Karl LeBlanc Mortgage Loan Corner

At this point in December, it can start to feel like the New Year – along with all our hopes, dreams, wishes and expectations for it – are barreling down on us. Personally, I’m a rabid Resolution-setter, and I have a pretty strong track record of making New Year’s changes actually happen – and stick. But what I know after years of using the New Year as a great excuse to set and meet some goals is that it’s very, very helpful to get a head start, ramping-up to new habits, behaviors and target goals achievements starting in December.

If you’re one of the millions who has an eye on 2012 as the year in which you’ll buy a home (first or not), here are five things you can do now to put yourself on the right path:

1. Check your credit. Take my word for it: there is no bad surprise worse than a bad credit surprise. Okay, maybe there is one thing worse – a credit surprise you receive while you’re in the midst of trying to buy a home!

Recent studies have revealed that a record high number of real estate transactions are falling out of escrow, and that credit “issues” are a leading cause of these dead deals. Your best chance at catching and correcting score-lowering errors and other derogatory items before they destroy your personal American Dream is to start checking and correcting while you still have time on your side.

2. Do your research. The more rapidly the real estate market changes, the more it behooves smart buyers to study up before they jump in. And now’s the time – you can start doing online and in-person research into topics ranging from:

· Target states, cities and neighborhoods. Whether you’re relocating or simply trying to narrow down the local districts to focus on during your 2012 house hunt, December is a great time to start your online research into decision-driving factors like tax rates, school districts, neighborhood character and even prices in various areas. Resident ratings and reviews sites like Trulia and NabeWise can help you make the neighborhood-lifestyle match.

Once you narrow things down and start speaking to local agents, ask them to brief you on the local market dynamics, including how long homes typically stay on the market and whether they generally go for more or less than the asking price, so you can be smart about how you search. (And yes, Virginia, there are areas where homes sell for more than asking, even as we speak!)

· Real estate and mortgage pros. If you don’t already have your pros picked out, now is the time to get on the horn or drop an email or Facebook message to your circle of contacts, asking them for a referral to a broker or agent they love. Follow up by: checking whether these pros are active in answering questions on Trulia Voices, searching for their name and seeing what sort of feedback on them you can cull from the web, then giving them a ring and launching a conversation about whether you and they might be a good partnership.

· Short sales and REOs. Distressed property sales are not for the unwary. If you want to target upside down or foreclosed homes, or are planning to house hunt in an area where many of the listings are described as short sales or foreclosures, get educated about what you can expect from a distressed property purchase transaction before you get your heart set on a short sale.

· What you get for the money. Online house hunting is a powerful tool – especially when it’s cold and wet! But there comes a point in your house hunt where you’ve got to just get out into the actual physical homes you’re seeing online in order to get a strong, accurate sense of what home features, aesthetics and location characteristics correlate with what price points.

· Mortgage musts. You can read a bunch of articles about mortgages and get yourself pretty far down the path toward qualifying for a home loan, but you can only get a personalized action plan for a smooth road ‘home’ by talking with a local mortgage broker and having them assess your basic financials. They might say you need to move funds around, pay a bill down or off or produce some sort of documentation from your employer. And the time to start all that is now.

3. Fluff up your cash cushion. So, you’ve saved up your 3.5 percent down payment. Perhaps you saved a little extra for closing costs. Or maybe you’re even one of those uber-aggressive 20-percent-down-ers. No matter how much you’ve saved, you’ll find that you could use more once you activate your home buying action plan. Mark my words – after closing, you’ll crave extra cash to do some repairs, upgrade a couple of things, buy appliances or even just to hold onto in order to minimize your anxiety about depleting your savings!

So, if homebuying is on your personal 2012 action plan, don’t go hog wild on holiday gifts. Instead, wait until next year and give yourself the gift of a home.

4. Shed some stuff. Sell it. Donate it. Give it to relatives who’ve always coveted it. Just get rid of it. If you do it before year’s end, you can kill three birds with one stone: (a) getting some cold hard cash to go toward your savings, (b) getting some tax receipts so you can deduct the value of your donations in January, (c) minimizing money spent on holiday gifts for loved ones and these two bonus birds – clearing the mental clutter that physical clutter creates and prepping for your move in advance.

