A Christmas Gift to You, BK Short-Sale and Foreclosure Waiting Periods, FHA Flips through 2012

Having grown up in Utah, my family of six children was not uncommon. My parents, Ralph and Kathryn, after 52 years together are proud to say that from their six children they have 21 grandkids and 5 1/2 great-grandkids. As you can imagine, family dinner at my house has always been pure chaos. But it is that chaos that I miss every holiday and why I have always returned home as often as I could. This past year, however, did not permit much travel, so I had not been home since last year at this time. As such, this past Thanksgiving at my parents was momentous for me. All six children and all but 4 grandkids spent some time at my parents house over the holiday, including spouses and a few strays brought home from college. You would imagine that it would be difficult to have that many personalities in the same household without challenges. But this year was a blessing. This year brought solidarity, and at least for me, a grateful opportunity to mend broken fences and learn an important lesson about my life.

I am the fifth of six children with a mix of five girls and one boy. Needless to say, my brother had a lot of attention, good and bad, placed on him. As his younger sister, I idolized him, I wanted to please him and make him proud of me, whether he wanted the attention or not. After college, he married a girl from St. Louis and moved to the Midwest to complete dental school. His wife was just a few years older than me and we became friends. She was from a great family, she was smart, fun and of course, beautiful. Their life appeared to be the fairytale just as I wanted. But like the way life goes, their fairytale was not without its share of evil witches. Over their twenty some years of marriage, we grew apart, nothing of legends, just many years of growing up and learning that life isn't a fairytale.

It was about 3 years ago that I had last expected to see her, but she did not make the trip to Utah with my brother for a family event celebrating PJ and my marriage. I wasn't surprised. But when my mom called PJ, to tell him my brother and his boys were leaving on the first flight in the morning back to St. Louis, I was taken aback. Out for a run while her family was away, my sister in law had a seizure and was in critical condition in the hospital.

We learned over the next few weeks that she had an inoperable brain tumor that the doctors estimated had been growing for over twenty years. She was given less than six months to live and those months would be spent in and out of treatments, chemotherapy and hospitals. She found out that traditional protocols were not working to shrink the tumor but were in fact speeding up its growth, so experimental treatments were given to extend her life. I can now only imagine how difficult that time was for their family and I'm embarrassed that not once did I reach out to her.

I had not yet spoken to her when I was diagnosed with breast cancer this year. Even though one of the initial cards I received was from her and she included a gift for me, a book on Courage. In fact, it was that book from which I pulled the quote, "courage is not the absence of fear, but moving forward in spite of fear," to let my business partners know about my own battle.

Along with my brother and three of her four boys, she made the trip to Utah this year for Thanksgiving as well. When we finally spoke I immediately felt a change in her. I hoped she saw the change in me. I had the opportunity to spend some time with her alone and we spoke about treatments and healing, difficulties and finally death.

Other than a few moments of uncertainty and fear of my diagnosis, I never thought much about my own mortality. But she awakes every morning facing death's door. She has long surpassed her doctor's expectation of her life, but she has never stopped living it.

When she talked of her own survival, she knew her time was short. Her goal was to survive until July when her son returns from a two year stay in Chile. This took me back as to how final that felt. How would it be to ultimately know that today was your last? She was content. She lived the past three years exactly as she wanted to live it. She couldn't say, I'll do better tomorrow, or I'll change tomorrow, what she would be was determined today.

Knowing only slightly the tremendous amount pain, suffering and fear she has endured, I could not help being amazed at how she has embraced this tragedy for the opportunities it gave her. Imagine for a minute if you knew how long you had left to live, what would you do different? Would you argue with your spouse or children less? Would you let things go unsaid or would you challenge yourself to do more? Would your personal and professional goals be different?

My sister in law chose to spend her days traveling to Egypt and the Holy Land. She went on a photographic African safari and she spent time in Paris. But more importantly she became the mother, wife and friend she wanted to be.

What a tremendous gift that my sister in law gave me this year. She made me look at my own life and ask "how do I want to spend the last days of my life?"

I want to make a difference...in the lives of my family, friends and customers. Others have given so much to me, so I want to be able to say I have given back. That I made someone's life better, because I was a part of it. As the year comes to a close, it is the perfect time to reflect on our lives and look forward with a plan to become better personally and professionally.

