Here you can find information in text, pictures and video about the communities that GreatWest GMAC offices service. GreatWest services the following cities and greater surrounding areas: Placerville, Roseville, Yuba City, Elk Grove, Sacramento, Pollock Pines, Cameron Park, El Dorado Hills, Folsom, Rancho Cordova, West Sacramento, Natomas, Antelope, Rocklin, Lincoln, Granite Bay, Stockton, Galt, Lodi, Modesto, Merced etc...
Monday, July 26, 2010
Credit and Loans
In today’s economy and real estate market, the most important asset in securing a loan is good credit.But should it be?Does having good credit mean that you will make your payments on time and does having bad credit mean you won’t?Although one’s credit is definitely a good way of showing a person’s past actions, it may not be the best way of showing their future.I believe there needs to be less emphasis on credit ratings when it comes to loans.There are many items which can affect credit, and sometimes, they cannot be controlled.For instance, say you went to a medical institution for physical therapy. You paid your bill on time, every time.But, they say you owe them for a visit.They can attack your credit and you have no choice but to enter a dispute.This has a great negative effect on your credit rating.Furthermore, proving that you do not owe them any money can be extremely difficult.Now it might only be $200, but that can be the difference between a 10% and 7% loan rate.
Also, say you defaulted on a credit card 5 years and entered a rate reduction plan and have been paying your bill every month on time for the past 5 years.This still has an extremely detrimental effect on your rating.Personally, I think loan qualification should be based on more recent than past history and also, more on your income debt ratio.If you have $50,000 in the bank and you want a $20,000 loan, it shouldn’t matter what you did 5 years ago, as long as within the last 2 to 3 years you have been doing all the right things.I just think, as a society, we put too much emphasis on arbitrary numbers that are based on actions, which so nothing about how you carry yourself and your finances now.
I believe most of you know about the new Fannie Mae regulations for borrowers who purposely default on their mortgages.If you do not, one is quite simple.If you “strategically default” on your mortgage, you will have a seven year ban on new Fannie Mae loans.They are using this as a means of detouring borrowers who can afford to make their payments, but choose not to.This is becoming popular amongst borrowers who owe more on their home than it is worth.On top of the seven year ban, according to an article on seerpress.com, Fannie Mae might start attempting to recover some of their losses through the court system.
I don’t know how most of you feel about this topic, but I agree with Fannie Mae.I know these are hard times and it must be very difficult to be “upside-down” in your mortgage, but I don’t think that give one the right to walk away.We are all facing the same difficult times and why should we, as taxpayers, homeowners, and citizens, have to pay for one’s strategic default.When someone defaults, it is a cost to all of us.The value of the nearby houses goes down, which is a strain on the community and can cause further defaults.The huge numbers of defaults also make it harder for everybody to receive credit, as banks need to become more conservative.Personally, I think Fannie Mae is well within their rights to try and recoup their losses, however, there must be a thorough investigation to see if these cases are actually strategic defaults.Otherwise, they will be punishing those who are already in over their heads.
What do you think? Leave a comment and let us know.
With unemployment rates still very high and the economy struggling, is now the best time to be adding to the cost of renovating one’s home?
According to an article by Inman News, the Environmental Protection Agency is removing a provision in their 2008 Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting rule.This stipulation allowed home owners and their contractors to disregard the rules of the act as a means of saving money, as long as they could prove there were no children under six years old or pregnant women living in the home.Now, whenever there is work done to a home built before 1978, the contractors must follow all aspects of the rule, regardless of the owners’ requests.
I know most of you are probably thinking this is a great thing.There will be less toxic substances in our homes and we will all be safe because of it.But I ask, is now the right time?With all the problems in the housing marking, is it a good idea to make the cost of renovation higher?These costs could deter many home owners from making key “efficiency improvements”, which can raise the value of the home and decrease energy use.
What do you all think? Would you prefer the added cost, or be able to your own decisions about what needs to be done with your house?