5. Sit very, very still. Sometimes, the best way to further our goals is to stop tripping ourselves up. In that vein, commit right now to refrain from making any major financial moves until you buy your home. Don’t quit your job to start that personal chef business (yet), don’t pull a bunch of cash out of your savings account (without getting clearance form your mortgage pro first), and don’t start buying cars and boats on credit – even if you do love the idea of putting the red bow on the car you give your wife, like in the commercials.

I assure you, the bow you’ll be able to put on that house or condo will be much bigger, redder and more tax-advantaged!

 Thursday, December 15, 2011 3:18:50 PM

Karl LeBlanc

# 164664

LeaderOne Financial

Serving The Great States Of Louisiana and Texas

1. Don’t post anything you don’t want written in ink

As if every thought that tumbles through your head was so clever it would be a crime for it not to be shared. The Internet’s not written in pencil, Mark, it’s written in ink. -The Social Network Movie, 2010

While you can technically delete tweets, status updates and blog posts, that doesn’t mean they disappear from your permanent record. Ever heard of the wayback machine? It’s a project aimed at capturing an archive of the Internet, with records back to 1996. There are also handy little apps that take screen captures, so don’t think removing erroneous updates means they won’t ever surface again. You can, and should set your privacy settings on social networks, but don’t assume this is enough. Be cautious of what you post – you never know when or where it will be shared.

2. Don’t drink & tweet

While this one seems like a no-brainer, we’ve seen celebrities, congressional aides, and even your fellow agents fall into this trap. It’s hard enough to say the right things without being impaired, but mix a little tequila in with your tweets and you’re asking for trouble – drinking and social networking just don’t mix.

3. Don’t let fear keep you offline

Even if you aren’t participating online, people are still talking. Avoiding the web may prevent you from making damaging comments, but it doesn’t stop the conversation nor does it stop other people from talking about you. While it’s not always easy to know what to say, don’t let fear keep you offline. Being involved in discoverable online conversations is one of the simplest ways to build a positive reputation. Blogs, tweets and some Facebook posts (depending on privacy settings) show up in Google and other search engines. Proactively use this to your advantage and create online content that demonstrates your knowledge and expertise.

4. Do monitor your online reputation

It’s important to know what others are saying about you, even if you don’t directly respond to the complaint. Start with a simple search of your name to check for negative content that may appear when customers search for you. Use several search engines to search for your name or business name on a regular basis. Chances are, you won’t be able to remove the information, but at least you’ll be prepared to address the issues. Google Alerts, Social Mention, and Hootsuite are all great tools for ongoing monitoring.

5. Do get your clients talking about you

One of the best ways to combat bad press is with good press. While it’s difficult to stop someone from saying negative things about you online, you can mitigate the damage by having positive feedback from happy customers displayed prominently online. Let your clients tell your story – encourage them to talk about you with a recommendation on sites like LinkedIn and Trulia, and check out our 5 Tips to Get Great Recommendations.

Maintaining a good reputation takes work in the digital world.

Karl LeBlanc

NMLS #164664

LeaderOne Financial

Making Home Mortgages easy Again

4810 W. Panther Creek

The Woodlands Tx 77381

281-298-5322

 Tuesday, December 13, 2011 4:16:43 PM

- The typical reverse mortgage borrower isn't who you think she is. Instead of the elderly woman you may be picturing, think of a married couple who is a bit younger.

New reverse mortgage applicants tend to be clustered around ages 62 and 63, according to Peter Bell, president of the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association. And they are as likely to be couples as singletons.

That's a change from 15 years ago, when the recently widowed 75-year-old woman was their most common applicant.

In a typical reverse mortgage arrangement, a homeowner will borrow money against the equity in his home, but not have to make any payments on it until the home is sold.

The new younger borrowers often pay off these loans more quickly than the elderly borrowers of yore. They use them as a transitional way to fund retirement, says Bell -- living off of reverse mortgage income during the early retirements and then selling their homes, paying off loans and downsizing later.

That may make sense for a boomer generation that is said to hold half of its net worth in home equity. But it can also be a costly strategy and one laden with upfront fees and complexities.

The newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is studying the risks of reverse mortgages and the AARP has filed lawsuits claiming bad behavior on the part of lenders and federal agencies in the way they have administered reverse mortgages.