Even though I know I will beat breast cancer, I also know that every single day I am one day closer to my last, be it in 6 months or 60 years from now, and I want them to count.

I wish each of you a Merry Christmas and hope you have an incredible New Year!

Thank you for your business, your referrals, your kind words and your friendship.















Foreclosure, Bankruptcy and Short Sale Waiting Periods


FNMA, FHLMC, FHA and VA Requirements

2012 already has the economists predicting another tough year for the real estate industry. Property values, economic and unemployment concerns as well as legislative and regulatory measures look to reduce production even more. While this ominous outlook may scare the faint of heart, it makes the true professionals in our field dig deep and find new ways to earn market share.

One niche, not to be ignored is your own previous client database. Those clients that you represented in a short-sale or assisted in bankruptcy or foreclosure may be your best asset in 2012...if you know the rules.

My Christmas gift to you is the knowledge of how to find these customers.

Review the attached WAITING PERIODS CHART to see what customers of yours may be eligible to purchase this year. Be proactive with your clients before someone else is.

Keep in mind that you will want to prepare those clients who may be eligible, about 6 months prior to their eligibility. This will allow time to fix any erroneous credit items, build or establish new credit or possibly save for the down payment.

I hope this tool will help you with your business in 2012. We would love to be your lender this year! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact myself or Greg.

FHA Extends the Property "Flipping" Waiver through 2012

We will do FHA Property Flips Greater than 120%

On December 22, 2011, in an effort to continue stabilizing home values and improve conditions in communities experiencing high foreclosure activity, FHA announced they would extend FHA's temporary waiver of the anti-flipping regulations.

With certain exceptions, FHA prohibits insuring a mortgage on a home owned by the seller for less than 90 days. In 2010, FHA temporarily waived this regulation through January 31, 2011, and later extended that waiver through the remainder of 2011. The new extension will permit buyers to continue to use FHA financing to purchase HUD-owned properties, bank-owned properties, or properties resold through private sales. It will allow homes to resell as quickly as possible, helping to stabilize real estate prices and to revitalize neighborhoods and communities.

The extension is effective through December 31, 2012, unless otherwise extended or withdrawn by FHA. All other terms of the existing Waiver will remain the same. The Waiver contains strict conditions and guidelines to prevent the predatory practice of property flipping, in which properties are quickly resold at inflated prices to unsuspecting borrowers. The Waiver is limited with the following conditions:

•All transactions must be arms-length, with no identity of interest between the buyer and seller or other parties participating in the sales transaction.
•In cases in which the sales price of the property is 20 percent or more above the seller's acquisition cost, the Waiver will only apply if the lender meets specific conditions and documents the justification for the increase in value.

There are additional documentation requirements for properties pursued under this waiver, so please contact me if you have any questions!

Ha Ha
A Russian couple was walking down the street in St. Petersburg the other night, when the man felt a drop hit his nose. "I think it's raining," he said to his wife.

"No, that felt more like snow to me," she replied. "No, I'm sure it was just rain, he said."

Well, as these things go, they were about to have a major argument about whether it was raining or snowing. Just then they saw a minor communist party official walking toward them.

"Let's not fight about it," the man said, "let's ask Comrade Rudolph whether it's officially raining or snowing."

As the official approached, the man said, "Tell us, Comrade Rudolph, is it officially raining or snowing?"

"It's raining, of course," he answered and walked on. But the woman insisted: "I know that felt like snow!" To which the man quietly replied:

"Rudolph the Red knows rain, dear!"

Thanksgiving Gratitude

I would guess that everyone has a favorite holiday. I actually have several, so when I was young, I divided them into subcategories. These were well thought out, time tested and each had their specific reasons for their placement. As an example, my favorite gift-giving holiday is Christmas followed closely by my birthday, the order determined because of the volume of gifts. My favorite non-gift-giving holiday is Halloween because I love the creativity of the costumes and it reminds me of fall, which is my favorite season.  My favorite partial gift-giving holiday is Valentine's Day, as it is always fun to celebrate love. I also have least favorite holidays as well; for example, Easter is my least favorite partial gift-giving holiday because my family never got in to the extravagant gift baskets and since we went to church every Sunday my parents did not feel it was an event that necessitated a new dress. Finally, my least favorite non-gift-giving holiday has always been Thanksgiving. There are several reasons for this. Primarily, I would take ham over turkey any day, and second of all I don't like to cook. I wish I had that gene, but I just don't and my family is well aware of it. Lastly, I never understood the desire to stuff yourself to the point of misery, then of course since I don't do the meal preparation, I ultimately have the job of cleaning up, which is right up there with my disdain of cooking!

