How Much Does That Loan Cost? July 19th, 2007
Back in the early 90s when I first started in real estate someone thought it would be a great idea to train real estate agents as mortgage loan brokers as well. The thought was to have a one stop office. Lets just have them find a house and get their loan from the same person.
I was brand new in real estate and the obvious conflict of interest didn’t even occur to me so I signed up. I took the training and learned a lot about how mortgage brokers work and how they make money. It was the making money part that made me decide to step back out of it.
But I did help two friends refinance their home. They got unbeatable loans because I personally and purposefully didn’t make a dime on the deals. I did not charge them any loan fees and priced their loan at par, which was the lowest interest rate quoted to me by the company. Basically, they got the wholesale rate.
I learned that mortgage brokers have a lot of control over how much money they make on each loan. They can charge fees to the borrower that are shown on the good faith estimate and on the settlement statement AND they can make money on the “back side” of the loan that is not disclosed anywhere.
It is very possible that a mortgage broker could charge no up front fees at all on the loan and still make more money that another lender who charged a 1% loan origination fee. According to Karen George in Arizona it is possible to make as much as 5% on a conventional loan. In fact even more can be charged for a sub-prime loan. Most of the local lenders don’t make anything close to this amount, but they should still tell you how much they are charging.
Why is it important to know how much your lender is making? Because YOU are paying the bill. The money that is going into the lender’s pocket is coming out of yours even if you don’t know it. I think people should be paid for the work they do, and they should be paid fairly. But I think it’s fair that we know how much we are paying for a service.
Most but not all of the local lenders I talked with were very defensive when I asked them how much they made on their loans. Apparently most of the local mortgage officers, (as opposed to mortgage brokers), don’t have much control over how much they are paid. But they still didn’t like talking about it.
There were three people that did seem open about discussing this with their clients. These were Tara Murdoch-Barnes and Jo Oxentenko of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage,(376–2308), and Kirsten Forbess of Alaska USA Mortgage, (352–8306).
If you have read this far, it means you are interested in this subject. If so, check these two websites out that were recommended by a local loan officer friend:
Some may say ‘what’s good for the goose is good for the gander”, how much are real estate licensees paid? I’ve discussed that before in commissions. But there are some things most people don’t know about how Realtors are paid and that is a subject for tomorrow’s blog post.
Market Statistics for Wasilla, Palmer and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough July 16th, 2007
Here is the Monday Morning Market Memo…coming to you on a Monday evening. We went camping this weekend and just got back around noon today. I’m lucky to even get this out while it’s still Monday.
The big news this week is…the Total Active Inventory went DOWN !. By a total of one house. We listed more than we pended but quite a few houses came off the market this week by cancellations, and expireds as well.
| Average Price | DOM | ||
| New | 59 | $266,499 | |
| Total Active | 854 | $304,731 | 102 |
| Pending | 48 | $252,507 | 97 |
| Closed | 27 | $230,032 | 89 |
Otherwise, everything is still remaining pretty steady. The total pendings is up a little but not much. The market is still moving with buyers obviously having the upper hand.
Looking at our personal inventory of listings, we had 4 houses pend last week. They all pended at close to their asking price. We are now doing inspections, and appraisals on these houses. So we are plenty busy.
I’ve been getting a lot of inquiries about our new consulting options. I had a call this week with someone exclaiming about how high another Realtor’s commission was. We charge high commission too, if that is what you choose to pay. With us, it’s your choice, you can choose the level of service that you need and want to pay for. Just give me a call if you would like some options in real estate.
My number is 232–7900 or email me.
Do You Want Someone To Sell You? or Consult With You? July 13th, 2007
For years I have tried to think of ways to give people more options on how to accomplish their real estate goals. I have experimented with different approaches over this time but only recently discovered ACRE.
ACRE, (Accredited Consultant in Real Estate), is a new organization of Realtors whose goal is to provide a more transparent relationship between the consumer and Realtor. Take a look at the Consulting Times so that you can understand more about this new real estate model.
It was started by a group of Realtors that included Mollie Wasserman who wrote the book, Ripping the Roof Off Real Estate.
It seemed to fit the way I want to work and so I signed up and now am the only Accredited Consultant in Real Estate in Alaska.
