Know Your Credit Rating

Lori Dwyer - Mortgage Consultant -Ocotillo Mortgage

Contrary to what is being portrayed in the news, now is a great time to purchase your first home. The interest rates for 30 year fixed rate mortgages are dropping daily. The government continues to back 100% financing for qualified borrowers up to $417,000. The biggest deterrent for most people trying to qualify for these loans is their credit score. There are 3 major bureaus that report your payment history and a FICO score is generated from each bureau. Lenders use the middle score as an indicator to determine whether or not you are likely to repay the loan. You must have a 620 mid-score for most lenders to be eligible for 100% financing. I see errors on the majority of credit reports that I pull. If you have not checked your credit lately, I would recommend going to Annual Credit Report.com to receive a free report. All Arizona residents are entitled to one free report per year. I do not recommend paying the extra money to see your FICO score, as they are never the same as when your lender pulls your credit. What you will be able to see on the credit report is your open and closed accounts, payment history and current balance. Look for anything that is not yours, has been paid late or has been sent to collections. Often times, an old medical bill that should of been paid by your insurance never gets paid and is sent to collections without your knowledge. On the website, you have the ability to dispute anything you feel is not reporting correctly. If you can correct these problems now, it will save you time and money when you decide to purchase your new home!

CAN I QUALIFY FOR A HOME LOAN?

Article posted by Hunter Clark - Listing Agent - The Shannon Team

With all the talk, headlines and news about all the mortgage companies that are going out of business, there are many with real concerns as to whether or not they can or could qualify for a home loan in today's market. You probably can!

Now, I'm not a mortgage broker, however, our preferred lenders with whom we have worked and trusted for years, have informed us that there are still great programs available to the mortgage consumer. Contrary to the "word on the street", there are programs available with 100% financing, so a qualified buyer can purchase a home with NO MONEY DOWN! This is not a gimmick or an ad. These programs are backed by the Federal Government. To qualify for 100% financing you need a credit score of 620 or higher and the interest rate could be as low as 7%. There are even programs that allow interest only as well as 30, 40 and 50 year terms.

Not every loan is the "right" loan for every person, however I do believe there is a "right" loan for every person that meets their individual needs and financial goals.
I encourage you to give us a call and let's see about putting you in touch with one of our mortgage professionals. They, like us, are customer service minded, easy to talk to, excellent communicators, knowledgeable, quick to respond to your needs and concerns and simply put, "better than the average bear!" We look forward to speaking with you and helping you to achieve your real estate goals and dreams!

~Hunter

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IDENTITY THEFT

Posted by Nathan Mitchell

I just read a recent article by Patrick Ritchie (Author of The Credit Road Map), on identity theft. I’ll be honest; I’m in the dark when it comes to identity theft. It could happen to me, and it would probably take a while before I even figured out it happened! I’ll bet most people are same as me in that regard. We hear so much about it, but we don’t know much about it, and it couldn’t possibly happen to us! Did you know that identity theft affects 9 million Americans a year? Did you know on average victims spend 175 hours attempting to negate the affects of identity theft? I thought I’d give a rundown on the main points of Patrick’s article….

WHAT ARE THE METHODS THIEVES USE TO SNATCH OUR IDENTITY?

THEY LOOK THROUGH YOUR TRASH
If you put your bills, and other personal information into your garbage can, they can easily obtain it.

STEALING
Now there’s a concept! They steal your wallets and purses, bank statements, pre-approved mail, etc…

A CHANGE… (OF ADDRESS!)
They complete a change of address form, and all of your personal information (including your bank statements) goes to their mailbox.

PHISHING
Spam and pop-up messages that are an attempt to gain your personal information.

THEY’RE LIARS (AND THEY’RE PRETTY GOOD AT IT!)
They use false pretenses to get your personal information from financial institutions, etc…

HI TECH THIEVES
They steal credit card and debit card numbers using a special storage device when processing the card.

YIKES!!!

WHAT CAN WE DO TO PREVENT IDENTITY THEFT?