As you can see, my categorization system has always been superficial at best as I spent so much time caught up in the "celebration" of the holiday, rather than the true meaning behind most of these events. This year, however, has given me so many opportunities for gratitude that I can't express how much I welcome this season of giving thanks. What has been given to me over the past year, I don't think I could thank enough people, enough times to parlay how grateful I have been.

I think being sick for so long has made me recognize how the smallest things make such a big impact in a life. Or maybe it is the uncertainty of adversity that has us recognize the small acts of kindness, blessings we forget about or even inspirational influences of others that make us eternally grateful for the life we have been given, even with its many challenges.

You may know that my family is of the "yours, mine and ours" variety. PJ has a 17 year old son and 14 year old daughter from a previous marriage as do I with my 11 year old daughter. Kate, the two year old, is ours together although it is often that we think she is the spawn of the devil. What many may not know is that Mary, the 14 year old is autistic in the Asperger's spectrum. If you don't know, those with Asperger's are typically characterized as having significant difficulty with social interaction. They tend to be very literal, missing non-verbal cues and communicate without a filter. PJ's daughter is very high-functioning in many ways. She has good and bad subjects in school; she has Bieber "fever" with posters of the star all over her room and has moments of teenage sass that often tries my patience. But at home it is easy to forget her struggles, that is until she is placed in an unfamiliar setting or environment when her anxiety skyrockets and she completely melts down.

But our family has spent the last four years doing what we can to help her out of the isolation she sometimes creates for herself. We have encouraged her to become more engaged with girls her age, getting her more involved in church programs and trying to get her more comfortable in social settings. These girls from church are tremendous and have been nothing but kind and genuine with her. In fact, there was a church youth dance this past weekend and Mary was invited to go with a girl her age. This girl is beautiful, bubbly and kind. She invited her to come early so they could get ready together and of course...be fashionably late. Even though this young girl has many friends and her outer beauty is apparent, she showed me how beautiful she is on the inside through her selfless care of our daughter. 

About an hour after they arrived at the dance, PJ got a text from the girl saying that he may need to come pick them up because our daughter was crying and didn't want to stay as she didn't know anyone and it was a loud new environment. This young girl, with plenty of friends went out of her way to comfort Mary, help her and looked after when she could have easily been embarrassed and upset when her night had been ruined. Not many teens would be more concerned with a friend who needed such care, than her own good time.

I felt horrible all night that Mary would be embarrassed and be even less willing to expand her social interactions and that her friend would also regret extending herself to the benefit of our daughter. Yet, the next morning, she came down for breakfast and I told her I was sorry she did not have a good time at her dance, and much to my surprise her response was, "it was ok...I was just nervous because it was my first dance." She went on to tell me how she was even asked to dance once. She literally beamed while she spoke of an event that many youth take for granted. You could see in her eyes how good she felt to be included in something that was age appropriate and with someone she could call a friend. As a parent, or in this case, a step parent, I was filled with such gratitude for this small act of kindness not only for this beautiful young friend, but for her parents for raising such a good influence on others. I doubt this young girl will ever realize the full impact she had on us that night.

Having never experienced the health challenges that I have endured this year, I have had my eyes opened wide to the incredible compassion of others. In a time where I have felt the least confident, the least independent and the most useless, I have been the recipient of such incredible acts of selfless kindness. I have had so many shoulders to cry on, I have had very personal gifts sent from strangers and I have been constantly reminded that people care about me, which in the toughest times have kept me going. At 40 years old, finally I have genuinely felt the importance of Thanksgiving. It is not about the food or the time off or even cleaning dirty dishes. It is the daily reminder of the blessings we have. It is the awareness of the good in others, the gratitude you can't express because a simple "thank you" would not be sufficient and it is the warmth of knowing how blessed our lives are because of the compassion of others.

