We reported (see below) on a Reuters article saying there was a rumor spreading from ‘Washington to Wall Street’ that the government was considering major cramdowns on the mortgages of ‘underwater’ homeowners. The World Street Journal reports that the rumor is just that – a rumor.
You are about to enter into the largest financial commitment of your life- a home mortgage. No two transactions are exactly alike. Unfortunately, too many homebuyers do not take the necessary time and consideration they should in choosing the correct financing for their individual situation. Your lender should take the time to ask you questions […]
The economy has destroyed the financial stability of many households. More and more families are in fear of losing their home to foreclosure. We feel for these families. Steve Harney, a featured contributor, has shared his own personal story with us in an open letter to this blog where he proclaimed “there is always hope”. We […]
The big question in real estate is what will happen with home prices over the next few months. The experts have already weighed-in predicting prices will probably take another dip down. The reasoning? Put simply, the inventory of homes on the market is greater than the demand for housing. Demand will remain stable at best. […]
I realize that many of today’s sellers are forced to sell their homes because they have fallen on tough economic times. They need to ‘get out from under’ the financial burden of a mortgage they can no longer afford to pay. They might have very little equity or may even be in a negative equity […]
We are at a very interesting crossroad in our industry. Being good is no longer good enough. The consumer doesn’t want to deal with ‘just anyone’ in real estate. They want someone who can explain what is happening in the market and help them understand their options. They want an expert, an industry leader. Below […]
More and more homeowners are questioning whether they should keep their homes on the market or wait until next year to sell. The thinking obviously is that next year the market will be better and therefore they will be able to garner a higher price. But, is that true? Is there any evidence that the […]
When exploring your options for financing today, I believe everyone should at least consider an FHA Mortgage. Today, I want to tell you why: 1. Loan Amounts The loan amounts available (especially in High Cost Areas, like mine) are on a par with Conventional Financing. In the past, FHA programs were typically only made available […]
The big question about shadow inventory is when this backlog of foreclosures will come to market. Prices will not be adversely affected until these distressed properties are actually put up for sale. Only then will they truly be competition to existing homes for sale. It seems that day may be upon us. Much of the […]
Homeownership almost seems like a dirty word in today’s society. People are blogging, tweeting and facebooking their belief that buying a home is just plain stupid. I respect their opinion on the issue though I totally disagree. Why? This might be the best time to buy a home in American real estate history. Some might […]
One of the most difficult things to do if you are thinking of buying or selling a home is to navigate through the sea of information available today. If we google “real estate” there are approximately 441 million sites. That’s 441 MILLION!! Other searches you might try: “real estate information” – 277 million sites “selling […]
People often ask us where they can see Steve deliver his message in a live forum. Though most of Steve’s speaking engagements are private events, here are five events which have open registration. Click on banners below for more information. – KCM Crew . .
I made a comment a few weeks ago that the only thing that will bring the housing market back is honesty. It was a simple statement; unplanned and unrehearsed. It sort of just fell out of my mouth. I didn’t think much of it even after I said it. I was shocked at how it […]
We are bombarded constantly about how important our credit score is. What do we actually need to know? We asked our ‘resident expert’, Dean Hartman, to shed some light on the matter. – The KCM Crew Everyone knows that you need a good credit score to get a mortgage. Most even know that your score will […]
We always want to make sure that we get at least a fair price for anything we are selling. Truth be told, we hope we get top dollar and would not be upset if a buyer was willing to pay a premium above that. The same dynamics come into place when we are selling a […]
You might think that home values are on the rise if you read the headlines this week. It seems that almost every home pricing index is showing an increase over prices last year: The latest S&P Case Shiller Index showed a year-over-year increase of 3.8% Core Logic put the number at +2.6% The RPX index […]
There is much euphoria about housing prices based on the last month’s data. Almost every pricing index has shown an increase over previous prices. The news looks very encouraging. Many media sources have reported that perhaps we have hit bottom regarding prices and are now headed in a more positive direction. I wish that was […]
Many lending institutions are beginning to take action against those who decide to walk away. Fannie Mae, according to an article in Housing Wire, announced: Borrowers who are determined to have the ability to make their monthly payments but walk away from their homes will not be able to secure a Fannie Mae backed mortgage […]
Friends, I believe we are standing atop the second hill of a rollercoaster. I know another dip is coming, though I am not sure when. I think it might be a steep drop, but I am not sure how steep. The KCM Blog frequently explains why the market has another bottom to reach (shadow inventory, […]
We believe very strongly in the benefits of homeownership. Over the last few weeks, we have been addressing some of the more questionable reasons people have been giving for not buying a house. Reason #1: Real Estate is no longer a good investment. Reason #2: Renters are happier than homeowners. Reason #3: Limited mobility is […]
There have been some extraordinary numbers being bantered about when talking about the number of foreclosures that will be coming to market over the next 18 months. Different studies have estimated that number to be between 5-8 million. Let’s take a look at one of these studies today and see how these totals are being […]
Everyone has an opinion on why Lebron James picked Miami over New York and Chicago. We have no inside information. The only connection we have to Lebron is that my son played on the same AAU team as one of Lebron’s teammates in Cleveland. I did not talk to Lebron, the teammate or even my son about this. We thought we […]
Every weekday we post the best real estate articles we can find on the KCM Crew Fan Page on facebook. Join the over 4,000 real estate and mortgage professionals who ‘like’ this page. See what other industry pros think of the articles and say about the important issues. Jump on over right now. We would […]
More millionaires were created as a result of the Great Depression than at any time in the nation’s history. Noted rich-guy John D. Rockefeller has said, “The way to make money is to BUY when blood is in the streets.” Another noted rich-guy, Warren Buffet, believes you should “be fearful when others are greedy and to be […]
We have been addressing some of the more questionable reasons people give for not buying a house each Wednesday. Three weeks ago, we covered Dumb Reason #1: Real Estate is no longer a good investment. Two weeks ago, we covered Dumb Reason #2: Renters are happier than homeowners. Last week, we covered Dumb Reason #3: Limited […]
