August 2008 Weekly Motivational Ideas!
Inspirations that I hope will help you make more $$!!
 
Sam		 Dear Sam,
 
This email is a little long but full of good info for your business!
 
Well, we don't have the down payment assistant program anymore for FHA loans so if your buyers don't have at least 3.5% for a down payment and a 580 FICO, I can't help them.  But, if they can get a gift from a relative, that will work so call me with those referrals!
 
So, let's focus on 40% of the buyers that are 1st time home buyers that might have been saving money for a purchase over the last several months.  The better quality buyers are out there and now we have a great reason to call them; the $7500 tax credit for first time home buyers!  Ask them to call me for the details!
 
Also, as this email shows, the Carolinas are the most attract states for the 76 million baby boomers that will be retiring soon.  Of these, many are planning on relocating and the Carolinas are the states that they are putting on the top of their list. 
 
Read over the survey results below and make sure you know what they want so you can help them find their perfect retirement home! 
 
Call me if I can help you sell them on retiring here and so I can help them with some great financing services too!

Think $7500 1st-time buyer tax credit!
 
Thanks for reading and thanks for your business too.

mysignature
Senior Mortgage Advisor
President's Club Member 2007
Carolina Mortgage
 
Click here to write your congressman to save the DPA program.  I wrote to all the congressmen in my territory by changing the zipcodes I work in.
 
 
843-230-7929
__________________
 Call me if I can help!
 
Nothing could be finer than moving to Carolina!
 

retirees

 Retirees aren't going to Florida like they used to.
In fact, many in Florida are trying to move to the Carolinas too! 
 
Here is some helpful information for your developers and for you in communicating with relocating retirees!  Survey results of 1800 responders from Washington, DC, NY, Chicago, Philadelphia, Fairfield CO CT, Morris CO NJ, Detroit and Boston of people and their thoughts about retiring from a survey I recently saw.  Here are the highlights.
 
 Ages of Responders    <45 years old                   6%
                                                45-55 yrs old              24%
                                                56-65  yrs old             47%
                                             >65  yrs old                     23%
 
Their Marital Status        Married                          73%
                                                Single                               14%
                                                Divorced                           9%
                                                Widowed                           4%
 

Here's what they said about their retirement plans.
 
State Pref (Top 6):        1. NC                                 78%
                                              2. SC                                 63%
                                              3. FL                                  31%
                                              4. GA                                 30%
                                              5. TN                                 28%
                                              6. VA                                 27%
 
Geographic Pref:           Atlantic                             68%
                                              Lake                                   48%
                                              Inland                               39%
                                              Gulf                                     38%
                                              Mountain                         37%
                                              Beach                                 12%
                                              Foothills                             6%
                                              Desert                                   2%
 
Retiring in yrs:               Currently Retired          42%
                                              1-3 yrs                               28%
                                             4-7 yrs                                18%
                                             8-10 yrs                                7%
                                             10+ yrs                                  8%
 
Work once Retired:     Working Part Time          47%
                                             Not working                       47%
                                             Changing Career                  8%
                                             Will Consult                         18%
 
Ideal Home                     Southeast States                94%
                                             Lake                                        47%
                                             Mountains                            46%
                                             Coast                                       26%
                                             Golf Course                           20%
                                             Gulf Coast                              20%
 
Recreational Interest:     Walking                             77%
                                                  Fitness Center                 66%
                                                  Swimming                          59%
                                                  Beach Golf                         55%
                                                  Gated Community         47%
                                                  Travel                                 47%
                                                  Bicycling                            45%
                                                  Waterfront                        42%
                                                  History/Culture             40%
                                                  Motor Biking                    39%
                                                  Clubhouse                         38%
                                                  Organized Activities     36%
                                                  Gardening                          35%
                                                  Golf                                       34%
                                                  Civic/Social Clubs          34%
 
Ideal Community             Shopping Close By:         73%
                                                Wide Amenity Offering   57%
                                                Private/Gated                    54%
                                                Fine Dining Close By        54%
                                                Family/Friends                 48%
                                                Small Towns                        36%
                                                Host Wkly Activities        33%
                                                Age-Specific                        33%
                                                Resort                                     24%
                                                Members Only                       6%
                                                In an urban area                   4%
                                   
Ideal Size                         <2K sq ft                                    54%
                                                2-3K sq ft                                39%
                                             >3K sq ft                                      7%
 
Plan to use home equity to purchase next home  
 
                                                                                     Yes      73%
                                                                                      No       27%
 
Actively looking for in retirement:           
 
Traveling                                                               74%
Spending Time with significant other        65%
Socializing                                                             54%
New Hobbies                                                        34%
Time with grand kids                                         33%
Lifelong learning                                                 24%
Volunteering                                                        20%
Working                                                                  11%
 
Retirement Income Source:                                              
                                  
Retirement/Savings/Investments             43%
Pension                                                                   28%
Social Security                                                     16%
PT/FT Work                                                             7%
Non Retirement Income                                    8%
 


Weekly Tip -  ID Theft - Know how to protect yourself.
 
 
idtheft
 
ID Theft - A big problem!
 
