I was back on Guam on permanent (well as permanent as the military gets) assignment in 1973 and helped with the processing of refugees when Saigon fell in 1975. We took in 121,000 refugees in a 10 day period as people fled from Vietnam in almost anything that would fly. The first ones came off of the commercial airliners with so much gold they could hardly walk. The last ones were stuffed so tightly into C-130s that they couldn’t sit down. Later, the boat people started arriving. It was a heart wrenching thing to watch as people fled their homes to keep from being killed.
During those years, when I traveled, I didn’t do it in uniform, there was too much chance of being spit upon or derided. The military was the target for protesters and demonstrations. It wasn’t until much later that we were finally accepted for who we were and not what was being done. That is why I am so pleased that there are people today working to make sure the members of our armed forces are recognized and praised for what they are doing. The following clip was forwarded through Facebook by one of my friends. I hope you will take the time to watch the whole thing.
You are welcome, it truely was my honor to serve
Yesterday was Veteran’s Day and a number of people thanked me for my service and that made me feel very special. I was in the U. S. Air Force from 1966 to 1978 and spent time on Guam during operation ARC LIGHT and BULLET SHOT during my first enlistment, on temporary duty with the 4133 Bomb Wing (Provisional). The wing was flying sorties from Guam with B-52s over Vietnam. No, I wasn’t an air crew member, I flew a typewriter and a camera. I was editor of the base newspaper.
I was back on Guam on permanent (well as permanent as the military gets) assignment in 1973 and helped with the processing of refugees when Saigon fell in 1975. We took in 121,000 refugees in a 10 day period as people fled from Vietnam in almost anything that would fly. The first ones came off of the commercial airliners with so much gold they could hardly walk. The last ones were stuffed so tightly into C-130s that they couldn’t sit down. Later, the boat people started arriving. It was a heart wrenching thing to watch as people fled their homes to keep from being killed.
During those years, when I traveled, I didn’t do it in uniform, there was too much chance of being spit upon or derided. The military was the target for protesters and demonstrations. It wasn’t until much later that we were finally accepted for who we were and not what was being done. That is why I am so pleased that there are people today working to make sure the members of our armed forces are recognized and praised for what they are doing. The following clip was forwarded through Facebook by one of my friends. I hope you will take the time to watch the whole thing.
There are a number of very good videos out that say the same thing and I want to thank the people that have taken the time to do this for our military. There are a number of people from my era that are still suffering and maybe, just maybe, this will help them too. It is hard to come back to your home and have people turn their back on you. I don’t want that to happen to our military today. So in response to those yesterday, I just want to say: You are welcome, it really was my honor to serve.
I was back on Guam on permanent (well as permanent as the military gets) assignment in 1973 and helped with the processing of refugees when Saigon fell in 1975. We took in 121,000 refugees in a 10 day period as people fled from Vietnam in almost anything that would fly. The first ones came off of the commercial airliners with so much gold they could hardly walk. The last ones were stuffed so tightly into C-130s that they couldn’t sit down. Later, the boat people started arriving. It was a heart wrenching thing to watch as people fled their homes to keep from being killed.
During those years, when I traveled, I didn’t do it in uniform, there was too much chance of being spit upon or derided. The military was the target for protesters and demonstrations. It wasn’t until much later that we were finally accepted for who we were and not what was being done. That is why I am so pleased that there are people today working to make sure the members of our armed forces are recognized and praised for what they are doing. The following clip was forwarded through Facebook by one of my friends. I hope you will take the time to watch the whole thing.
7 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • November 12 2009 01:37PMDo you know who is writing that website you are reading?
Interestingly, while doing some web surfing trying to find out who my competition is in the blog-o-sphere, I wasn't entirely pleased with who was out there. I wanted to know who else was writing about the place I call home and who was writing about lending, mortgages and loans. It is interesting what I found. Like this site, for example. Neighborhood Expert Online is a place where you can come and find someone that is actually in your Neighborhood to help you with whatever you need. Granted, the availability is kind of limited right now, but it is a fairly new site and as such, will take some time for the various neighborhoods to be represented in the various fields. Right now, I want to focus on the Eugene/Springfield Oregon Neighborhood.