This year, Thanksgiving means more to me than any of my frivolous holiday categorizations. It is my chance to remember and give thanks to you for helping me and my family through some very difficult trials. But more than anything, it is my opportunity to spend time with my family who has been my foundation to get through this long road to survive cancer. I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you will have the opportunity to recognize all of those who have selflessly been there for you this year.
Have a Happy and Safe Thanksgiving.

Ha Ha
Grandma: What would you like for dessert, Joey?
Joey: Pumpkin pie!
Grandma: Pumpkin pie, what, dear? Say the magic word.
Joey: I'm sorry, Grandma. Pumpkin pie, abracadabra

Changing Perspective and HARP 2.0

A few weeks ago I spoke to a very professional group of real estate agents on "Changing Perspectives...FHA is SO 2010!" A class based upon reevaluating conventional mortgage insurance as a way to drive new business. I began this class with two questions... "How many of you think that the real estate market is incredibly tough?" Most hands raised in the room. I also asked, "Has anyone ever just thought about giving up, that it may not be worth it?" Still, hands remained, even in this this room of successful and career agents. I agreed, especially in this past year, where I felt that enough was enough. I mean, the AZ mortgage and real estate market, the political landscape and if that weren't enough...breast cancer? Just like many others, I have had my "bad" days, my "feel sorry for me because I have things so tough" days. But as I told those in class, a change in my perspective was needed.


A few days prior I had a "Doctor Day", a day that my husband and I spent most of our time at doctor's appointments. Those days are more difficult as both of us work and it is challenging to get everything done.

Our first appointment was with my plastic surgeon, William Leighton, who made a name for himself in his field many years ago, but more recent his infamy came from the fact that he was the plastic surgeon to former Phoenix police officer Jason Schechterly, who was severely burned after his police cruiser blew up.

Usually, we would be done and on to the next appointment in less than 30 minutes. But that day, we were informed that Dr. Leighton would be a few minutes late as he had an emergency he had to handle in the office. As we waited, the stress of the delay began. Again, the nurses came out to apologize for the delay, and we waited. At this point, my husband and I unexpectedly had both been away from our phones and computers for close to an hour and my patience for this "emergency" had long gone and now my concern for making my next appointment grew. When the nurse finally said he would see me, I passed the "emergency" woman in the hall. She had her head wrapped, but you could see the visible stitches around her eyes and nose and the obvious swell and bruises you would expect from facial surgery.

As PJ and I walked in to the exam room, I turned to him and spitefully said, "Seriously...a face lift? That was the emergency???" And in my self-absorbed brain, I thought, really?? I have cancer and I have so much to get done in such a small amount of time, things are so hard, and it's the end of the month and clients are getting upset and stressed, now I'm going to be late for the next doctor and I am never going to get everything done!

But Dr. Leighton came right in and apologized for the delay and, before I could stop myself I said, "So...did a stitch break in her face lift?" But what I heard next will forever be a reminder to me that sometimes our perspective may be wrong, and we are in control to change it.

Dr. Leighton said to me, "Oh, I have to tell you about that woman, she is so incredible." He told us a story about how he had missed a flight, and while he was stuck waiting he happened to sit next to this woman who had severe burns all over her face. They chatted and he finally asked her what had happened. She described how her family returned from vacation and she went to start dinner. With her children in tow, she went to the kitchen and turned on the stove. Unbeknownst to her, the regulator had broken and the stove blew up in their faces. One child was sent to Shriner's in Boston, the other in Houston and she was treated at home in Tucson. Amazed by her story, Dr. Leighton asked her how many more surgeries she had left, but to his surprise she said, "Oh no, I am done. We have tapped out our insurance and they won't pay anymore." So he gave her his card and told her, "When you get back home, call me."

I already felt horrible for my terrible attitude and outlook that I possessed just minutes earlier, but Dr. Leighton continued. This woman did in fact call and as he put it, "it was the coolest thing!" He used "expanders", just like I have now, but he put them in her neck to stretch her skin enough to be able to cut away the burn and pull her new "expanded" skin up to be stitched under her eyes, ears and mouth, hence why she looked as if she had a face lift. He excitedly continued, as if I could not feel worse, that he had been able to get the expander company, the hospital, the anesthesiologist and of course himself to donate their time and facilities to help this woman he met solely because he had missed his flight. He told us her bandages had been removed the day before but one of her stitches that held up her cheek broke, thus the emergency that morning.