When you are looking to sell or buy a home, do you need the services of agents or can you manage without them? While not using an agent can save the commission payable to them, here are the several reasons why their services are invaluable to people who are looking to make real estate transactions.
Expertise: Realtors and the agents who work for brokerage firms usually have formal education and training in the field. In addition, with their years of experience, they will have better knowledge of the market and prices than you will.
Making your work lighter: When you publish a sale advertisement about your home, you could be flooded with responses. Imagine having to show the house to ten different people at ten different times of the day! This is where a professional can help by sieving out the not-so-interested buyers and contacting you only when a good offer is made.
Market information: Realtors have their finger on the pulse of the market. They can help you fix a good price based on their knowledge about the prices in a particular neighborhood, as well as prices of competing properties. They are aware of market trends and can advise you on the best time to buy or sell.
Confident negotiation: Their years of experience make them excellent negotiators and they can get you the best price possible by acting as an intermediary without giving out details on how high or low a price you are willing to settle on.
Taking care of paperwork: Paperwork for the agreements for sale or purchase could run into multiple pages. Every clause has to be checked thoroughly, so that you will not be later held legally responsible for mistakes in the wordings. Agents have the professional expertise in drafting and checking the words in these documents to prevent any future damages.
Benefit of networking: While you may have a limited number of contacts among prospective buyers and sellers, agents are constantly in touch with buyers, sellers, as well as competitors, and can find a suitable match for you.
If you are hesitant thinking that they are interested in a quick sale to earn their commission, think again. Most professional agents keep their clients’ best interests at heart, as they are more interested in gaining your trust and maintaining long-term relationships, so that you will contact them whenever you are looking to buy or sell property.
For additional resources and information please visit the following sites.
Real estate is one business that requires good marketing skills. A blog is a web-log that keeps track of events. Blogs can be either personal or professional. Many real estate blogs offer first hand information about properties and other real estate related information. These blogs usually have real time agents to answer your queries about the properties they write about. Many real estate blogs offer a variety of information about homes and properties in different places, such as Placerville, Sacramento, Elk Grove, Roseville, etc.
Some real estate websites give visitors good information on the homes available in Elk Grove. The sites talk about small homes to ranch homes for sale. The blog articles also talk about why it is a good idea to move to Elk Grove and give a small brief about Elk Grove Owner Occupied Housing Rehabilitation Loan Program, a home loan program offered. Another popular place with homes for rent that the blogs talk about is Placerville. The Victorian architecture of many Placerville homes are one of the many things that make you want to buy that dream home in the city. The article also gives you tips on the various places in Placerville that you can find homes to suit your taste and conditions. Some blog articles in the same site teach you about the financial risks when buying a home. Other blog article may focus on the interior designing in different types of homes.
Real estate blogs score over real estate websites. This can be seen in the many features that a blog offers to the users or customers, which a website cannot. In real estate blogs, a visitor can read articles about the latest in real estate trends, location specific real estate information and listings, etc. regularly. The end user also gets to write comments or post queries in the comments section. These comments and queries are usually read and answered by the realtors or agents who run the blog.
In order to get the right kind of traffic to their real estate blogs, realtors and agents usually update their posts frequently. The presentation of the blog also counts – and real estate related pictures are peppered all over the blog. Additionally, images, graphs, and videos are also put up in blogs and websites, since they also function as search engine optimization tools. This adds in the visual aiding of the presentation of content on blogs, popularizing them to a large extent.
For additional resources and information please visit the following sites.
Sacramento, Roseville, Placerville, Elk Grove, Yuba City, California, United States
Formerly GreatWest GMAC, Real Living GreatWest offers outstanding real estate services in the Sacramento metro area. We have offices in Sacramento, Roseville, Elk Grove, Placerville, and Yuba city. Real Living GreatWest has specialists in Short Sales, REOs, Foreclosures, and Mortgages. And our partnership with Real Living gives us the ability to offer outstanding service all over the country. If you are Buying, Selling, or Investing, we have excellent agents who can assist you. Give us a call at 916-481-3400 or toll free at 800-741-3710