Who are these guys?
As an veteran searcher, I use Google a lot to search to see who is writing what about my area and my field. By doing that, I found the this blog called roost. It is an interesting blog and has some good information about Eugene but I have no idea who writes it or where they are or if they really know about the Eugene/Springfield Market. There is no information on the home page about who the blog is done by. On my blog sites, I am very firm about who and where I am.
Now you know who this is
A different site talks about 48 hours in Eugene. Now, Nancy D. Brown is the writer of this and she is obviously a good travel writer. She also has her name and contact information on her website. I think she is a pretty good writer too and appears to really like traveling.
Excellent Local Information
Then there is this article about planting more trees in Eugene. This is obviously by and about Eugene. Again, a nice piece that has the right local information attached. This is what I like to see when I am looking for local information. Take a look at this local information that I posted on my website. Again, plenty of acknowledgement as to who and where I am on the site.
Local Expertise
Now, how about my field of expertise? When I posted about First Time Homebuyers, you know who I am and how to get in touch with me. It isn’t a website designed to gather names so that they can be sold. That is so much different that this site, that says it is information for Oregon, but is actually another of the “contact” gather sites. Fill out the form and someone will contact you. that someone has probably purchased your name and will probably be one of several that will call, none of them necessarily knowing anything about the local area.
I believe you should chose to work with someone local to your area that knows the area. Otherwise you are taking your chances with one of the “no name” contact gather sites. Personally, I prefer to work with people that know what they are doing and know my area.
8 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • June 17 2009 04:17PMA very ducky banker/loan officer in Spokane
For those that think loan officers and bankers are just hard hearted meanies that just want your money, take a look at this video about a bank loan officer in Spokane Washington helping a whole family find safety in an unsafe world.
Via Sara Goodwin - Portland, Oregon Appraiser (Ashcroft & Associates):
It is unclear in this news story whether his title is 'Banker' or 'Loan Officer'... but really, who cares? It's just one of those nice 'breather' stories that reminds us all that life is alright.
The morale of the story ... Take a break to help others every now and again... you never know, it might even turn out to be a 'marketing moment'.
See the story here
2 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • May 29 2009 01:48PMEugene Loan Guy Gets New Blog Heading
Eugene Loan Guy, my outside blog, has a new heading and I have decided to make all of my outside blogs, Eugene Loan Guy, FHA Loans Oregon and No Money Down OR/WA/CA, similar in appearance with the same heading. For those of you familiar with Oregon, you might recognize the picture in the heading below as being the Three Sisters, located between Bend and Eugene.
I think that having this new heading that is so specific to my area is a great addition to my web presence. I have to thank my webmaster(s), Danny Thornton and Rich Dansereau of RandDArt, took this wonderful picture and transformed it into the heading. I will continue to use the fantastic heading that Marti designed for me here on A/R, but I wanted to make sure that my branding was consistent.
I will eventually use the same blog heading for my posting on Positive Real Estate Professionals. That will give me brand recognition wherever I am posting. I have to also comment on the great things that Danny did with my blogs as far as blog rating. The changes and adjustments for SEO and blog rating has really made a huge difference in the number of visits and business coming from my websites.
It is amazing what can happen when you know the details that bring more searches to you blogsite. Since Eugene Loan Guy has only be in existence for about six months and the other two for just over 3 months, Alexa ratings of under a million are unheard of and mine was just over 200,000 last month for Eugene Loan Guy. Admittedly, it is worse this month (345,969), but that has to do with not making my consistent postings. Please note, Alexa ratings are better low than high.
