Check out the walk-through here.

Check out the listing here.

And of course, for financing on this purchase, click here.

Sun-filled Riverdale 1 Bedroom
Main Photo
Location: Riverdale
This delightful coop on the river side of Henry Hudson Parkway is on a high floor, offering gorgeous Riverdale views and lots of light from windows to the north and south. The Windsor offers a full time doorman, gym, parking, in-building laundry, outdoor swimming pool, storage, bike room and express bus service to the subway and the Metro North. The apartment offers many windows, a dining area, great closet space, windowed kitchen, a balcony facing south for all day sunlight in a quiet well maintained building. Southern & Northern Exposure for All Day Light
Balcony with Sweeping City Views Lots of Closet Space 24 Hour Doorman
Outdoor Swimming Pool In-Building Parking Available (no waiting list) Windowed Kitchen Dishwasher
Photo Gallery
Information
Contact Information
Logo
Jeffrey Loyd
212-582-9050
Pricing
Asking Price: $220,000.00
Flexibility: Negotiable
Additional Pricing Information: 80% Financing$658 Maintenance (42% Deductible)
Homeowner Dues: $658
Property Location
4705 Henry Hudson Parkway
Bronx, NY 10471

Features
Bedrooms: 1
Bathrooms: 1
Parking: In-Building
Year Built: 1960s
Located on Floor #: 9
Floors in Bldg: 14
Square Footage: 700 approx
Agent Name: Jeffrey Loyd
Broker: Hydra Property Group
MLS #: 4705 Henry Hudson Parkway 9F
Attributes
Appliances
Range/Oven
Full Refrigerator
Dishwasher
Microwave
Building Amenities
Exercise Room
Powered by vFlyer.com
Equal Housing Opportunity
VFLYER ID: 866308

Friday, May 11, 2007

100 Applications for the Freelancer

I looked through this list from Codswallop and found many useful applications that are web-based. I'd like to move to a completely web-based application environment, or at least not have to pay for software anymore.

Check it out here.

Thursday, May 03, 2007

Fiduciary Duty for Mortgage Brokers

If Mortgage Brokers want to rise above the fray and become professionals along side Doctors, Lawyers, Accountants and other professions, then the bar to entry must be raised. Additionally Mortgage Brokers must embrace fiduciary responsibilities to their clients.

I like the following paragraph from an article from the Ethical Lending Foundation to more clearly define fiduciary responsibility:

The industry of mortgage lending is at a historical crossroads. It can either become a professional group with fiduciary standards or it can remain a retail establishment in which most of the burden of information is with consumers. Yet, they can no longer have it both ways. Yet, let us be clear that mortgage loan originators working at all types of lending institutions can owe fiduciary duties without representing to consumers that they are finding them the “best loan” or getting them the “best result.” A fiduciary standard simply would not put this burden on loan originators. By way of analogy let’s clarify. Medical doctors, lawyers, and Realtors do not have to promise that they will get their clients/patients the best surgical results, the best legal results, or the best deal on the house in order to discharge their clear fiduciary duties. Instead, they are promising to do the best job they can; to fully inform their clients of all relevant information and risks; and to carefully make sure that their clients have been provided with the necessary tools and understanding to make a fully-informed decision. Mortgage brokers, bankers, lenders, and consumer finance companies could easily adopt a fiduciary standard for their loan originators if they chose to, and it would be both practicable and fair.

It only makes sense to lead the way, and let the Mortgage Bankers and Lenders languish in the netherworld of non-disclosure similar to their hiding their fees and compensation.