JohnsBlog (articles, news, thoughts, advice)

The USD's (US dollar) days of leading the world currency reserve may be coming to a halt in the very near future as the dollar continues to lose strength to the yen.

A very good article can be found here.

What this would mean is that another country's debt would be more appealing for global investors, and could result in a spike in interest rates as well as a drop in stocks. 

This activity could hurt our economic recovery and bring about the dreaded double dip that many investors and economists fear.  If Sumitomo is correct, we could see a very prolonged recovery lasting into 2012, which could be devastating when coupled with the foreclosures crisis that is still going on.  While all of this is currently theory, it goes along with the technical signals I've been seeing, and is currently hidden under stock gains which I don't truly see as sustainable. 

As I predicted the ripple effect the mortgage meltdown would have on the economy, I'm playing Nostradamus again here and saying that our markets are not as pretty as they appear, and there is still a lot of frailty in both banks and their correspondents which could rear their ugly heads sooner than later.  Mark my words and come back to this post when the markets head south again...and if they don't, you can try to come back here, but you may find this blog deleted ; )

Hope everyone is enjoying the cold, rainy Noreaster in the Northeast!

Reported on Bloomberg.com, I simply copied and pasted.  Good stuff!

Oct. 27 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Senate leaders moved closer to an agreement replacing an expiring $8,000 tax credit for first- time homebuyers with a smaller one that would expand access to so-called step-up purchasers, two people familiar with the matter said.

The deal would reduce the size of the tax credit to 10 percent of the sale’s price, capped at $7,290, the people said. The credit would be available on home purchases that are under contract by April 30, and borrowers would have 60 days more to close the sale. The existing credit is due to end Nov. 30.

The new agreement, which is still being negotiated and may change, would grant the credit to borrowers who have lived in their current home for at least five years. Lawmakers want to keep home sales from slipping as the economy struggles to recover from the worst drop in home prices since the Great Depression.

The demand for new homes and condominiums may increase by “more than two times because you’re allowing step-up buyers into the equation,” said Andrew Parmentier, a managing partner at Height Analytics, a research firm in Washington. “ You just opened up a whole new pool of people who can buy into those empty homes and empty condos that were built out.”

The income eligibility for first-time homebuyers would remain the same at $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for couples. The income criteria for step-up buyers would be $125,000 for individuals and $250,000 for couples.

The credit would be limited to homes costing $800,000 or less. There is currently no price cap on home purchases.

Unemployment-Benefits Bill

Lawmakers are trying to attach the legislation, which is also being considered by leaders in the House, to a bill extending unemployment benefits under debate on the Senate floor, said Richard Durbin of Illinois, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat.

Senator Bill Nelson, a Florida Democrat, told reporters yesterday of the tax credit that “we should be able to extend that later this week.” Nelson was traveling with President Barack Obama on Air Force One to a speech in Jacksonville, Florida.

Lawmakers are also considering pairing the new homebuyer credit with a broader tax benefit for businesses with net operating losses, and passing that as a separate bill. The tax break, a priority for homebuilders, would allow companies to apply losses incurred in 2008 and 2009 to amend up to five years worth of earlier tax returns to get a refund of taxes paid in years when they were profitable.

That provision, along with the step-up, would be “extremely positive for the homebuilders,” Parmentier said.

A version of the benefit was included in February’s economic stimulus bill, though it was limited to companies with receipts under $15 million. Business groups, including the Washington-based National Association of Manufacturers and National Association of Home Builders, lobbied unsuccessfully to have the benefit expanded to larger companies.

To contact the reporters on this story: Dawn Kopecki in Washington at dkopecki@bloomberg.com; To contact the reporters on this story: Ryan J. Donmoyer in Washington at rdonmoyer@bloomberg.net.

Well I've known for a while through happy hour conversations with colleagues at the big banks that all isn't right with the world.  I regularly hear quotes that customers get from Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citi that are very competitive.  I can usually beat their rates and terms, however one aspect that I feel many people overlook where I SHATTER the competition is CUSTOMER SERVICE! 

Here's some news folks.  If you call Louviers Mortgage, you don't get an operating system.  We have a call system that puts you directly into my voicemail, and gives you access to my coworkers and processors in the instance I can't be reached for some reason.  Here are 3 examples I've seen JUST TODAY from 3 of the biggest lenders out there, and are reasons why you, as a borrower, should be working with someone that can offer great rates in addition to great customer service and personalized attention.

Example 1....received via e-mail from a REALTOR working with Bank of America.  Against, this is not my experience, simply an e-mail that was forwarded. 

My realtor got very frustrated with voicemail hell at B of A and finally sent in this email:

"It has been my experience that trying to get through all the options on
the phone numbers just to get through to a human is impossible. How about
you call me? I will be here all day tomorrow from about 10-4."

