Market Talk

by | Nov 4, 2008 | General Market News

The market has swung wildly since last week. Fed Day last Wednesday brought the expected .5% rate cut, bringing the Fed Funds Rate (the rate at which banks lend money to each other) to 1.0%. As consumers, this will affect and decrease Prime Rate. Rates saw great...

What is an Impound Account?

by | Oct 28, 2008 | Tips

An impound account, sometimes referred to as a “Reserve Account” is when your property taxes and homeowners insurance get collected monthly along with your mortgage payment. In California, you have a choice as to whether or not you want an impound account, although...

Paying Points – Does it Make Sense?

by | Oct 24, 2008 | Tips

I’ve been asked a few question about the use of paying points the past few weeks, so I’d like to comment on this a little bit. Whether or not you should pay a point to buy down the interest rate takes both math and speculation. On average, 1 point buys down the...

The Matter of a Down Payment

by | Oct 21, 2008 | Tips

We all know that getting a loan is much harder to get and to qualify for nowadays. First time homebuyer programs with low down payment requirements of 3.5%-5.0% down are still available, but they can be somewhat restrictive in who can get them, and can also be more...

To Mortgage or Not to Mortgage

by | Oct 14, 2008 | Tips

When I have a chance, I listen to the Ray Lucia Show on Bloomberg AM radio, which is a call-in show for people to ask questions on financial investment strategies. One call struck my interest, so I want to share it with you as well and give you an example of how I...