Loan Think

The National Association of Realtors reports that sales prices are continuing to fall, from an average of nearly $200,000 five years ago to around $172,000 today. A decline in average sales prices translates into a decline in average loan amounts - and since most mortgage loan originators are paid a basis points commission on the loan amount - that means less money for you.

No single solution will repair the damage done by the lingering housing crisis. And “one-off” loan-by-loan solutions can’t happen fast enough to make an impact on the fragile housing stock that balances at a tipping point in cities across the country.

The headline of today's daily 'What We're Hearing' blast sounds like junk mail that you might see in your email inbox. But rest assured, certain mortgage REITs are paying hefty dividends these days. At the top of the list is Annaly Capital Management, which has a 13.5% dividend/yield rate.

I recently received a business card from a loan officer who called himself a "Personal Liability Manager" with the tag line "providing mortgage and liability management on an ethical and objective basis." It's unique. It's different. And it begs the all-important question—so how do you do that?

As an outsource provider of increasingly commoditized loss mitigation tools and asset preservation services, having the right customer service philosophy may be the only deciding factor to our clients versus the competition.

It appears the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will revisit the issue of loan officer compensation - and maybe even in a way that benefits nonbank LOs. The whole issue is too early to predict, and we suggest you visit the main National Mortgage News website for a just breaking update.

For smaller companies, social media is a marketing equalizer versus larger competition. The question has been are they taking advantage of it and the follow up is if they are, are they doing it effectively?

Who says a consumer with a low FICO score can't get a mortgage? A recent survey conducted by National Mortgage News found five lenders that are willing to extend credit to borrowers with FICOs of 600 or less. The three lenders with the lowest FICO scores include TD Banknorth Mortgage, Embrace Home Loans, and Compass Bank.

Few companies recognize the need to train their staff in the discipline of trade show participation (for purposes of this discussion "participation" is synonymous with "exhibiting") and selling. The first step toward the solution of any problem is the recognition that a problem exists. Too often the decision to exhibit at some, or all, trade shows in a given profession is decided for the wrong reasons.

Al Siapno, a Border Patrol agent from San Diego and his wife Leila have pleaded guilty in a mortgage-fraud scam that involved at least 24 other people and several home loans throughout the county. The alleged perpetrators listed in a federal indictment overstated incomes, over-appraised home values and used other fraudulent means to obtain millions of dollars in mortgages.