13 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • May 19 2009 11:00PM$8000 Tax Credit Used as Down Payment for FTHB
The biggest problem that most first time home buyers have is coming up with the down payment. I have posted several times in the past various ways to get the down payment together, but it has still been out of the reach of some people. Now, that could change. The First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit is going to be available for the down payment on FHA loans in the near future, according the the Secretary of HUD.
Shaun Donovan, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, said that the Federal Housing Administration is going to permit its lenders to allow homeowners to use the $8,000 tax credit as a down payment. According to Secretary Donovan, the FHA's approved lenders will be permitted to “monetize” the tax credit through short-term bridge loans. For the first time, eligible home buyers will be able to access the funds immediately at the closing table.
Needless to say, there are no procedures in place at this moment to take care of the “bridge” loan, but this should be done in a fairly short fashion since HUD wants this to be the new way of doing things. My suggestion is that those that qualify for the First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit on an FHA loan start looking for a home now. The procedures should be in effect by the time the purchase is ready to close…..at least I hope that is the case. This should be a boon to the Real Estate purchase market and start using up some of the excess inventory. That may also mean rising home prices in a short period of time.
8 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • May 12 2009 05:13PMObama Plan ............... New Refinancing Program.
This is a second in a two part series by George. I think it is a very good read and something that covers a lot of details about the new refinance plan for those that are underwater on their current mortgage.
Via George Souto (McCue Mortgage Co.) FHA, CHFA, VA Mortgages:
Yesterday I wrote the first of two parts on the Homeowner Affordability & Stability plan that was released by the Obama administration on Wed March 4th. Which contained two major parts they hoped would have an impact on assisting homeowners with troubled mortgage. The first part of the plan which I blogged about yesterday is a modification program that Servicers will offer to borrowers with high debt-to-income ratios or who are at risk of foreclosure. The second part of the plan which I am blogging about today, a refinance program for existing Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loans.
As I stated yesterday our Executive Vice President at McCue Mortgage, Kim Neilson and others are still assessing the details of the Homeowner Affordability & Stability plan to determine our next steps, but in the mean time we are trying to provide a summary of its major points so that it might help other to better understandable it. So here we go:
The second part of the plan is a refinance program for existing Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loans. Fannie Mae is offering two different programs:
- The Refi Plus Program that requires the servicer of the loan to be the originating lender.
- The DU Refi Plus Program (DU is the Automated Underwriting System for Fannie Mae) that allows any lender using DU to originate the loan as long as the existing loan is a Fannie Mae loan.
Freddie Mac requires the servicer of the loan to be the originating lender. Some specifics of the program are:
- Existing mortgage must currently be a Fannie or Freddie loan.
- Existing loan may not be considered ineligible (must get an Approved/Eligible from DU). Ineligible loans include existing mortgage loans that received a DU Expanded approval (EA).
- Maximum LTV for 1-2 unit properties is 105% and require an appraisal.
- Maximum LTV for 3-4 unit properties is 80% and also require an appraisal.
- No maximum CLTV.
- Existing mortgage must be current and have acceptable mortgage payment history. No minimum FICO score is required although borrower must meet bankruptcy and foreclosure requirements. In addition, borrower must demonstrate credit worthiness.
- Rate and term refinance only (No Cash Out) - purchase money seconds MAY Not be included.
- Loan level price adjustments (points) will apply (determined by credit score on credit report)
- MI required (same coverage factor of existing loan) for mortgage loans that had original LTV’s greater than 80%.
- DU Refi Plus must receive Approve/Eligible and will not be available until April 4. Income and employment verification is required.
- Refi Plus is a manual underwrite and requires verbal verification of employment. Lender must determine that the borrower has a reasonable ability to repay the mortgage based on current information provided by borrower.
There it is in a nut shell. I actually have higher expectations for this part of the plan then I do for the Loan Modification part. This part of the plan stands a chance to actually help those who have good credit and have little to no equity in their property. But I do not see it doing anything for those who are in areas that property values have taken a noticeable hit, and 105% LTV is not going to do anything for them. Also this does offer a second option to FHA which will allow a borrower to go to a 96.5% LTV on a No Cash Out Refi.