"My observation is that you have to be very, very, very careful with a reverse mortgage," says Susan Fulton, a Bethesda, Maryland, fee-only financial adviser. "Before you take one out, get at least two opinions from experts who can look it over."

Jean Constantine-Davis, the attorney who has pressed litigation on these mortgages for the AARP, doesn't think they are always a bad idea. "I'm not down on the product," she says. "I just think it's a product for a very narrow group of people."

If you think you might be in that narrow group, here are some considerations.

-- Look at the numbers. Bell's group offers a full-featured reverse mortgage calculator at www.reversemortgage.org. Put in your zip code, age and home value, and you will be able to see how much you can borrow AND how much it will cost you.

For example, a 62-year-old with a $500,000 Maryland house could borrow as much as $306,323 at a variable rate starting at 3.99 percent. But it would cost as much as $27,701 in up-front closing costs and reverse mortgage insurance. Note that the vast majority of reverse mortgages are part of the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program guaranteed by the federal government, and while some lenders may charge somewhat more or less than others, some of the fees are established by HUD.

-- Think very long term. Obviously, if you're going to spend that much money upfront to nail down one of these loans, you need to make sure you're going to use it for a long time. If you end up selling the home a year later, you will have paid an effective interest rate that is more than 10 percent. The longer you're in the loan, the less costly those upfront fees will be.

-- Weigh the choices. That same borrower could pay less up front if she were willing to borrow less and take a so-called HECM Saver loan. You can also opt for a fixed-rate reverse mortgage, which could protect you if you expect to hold it for many years and rates rise. But it could end up being expensive, because in the typical reverse mortgage, you don't have to tap all of the money at once, but if it's a fixed rate loan, you do have to borrow the full amount when you take the loan.

-- Don't go solo if you're married. Most of the problems Constantine-Davis has seen involve older couples where the lender convinced the borrower to remove the younger spouse from the home deed and therefore, the loan. That enables the borrower to get more cash out of the house, but also makes the loan become due when that borrowing spouse dies. It can leave the second spouse in the lurch. It's safer to make sure both homeowners are on the deed.

-- Look at other alternatives. If you have home equity and are not squeezed to the max, consider a regular home equity line of credit first, suggests Fulton. You'll have to make payments, but you will have extra cash available for home repairs and emergencies, typically at lower rates and costs, than you will with a reverse loan. She tells strapped retirees that they are better off selling their home, pulling out their equity and downsizing than hanging onto a home they cannot afford. When you have a reverse mortgage, you still have to make sure you have enough cash to keep up with the real estate taxes or home insurance.

-- Don't take a reverse loan just to invest money. Some folks have been talked into borrowing against their homes just to hand money to an unscrupulous salesperson pushing expensive annuities. It's rarely a good idea to pull money out of your house at comparatively high costs, just to buy another financial product. If the same person that's peddling the loan is also telling you what to do with the proceeds, beware.

 3:31:20 PM Thursday, October 27, 2011

Karl LeBlanc

LeaderOne Mortgage

Homeownership Made Easy

Licensed In Texas and Louisiana

NMLS # 164664

LeaderOne Financial 

Karl LeBlanc

281-298-5322

 Tuesday, October 18, 2011

 11:03:15 AM

Nearly 300 acres near Kingwood has been purchased after a foreclosure by a company that plans to restore a project once slated for the Montgomery County tract.

The new owner, WR Forest, is essentially picking up where the former owner left off.

The property, known as the Woodridge Forest develop-ment, was previously owned by Kimball Hill Homes and Terramark Communities. Kimball Hill, a Chicago-based builder active in the starter home market, filed for bankruptcy in 2008, and the property was never developed.

About 800 lots will be built on the site, which is east of U.S. 59 along Northpark Drive next to Kingwood. St. Martha Catholic Church and Woodridge Baptist Church own large parcels nearby where new facilities are under way or planned.

New homes are expected to be available in the spring of next year, said Harry Masterson of Cernus Development, which is managing the development for the land owner.

While the area's housing market is still in recovery mode, Masterson said, there's been little new development on the east side of U.S. 59 and builders are getting nervous about having enough lots to develop once demand returns. He also said the time it takes to develop lots could get longer based on proposed regulatory changes by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

"We've seen builders get more aggressive about positioning," he said.