I just watched a good show on MSNBC Dateline on ID theft that showed how Nigerians are using the Internet to get our credit card and social security numbers for buying merchandise.  
  
Checkout this website on how to protect yourself:
 
 
Also this week I tried to get a lady approved that was a victim of ID theft with over 20 collections she was trying to clear up.  Her problem was caused by her own daughter stealing her identity!
 
I had another borrower that was shocked to learn she had a "Bowflex" judgment and other judgments and collections.  She thinks the guy getting her mail in NYC may have stolen her identity.
 
Finally, this week an accounting professor at Andrews Presbyterian College in Laurinburg was a victim of ID theft when someone went online and had his mail diverted to a hotel in New Zealand. 
 
According to the article in the paper, this is the 4th time this has happened in Scotland County since July!  Anyone can have mail diverted online by completing a "change of address form" without having to prove their identity and this is happening more and more. 
 
If your mail doesn't show up for a few days, make sure this has not happened to you.  If it does, here is some advice from the Federal Trade Commission.
  • Call the three credit reporting companies and place a fraud alert on your credit report. Then ask for the free credit report you are entitled to. 
  • Close any accounts that you suspect have been tampered with or opened fraudulently. Start by calling the security or fraud department of each company. Follow up in writing, and include copies of supporting documents.
  • File a police report!  Very important to have this documented so the creditors will help clear up any future illegal actions. 
  • Contact the FTC. Your information also helps law enforcement officials across the country to track down and stop ID thieves. Contact the Federal Trade Commission online at www.ftc.gov/idtheft or call toll-free at 877-ID-THEFT  
    •
Before anything happens, the key is to treat our personal information as you would your cash. Safeguard it whether you're at home, whether it's in your purse or your wallet, or at our office.
 
Go to the Federal Trade Commission website at  www.ftc.gov/idtheft for a good video presentation on how to Deter, Detect and Defend yourself against ID theft!
 
Also, call 1-888-5OPTOUT (888-567-8688) and ask to stop credit card companies from sending pre-approved credit card applications to your house. They are ticking identity theft time bombs. 
 
I did this.  Takes 5 mins, last 5 years for protecting you against credit bureaus selling your names to credit card companies.
 
 
Credit bureaus

Equifax
1-800-525-6285 

Experian
1-888-397-3742  
www.experian.com

TransUnion
1-800-680-7289 
www.tuc.com

The accounting professor mentioned above is trying to make it mandatory to have your id present to divert mail by working with lawmakers.  Let's hope he is successful in this for all of our sakes! 
 
After his troubles, he signed up with Lifelock to have his ID protected for $10/month per person.  This is the company that the CEO gives you his SS number to show he is not worried.  They will protect you up to $1,000,000 per person.
 
I called them and got their pitch.  This is a proactive approach.  They call Equifax and set up a fraud alert for each member every 90 days and they order a copy of your credit report for you every year and put you on the opt out list.  You can do these yourself with info I am providing in this email. 
 
But they do much more including an address monitoring service, etc and they have that protection for $1MM.  They told me they have 1MM customers and even with their protection, they still had 100 claims of fraud involking the $1MM protection guaranty.  They also help with trying to get your credit report fixed if the fraud happened under their watch.
 
Click Here to visit their website: Lifelock
 
Or, here's the Equifax Fraud Alert Site: Equifax Fraud Alerts  I did this for me and my family.  Takes 5 mins!  But only lasts 90 days so will have to keep doing it.
 
 
Hope this info helps you, your family & clients!
 
Weekly Mortgage Commentary Snippet
 
Rate Lock Advisory - Sunday Aug. 24th


lokflotflotflot


This week brings us the release of eight relevant economic releases for the bond market to watch. This will also be a shortened week in the bond market as a result of the Labor Day holiday next Monday. This makes it quite likely that we will see a fair amount of volatility in the financial markets this week, and therefore quite possibly mortgage rates.