DON’T GIVE OUT YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION ON THE PHONE

DON’T CARRY YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY CARD WITH YOU

DEPOSIT MAIL IN SECURED POST OFFICE BOXES, OR AT THE POST OFFICE

SHRED ALL OF YOUR RECEIPTS, AND PAPERS THAT HAVE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

ONLY CARRY THE NUMBER OF IDENTIFICATION PIECES AND CREDIT CARDS THAT YOU’LL ACTUALLY NEED.

DON’T GIVE OUT YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER
MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHAT DAYS YOUR BILLS COME (IT’S NOT A FREE MONTH IF ONE DOESN’T SHOW UP!)


I hope you found this useful. For more in-depth information download a free copy of the Identity Theft Prevention and Response Manual.

Market Update

FOR YOUR INFORMATION...

• The median square footage for a single family home recorded sold in May 2007 was 1,700 square feet.
• The median square footage for a townhouse/condo was 1,090 square feet.

RECORDED DATA FROM MAY 2006, TO MAY 2007

• Single family home sales in the city of Phoenix decreased from 2,120 to 1,405 sales, while the median home price increased from $225,000 to $229,000.
• Townhouse/condo decreased from 465 to 380 sales, while the median price increased from $153,700 to $165,745.

• Single family home sales in the city of Scottsdale decreased from 535 to 420 sales, while the median price increased from $615,000 to $617,000.
• Townhouse/condo sales decreased from 305 to 295, while the median price increased from $261,500 to $273,250.

• Single family home sales in the city of Mesa declined from 790 to 610, while the median price declined from $249,950 to $238,000.
• Townhouse/condo sales decreased from 225 to 160, the median price decreased from $157,000 to $150,000.

• Single family home sales in the city of Glendale decreased from 575 to 355, and the median sales price decreased from $250,000 to $243,000.
• Townhouse/condo sales decreased from 80 to 50, the median sales price decreased from $148,500 to $146,000.

• Single family homes sales in the city of Peoria decreased from 305 to 245, and the median price declined from $284,950 to $255,000.
• Townhouse/condo sales decreased from 50 to 35, and the median price declined from $175,000 to $169,500.

• Single family home sales in the city of Gilbert decreased from 340 to 300, and the median price decreased from $327,450 to $300,000.
• Townhouse/condo sales remained at 15, and the median price increased from $205,000 to $215,000.

• Single family home sales in the city of Chandler decreased from 485 to 360, and the median price declined from $306,000 to $297,750.
• Townhouse/condo sales decreased from 45 to 40 sales, and the median price declined from $186,500 to $175,000.

• Single family home sales in Tempe decreased from 210 to 155 sales, and the median price decreased from $288,500 to $270,780.
• Townhouse/condo sales decreased from 100 to 90, and the median price decreased from $198,000 to $189,400.

Note: This data was derived from an article published in the Arizona Journal of Real Estate and Business, August 2007. This information is believed accurate, but not guaranteed.

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Is there ANY News that’s POSITIVE anymore?

Wow! I can hardly bear the thought of picking up the paper or opening up an email anymore without having to hear how horrible the Mortgage and Real Estate markets are! Every day it seems another Mortgage Company is closing its doors and trying to find a Full Time REALTOR is becoming a Full Time job. Is there anything positive for us to hear or read anymore? I’m here to tell you, THERE IS!

We’re no longer competing with fly by night competitors over promising what they cannot deliver that are here today and gone tomorrow. It seems that only the “Best of the Best” are still around and, if you ask them, business is GREAT! The truth of the matter is that this is a GREAT market! Sellers still want to sell and Buyers still want to buy. This is the type of market that gives us the ability to show you how we can work and provide real value to you. A few years back, you could put a sign up in your yard and before you could get back to the front door there’d be five offers on your property. Not in this market. Now you need Mortgage and Real Estate Professionals who can stand tall, assist and consult with financial and marketing strategies and masterfully negotiate for you and with you to achieve your goals and dreams. We at The Shannon Team, along with the amazing partners we have established through the years with Mortgage and Title companies, are alive and well! We strive to build advocates through you, our clients, through exceptional service and responsiveness so that you would tell your friends and family that they’d be “crazy” to work with anyone other than The Shannon Team. If you have friends or family that have real estate needs, give them some good news. Give them some GREAT news! The Shannon Team is here to help!

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