The property was purchased from Wells Fargo. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler marketed the site for the lender.

Masterson said homes in Woodridge Forest, which lies in the New Caney school district, will average $250,000.

Tackling the Down Payment: 3 Ways the Savvy Agent can Help

The many dimensions of buyer readiness all boil down to two major factors: motivation and cash on hand. Our recently released American Dream Home Survey showed that there are plenty of renters that hope to one-day own a home. Our stats showed just fewer than 60 percent of those surveyed intend on purchasing a home. That means motivation isn’t the primary issue.

So what’s intimidating your future clients? The down payment.

When it came down to home buying obstacles, the down payment was the single largest hurdle ownership hopefuls said they are facing. In an era of a fluctuating stock market, high-consumer debt levels, and rising costs to rent, it’s hard for tomorrow’s homeowners to put pennies aside to reach their dream.

So how do you help the consumer with too little cash on hand?

1) Know your financing

Every buyer’s circumstances, credit history, and resources are different. It pays for an agent to know the government programs and local lenders who provide down-payment assistance. While special financing programs won’t help in every scenario, checking into your local and federal options will help you inform your potential clients of how much work stands between them and the homeownership dream.

2) Be straightforward

Home ownership is a rosy thought for many. However, as an agent one of your greatest responsibilities is to be an advisor. That means you have to be willing to tell your buyers the truth. And if home ownership is not within reach right now, be willing to say so and use the opportunity to advise and help your clients over the savings and down payment hurdles.

3) Encourage some good ole fashioned savings

When it comes to ownership, nothing beats preparation. When assistance programs fail, encourage your buyers to do things the old fashioned way. That means first figuring out what they can actually afford (check out this post for tips on figuring out affordability) and two encouraging your clients to come up with a savings plan.

The down payment hurdle is a serious obstacle for buyers and agents, but for the agents who take the time to counsel their buyers and help them over it, there’s a commission on the other side.

 Thursday, October 06, 2011 11:31:16 AM

Karl LeBlanc

LeaderOne Financial

 3:32:42 PM Tuesday, September 20, 2011A very wise person once told me that “successful people get results
and unsuccessful people get excuses”. Since then I have tried to live
life with no excuses. It is a constant challenge to keep that promise,
and the “age” excuse is the one the keeps boiling to the top; it’s the
easiest one to indulge….

No matter where I travel, when the topic of technology/change comes up, I hear “I’m too old to change” and they are usually younger than I am.

Don’t become Blockbuster

The sad reality is, if you don’t welcome change you could become the next Blockbuster Video. 10 years ago they had it all until the small upstart Netflix made the conversion from warehousing to online downloadable movies. Blockbuster watched their market share shrink and their stores close. Is that the business model that you would like to follow? Is that the life model that will guide your future? Are you ready to retire?

Today’s toys are tomorrow’s tools: The iPad launched in April 2010, the modern day cell phone in the early 1980’s, smart phones in 2000, the modern car is just over 100 years old, yet very few homes are without them today.

When change confronts us, lines in the sand are drawn but you would be aghast today if someone told you they did not drive a car, or have a phone number. We adapted and we learned.

Does age force that adaptation to stop or do we just feel overwhelmed and tired? There is no doubt that the amount of change has increased but is slowing it down the answer or is engaging new technology the solution…why not bring back that child’s sense of wonder?

Nobody in today’s working world was born into technology…we have all had to adapt. Each one of us will make our own personal decisions but we now live in a digital world and need to get used to it.

In my 50’s I found myself parenting my parents…the hardest job I undertook and was never trained for…but I did it because there were no options. Did I really believe it when I was promised that life would get easier as I got older? I was set up and fell for it!

What is a VA Loan?

The VA Loan began in 1944 through the original Servicemen's Readjustment Act, also known as the GI Bill of Rights. The GI Bill was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and provided veterans with a federally guaranteed home with no down payment. This feature was designed to provide housing and assistance for veterans and their families, and the dream of home ownership became a reality for millions of veterans. VA guaranteed loans are made by private lenders, such as banks, savings & loans, or mortgage companies to eligible veterans for the purchase of a home, which must be for their own personal occupancy. The guaranty means the lender is protected against loss if you or a later owner fails to repay the loan. The guaranty replaces the protection the lender normally receives by requiring a down payment allowing you to obtain favorable financing terms.