My brother Jay and I have been discussing our fee schedules and now can give options to our clients. There are many different scenarios where you might need a real estate consultant rather than a full blown commissioned Realtor.
For example, perhaps you want to market your home yourself but just need some coaching along the way?we can help.
Or maybe you and a co-worker have already agreed on the basic terms of a sale but would like some guidance to put together a good contract?we can help.
Perhaps you are interested in a home that is for sale buy owner and would like some assurance that the asking price is reasonable?we can help.
If you want your house on the MLS and help in negotiation and management of a transaction, but can handle the rest yourself?we can help.
In fact, we can provide a full blown marketing package with price research, MLS, representation, and transaction management on a consulting basis that will still cost much less than a normal commission structure.
Jay and I have over over 26 years of combined real estate experience in the Matanuska Valley. We know how it works and do this full time.
You will NOT hear any canned sales lines from us. We don?t spend our time practicing sales scripts and role playing them on each other so that we can manipulate you into doing what we want you to do. We do not pressure or manipulate you to do anything.
We feel that our role is to LISTEN to you, and then to try to help you meet the need that you have.
In other words?we ?CONSULT WITH YOU, NOT SELL YOU?.
Give us a call at 907 373?0999 or drop us an email in you are interested in hearing more.
Mat-Su Businesses July 12th, 2007
I thought I?d begin a new category about good businesses in the Matanuska Valley. I plan to only mention businesses that I use and like. This list will grow over time as I think of people I miss and add them. I also plan to post a special page about them as I have time.
Allstate Insurance, We have used Cindy Heal?s Office, ( 746?0505), and Stan Tebow?s Office, (746?6970). They are both located on the Palmer-Wasilla Highway
Joe Meyer, Finish Carpenter, Remodeler. When I can get him, I hire him for fix up work in houses.
Neil?s Lock and Safe, 373?0961 Locksmith services and Neil also sells gun safes.
Rock Ridge Services, 357?1556, Full service landscaping. They can handle it all. I believe they also do snow removal in the winter.
Schuetter Trucking and Excavating. 746?4133. If I need any digging done, or topsoil hauled, I call Schuetter Trucking.
Diversified Tire, 376?2700. I have been bringing my car to Dave and Judy Snyder since they started with a one man one woman shop. They do all kinds of tire work and also mechanic work.
Lazy Mountain Enterprises. 745?3068. I take my cars to him for repairs. He is honest and fair.
Mr Lube. 373-4645. I get my oil changes and sometimes some minor repair done here.
Slacks Sugar Shack, Great Bakery in Palmer. Nedra Slack makes the bread I deliver every Thanksgiving.
That doesn?t mean there aren?t other good businesses in the valley, it just means that I have used these businesses and like them. If I?ve used your business and didn?t include you drop me an email.
Wasilla Real Estate News Monday Morning Market Memo 7/9/2007 July 9th, 2007
Here are the statistics for the Matanuska-Susitna Borough for this week. This includes only single family homes. It does not include condos, mobile homes, multi-family homes or land.
| Average Price | DOM | ||
| New | 40 | $247,770 | |
| Total Active | 855 | $306,416 | 102 |
| Pending | 28 | $244,918 | 71 |
| Closed | 23 | $243,935 | 86 |
The inventory grew by only 3 additional listings compared to last week’s Market Memo. That would be encouraging if we didn’t also see a fall off in pending and closed sales.
Our personal business has been booming with about as many pendings and closing as we can handle. I believe we are closing four this week, two last week and four the week before. Those are not all single family sales, but most of them are.
The market has been generally steady all summer with about the same amount of closings and pendings as we go along. Pendings and closings are on the low side this week, but they are not below average.
This house was shown 5 times in one day on July 5th. It has been shown about once a day on average since it was listed. It received two offers last week and is now pending. That is a good illustration of how a well-built house, presented well by the sellers, will attract buyers in this market.
The market is holding steady and houses priced right, and presented right, will sell.
Give me a call if you would like to hear more. 907 232–7900 is my cell.
Marty Van Diest, Tele 907.232.7900 / marty[at]valleymarket[dot]com
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