While I think that this plan might actually help a few people, but it will be a source of false hope for many more. As I ended my last post, the purpose for providing this information is so that those who read it may have a better understanding of the "Homeowner Affordability & Stability Plan", and help them come to their own conclusion.
******************************************************************************************************************
Info about the author:
George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com
0 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • March 11 2009 07:47PMObama Plan ............... New Loan Modification Program
I think the George may have hit this program right on the nose. I hope that it helps people but the chances are not as good as the government may lead many to believe. The big thing is, and always has been, participation of the servicers.
Via George Souto (McCue Mortgage Co.) FHA, CHFA, VA Mortgages:
The Homeowner Affordability & Stability plan was released by the Obama administration on Wed March 4th. There were two major parts of this plan that affect the Mortgage Industry. The first part of the plan is a modification program that Servicers will offer to borrowers with high debt-to-income ratios or who are at risk of foreclosure. The second part of the plan is a refinance program for existing Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loans.
While our Executive Vice President at McCue Mortgage, Kim Neilson and others are still assessing the details of the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac plan to determine our next steps, they have summarized it to a point that would make it more understandable to rest of us, and I will sharing this in two blogs.
The first part of the plan that as I stated above is the modification program that Servicers will offer to borrowers with high debt-to-income ratios or who are at risk of foreclosure, which states that:
- Existing mortgage must currently be a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loan.
- The mortgage loan is delinquent, or is expected to go into default soon.
- Borrowers must occupy property as primary residence
- Borrowers must provide hardship documentation.
- Borrowers must provide income documentation and evidence the monthly mortgage payment (housing ratio) is greater than 31%
- If the housing ratio is more than 31%, the Servicer will modify the terms of the loan, to reduce the housing ratio to 31% by:
- Lowering the interest rate, but the minimum rate (floor) is 2%. The adjusted rate will be in effect for the first 5 years following modification, and then will increase by a 1% annually until it reaches the original rate.
- Extending the term up to 40 years.
- Provide principal forbearance which will later be paid back in the form of a balloon payment that will be due upon the earliest of the following:
- Sale of property
- Payoff of the loan
- Maturity of the loan.
- Servicers will receive compensation of $1000 or $500 for each completed modification.
- A borrower whose monthly payment is reduced by six percent or more and make on time payments will receive $1000 principal reduction for up to five years.
I will end this post by stating that while I am sharing this information about the provisions that are contained in the Homeowner Affordability & Stability plan that became effective March 4th., that it does not mean that I am in favor of this, or believe that it will help us get out of this mess that we are in, because I don't believe that. I think that this plan just like all the others before it will help very few if any, and is more smoke and mirrors then anything else. But I have provided this information so that those of you reading this can have a better understanding of it, and help you come to your own conclusion.
I will cover the second part of the plan that I stated above "refinance program for existing Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loans" in my next post.
******************************************************************************************************
Info about the author:
George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com
0 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • March 11 2009 07:43PMGet your cameras out
Come by the site and see my latest pictures. I think you will enjoy what Danny and Rich have done.
Via Danny Thornton (Taylor, Bean, & Whitaker):
Ok, for all of you picture buffs that love the Wordless Wednesdays and Speechless Sundays, we have a treat for you. Some of you might have read the post from Rich Dansereau or maybe the one from me about our newest multi-user platform to date, but if you have not, then let me tell you the news.
You See
Has Now Become
And We Are Just Dying
For YOU To Join US Today.
For those who are unfamilar, this is the latest of our multi-user platforms. It is designed for an outlet for those that love to post pictures for fun and show off your camera skills. Swing by and see if it might be a site for you.
9 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • March 03 2009 09:41PMI have been nominated for a Texas Social Media Award! Wanna help me win?