To which she received the following reply:


"We have received your request for a telephone call from Bank of America.
We regret that we cannot make outbound telephone calls via e-mail
request. If you would like to communicate with us through e-mail, please
reply to this e-mail with the details of your concerns.
If you would prefer to speak with a customer service specialist, we will
be happy to assist you by phone at 1.888.287.4637. We are available
between 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday,
Eastern Time. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause."

So, if you send them an email, they can only reply by email. Yet if you call them by phone, you will eventually get put thru to a general voice mail where you must leave a message. Am I the only one that finds this ridiculous?

Example 2...received directly via email from a divorce attorney.  I've blocked out any personal information for obvious reasons.

So citi sends me an e-mail yesterday morning saying that I was closing yesterday. I immediately respond and ask who to send ______’s info to so he could do it for. The processor e—mails backs and says the closer will be in touch. An hour goes by and nothing. By the way the processor is in MO and the closer is in NV. Then I get an e-mail from the closer who says the notary will be out to my house to do the closing. I immediately contact her and tell her that my state is an attorney closing state. She didn’t know that it was. Woops. So another hour goes by and I call again for more information and then she send me the name of an attorney I am supposed to settle with at 4:30. I tell her once again that I have my own attorney and she says “oh, no one told me that”. So I then send her all of _____'s info. While at work attempting to make a living I get another email from the closing company which is Equifax where I am informed that they can’t do title in DE and ______ would need to do all of that and the HUD etc. So at that point I was pissed because no one ever disclosed the Equifax couldn’t work in DE. So I talk to ______ and he says just go with their attorney. So it was too late for the 4:30 settlement so I choose a lawyer from the list they gave me and waited to be told when to be at the lawyer’s office. I finally get a call from some other closer indicating that the HUD was done and he went over the costs with me for the first time. (By the way I have been asking about closing costs since well forever!). So he goes over the HUD which seems right but how do I know since they didn’t send it to me. But they have my taxes too low so I tell him to raise the taxes because I need to make up for this dip into the reserve account. He has no clue what I am talking about and after 20 minutes of going round and round I gave up! So I ask him when I am closing and he says not sure. He’ll call me right back. So I tell him that I have to run an errand by the lawyer’s office so just call my cell phone and I can get over there in 5 mins. The lawyer’s office is by the mall. So I run my errand. An hour goes by and no call. So I am wandering around the  Mall just waiting and waiting. So I call him. No answer. Call again, no answer. Then I give up and go home. Turns out they sent the attorney to my house without telling me. So I stood up the attorney without even knowing it!. Let’s just say the level of mad I was last night cannot be topped. So I have a call into a manager over there. He was nice but we’ll see how this goes.

Example 3...what happened to one of my past clients today

They received a call from their attorney that Wells Fargo needed the mortgage signed again (6 months after closing) because they lost the signed mortgage note!  The MORTGAGE NOTE aka the most important document in the whole process.  My borrower calls Wells Fargo, and Wells Fargo has no record of requesting anything and can't help my borrower at all.  My borrower is rightfully cautious to sign a document so long after settlement.  Now they're playing phone tag with attorneys and Wells Fargo to try to sort it out.  What a mess!

I found it amusing that I got these 3 stories today from 3 different banks (who, by the way, all received TARP funds during the government bailout).  These banks continuing to operate in the fashion they do is scary.  There is complete disregard to customer service, and it's appalling.  Be smart when shopping folks, the big banks are the big banks for one reason.....they make more money off their clients than us ; )

Hey Everyone,

Just a reminder that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, and this is a very important topic to me.  There are a TON of opportunities to contribute time and money towards awareness and the search to find a cure.

Did you know that nearly 200,000 new cases of breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed JUST THIS YEAR?  More than 40,000 deaths are expected as well.  These numbers are much too high, and only with support and awareness will this horrible disease be destroyed.

Visit www.nbcam.org to learn more, and find a way to contribute this month to help find a cure!

~John

Time is winding down on the first time homebuyer tax credit.  This tax credit of 10% of the purchase price of a new home (up to $8000) is set to expire November 30th.  It's important to keep in mind, DON'T WAIT to settle on November 30th as the deed must be recorded by that date.

With the influx of activity and purchases likely to take place at the end of November, it would be unwise to wait til the last minute for fear a delay may cost you $8000!!!

Underwriting turn times are fairly lengthy at the moment due to underwriters getting used to new federal guidelines (driving me crrraaaazy) so it's a good idea to get your offers and loans in ASAP!

There have been no new updates as to whether the tax credit is going to continue, so it's very important to get out there and take advantage while rates are still historically at their lowest levels!