Who is eligible for a VA Loan?

Wartime/Conflict Veterans

Wartime/Conflict Veterans who were not dishonorably discharged, and served at least 90 days:

• World War II - September 16, 1940 to July 25, 1947
• Korean Conflict - June 27, 1950 to January 31, 1955
• Vietnam Era - August 5, 1964 to May 7, 1975
• Persian Gulf War - Check with VA regional office for specific eligibility.
• Afghanistan and Iraq - Check the VA's Web site for eligibility guidelines for current service in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Peacetime Service

Peacetime service of at least 181 days of continuous active duty with no dishonorable discharge. If you were discharged earlier due to a service-connected disability, you should speak with the regional VA office to verify eligibility.

• July 26, 1947 to June 26, 1950
• February 1, 1955 to August 4, 1964, or
• May 8, 1975 to September 7, 1980 (enlisted) or to October 16, 1981 (officer)
• Enlisted veterans whose service began after September 7, 1980, or officers whose service began after October 16, 1981, must normally have served at least two years.

Reserves and National Guard

Members who have completed six years of service and have been honorably discharged (or are still serving) may be eligible for a VA loan. Contact your regional VA office for more details.

Other Qualifying Service

Other types of service that may make you eligible for a VA loan:

• Certain US citizens who served in the armed forces of a government allied with the United States during World War II.
• Surviving spouses of eligible persons who died as the result of service or service-connected injuries. The surviving spouse must not have remarried.
• The spouse of any member of the Armed Forces serving on active duty who has been listed as a prisoner of war or missing in action for more than 90 days.

What type of home can I buy with a VA loan?

A VA home loan must be used to finance your personal residence within the United States or its territories, but you have many choices regarding the type of home you purchase.

• Existing single family home.
• Townhouse or condo in a VA-approved project.
• New construction residence.
• A manufactured home and/or lot.
• Home refinances. Certain types of home improvements.

How do I apply for a VA guaranteed loan?

You can apply for a VA loan with any mortgage lender that participates in the VA home loan program. At some point, you will need to get a Certificate of Eligibility from VA to prove to the lender that you are eligible for a VA loan. You can apply for a Certificate of Eligibility by submitting a completed VA Form 26-1880, Request For A Certificate of Eligibility For Home Loan Benefits, to one of the VA Eligibility Centers, along with proof of military service. In some cases it may be possible for VA to establish eligibility without your proof of service. However, to avoid any possible delays, it's best to provide such evidence.

I have already obtained one VA loan. Can I get another one?

Yes, your eligibility is reusable depending on the circumstances. Normally, if you have paid off your prior VA loan and disposed of the property, you can have your used eligibility restored for additional use. Also, on a one-time only basis, you may have your eligibility restored if your prior VA loan has been paid in full but you still own the property. In either case, to obtain restoration of eligibility, the veteran must send VA a completed VA Form 26-1880 to one of the VA Eligibility Centers. To prevent delays in processing, it is also advisable to include evidence that the prior loan has been paid in full and, if applicable, the property disposed of. This evidence can be in the form of a paid-in-full statement from the former lender, or a copy of the HUD-1 settlement statement completed in connection with a sale of the property or refinance of the prior loan.

What are the benefits of a VA Loan?

• 100% financing, no down payment loans are common.
• No Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI).
• No penalties if you prepay the loan.
• Competitive interest rates.
• Loan qualification is sometimes easier than if you were applying for a conventional loan.
• Sellers can pay all closing costs.

What are the negatives of a VA Loan?

• VA loans made prior to March 1, 1988, can be assumed with no qualifying of the new buyer. If a buyer of such a property defaults, the veteran homeowner may be liable for funds.
• Some sellers may be hesitant to work with someone who is acquiring a VA loan because of their past reputation of taking longer to process than conventional loans. While the time may still be a little longer, getting a VA loan is not the lengthy ordeal it once was.
• Sellers are often asked to pay a portion of closing costs, so they may not be eager to negotiate the sales price of the home.

 11:53:26 AM Wednesday, May 25, 2011