Jason Crouch is a RE Broker in Austin Texas and has done a lot for the A/R community to spread the information to everyone. He has been nominated for a really nice award, the Texas Social Media Award and it would be nice for everyone who agrees, to go to the link and vote for him. Go Jason and good luck. Thanks for your support and great posts. As per normal with my re-blogs, I have disabled comments. If you want to comment, go to Jason's original blog.
Via Jason Crouch, Broker - Austin Texas Real Estate (512-796-7653) (Austin Texas Homes, LLC):
The Austin American-Statesman (our local paper) recently created the Texas Social Media Awards, and I was pleased and flattered to have been nominated! There are 125 nominees, and the judges will be choosing the Top 25 and announcing this "short list" on February 18th. I also see this as another potential burst of exposure for ActiveRain, since most of the nominees are not in the real estate industry, so they are not members here.
What would I actually win if selected? Great question! According to the official site:
Each person on that list will be recognized by the Statesman with an award, a badge for that winner's blog and free tickets to a bash that we're throwing around the same time as South by Southwest (these awards are not affiliated with SXSW). An overall winner will be named at that time, too.
Here's where you can help.
Since they are taking the comments into consideration for each nominee, I would love it if you took a minute to stop by and leave a couple of remarks here about my social media/social networking involvement:
http://budurl.com/jasoncrouch
In other words, the comments that will matter are those left at the URL above. Of course, you can feel free to comment here, too!
I don't want to give too much prompting with regard to the comments, but you could mention any or all of these topics:
- My blog here on AR
- Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.
- My BlogTalkRadio show ("Twitter Tuesday") - http://blogtalkradio.com/jckc
- Any help that I have provided for you in the social media/online realm
Unfortunately, I can't offer you a proper bribe at the moment, but please know that I greatly appreciate any kind remarks that you are willing to leave at the link provided above.
I don't know what my actual chances are of winning the whole thing, but I would love to make it into the Top 25!
Thanks so much for your time and support. Have a great day!
0 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • January 30 2009 12:19PMREAD THIS Credit Score Requirements C-H-A-N-G-I-N-G!
This post by Eleanor Thorne has to do with minimum credit scores that she has to deal with specific to her lenders. However, it is the case that this is happening industry wide. There will be fewer and fewer loans available, if at all, for lower credit score borrowers. There are ways to increase your credit score, but don't fall for the shysters that are out there just to take your money.
As per normal, I have disabled comments on this blog. If you would like to make a comment, please do it on Eleanor's blog post, she wrote it.
Via Eleanor Thorne, Cary Mortgage Loans (Meridian Residential):
Everybody needs to Move it, Move it, Move it!!!
'Cause minimum credit scores are going UP!
I'm not talking about folks having BAD credit and having trouble buying a home... but I have a borrower right now that has a 618 score - NO LATE PAYMENTS. He has 20 years of credit history...
He owes Best Buy and Macy's and Room to Go (And Amex, and Bof A for 2 cars, and Wachovia for a mortgage or 2). NO LATES. But his middle score is 618.
Well, according to our friends at Wells Fargo
- pretty soon this borrower (who makes over 150K a year) will not QUALIFY to purchase a home! Even though he has $98,000 liquid. His ratios are 18 / 31.
SunTrust has ALREADY put this rule into play - and now Wells. PLUS, the pricing for these borrowers (at other places) is already AWFUL!
This is SIGNIFICANT. This is not just for Conventional loans. I'm talking USDA, VA, FHA -
NOBODY RIDES if their score is less than 620!
(at least not if they are getting their loan with SunTrust or Wells Fargo!)
I know it won't make any difference, but I still called my Congressmen yesterdayand let them know this is a HUGE part of the homebuying market that is now EXCLUDED from purchasing a home!
If you want more information on how to raise your FICO / Credit Score, check out our site dedicated to helping you out! Steve and Eleanor Thorne, Meridian Residential
0 comments • Fred Chamberlin - Eugene/Springfield's #1 Experienced FHA Mortgage Consultant • January 23 2009 04:01PMContent © 2009 'Frequent Contributors'. Design © 2009 ActiveRain Corp.
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