So I sat there, uncomfortable and sore as the doctor injected saline into my own expanders to stretch my skin enough to eventually hold the implants in place and I thought about how good I had it. I was embarrassed about how quick I had let such insignificant irritants affect my entire mood. It was so easy to fall into the "poor me" negativity and attitude. At that moment, however, my perspective changed. I sat there and thought about how much a delayed flight had meant to this woman's life, and how incredibly lucky I was.

Understand that what I have endured has not been easy. Breast cancer is difficult. There are horrible days. Days that I don't get out of bed or want to. It made me sick. It continues to hurt. It forced me to think about things that I don't want to have to think about. It has been very hard for my supportive family. My husband should be the one with the moniker of "Survivor" for all he has had to go through. But that morning while I sat at my surgeon's office, I realized how much good I had around me. I was given the chance to have my perspective changed, and I took it.

We face so many challenges in life; at home, at work, the aggravations seem so important and horrible that we evaluate everything from that viewpoint. Yet, somehow we survived. When I look back, I see so many of my struggles were temporary. They were just bumps in the road. Granted, some bumps have felt like my muffler was ripped off, but bumps just the same. Nonetheless, as hard as it was to see through these difficulties, I should have used those occasions to find opportunities, to learn, to grow, to prosper and often to impact others in positive ways.

So I make this challenge to each of you as I did to the real estate group that day. How can you change your perspective to recognize hidden opportunities for good? With so many difficulties that surround us day to day, I believe we can make an impact in our personal and professional lives with even the slightest change in our perspective.

I hope you have a great and prosperous weekend. Please let me know if I can be of assistance to you or your clients.


A Life-Preserver for Those with Underwater Mortgages

Is This for Real? Understanding the Options to Refinance

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, had announced a series of changes to the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) in an effort to attract more eligible borrowers who can benefit from refinancing their home mortgage, ie those homeowner's who are "underwater" by more than 125%. HARP 2.0 as it has been aptly named, has the potential to help thousands of homeowner's in Arizona who can afford their homes and who have made their payments and who could free up cash-flow through a refinance.

Although lenders are not expected to be able to offer the program (through the Automated Underwriting System) until December 1, guidelines detailing the program have been promised on November 15th by the agencies. One thing to remember is based upon earlier details...YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO REFINANCE THROUGH YOUR CURRENT SERVICER. The expectation of the industry is that Arizona will be a major recipient of those who intend to use the program, so my suggestion is to contact me as soon as possible with your contact information and address to make sure you are in line before the pipelines get clogged. Your current loan MUST be a FNMA or FHLMC owned loan originated prior to May 31, 2009 to qualify for this program.

But don't forget that if you or your clients have an FHA or VA loan that is underwater, there are also programs available that do not require appraisals that take advantage of the low interest rates.

Ha Ha
Forest Gump had a near-death experience that changed him forever. He went horseback riding one day and everything was going fine until the horse started bouncing out of control. He tried with all his might to hang on, but was thrown off. Just when things could not possibly get any worse, his foot became caught in the stirrup. When this happened, he fell head first to the ground. His head continued to bounce harder as the horse would not stop or even slow down. Just as he was giving up hope and losing consciousness ... a thoughtful K-Mart manager came out and pulled the plug.

The Hand and The Glove and What the VA???

For the past several months I have had the extraordinary pleasure of teaching Sunday school to a remarkable group of 14-15 year old girls at our church. Ironically, the Sunday that proceeded my surgery the lesson was to teach these girls about how each individual is divine and eternal. Basically, it was the standard "what is beautiful on the inside is what is important." Yet this was a profound learning experience to me and somewhat apropos in that the following Friday I would endure a surgery that would, by all accounts, disfigure my body at least we hoped for the short term. My daughter Elli, who is way beyond her 11 years, found the object lesson that I used to relate to the girls, particularly interesting.

The lesson called for several different varieties of gloves, i.e., work gloves, leather gloves, bike gloves, winter gloves etc. Each girl was asked to put on a different glove and tell the purpose of that glove to the group; the consensus being that no matter the glove chosen the only purpose of that glove is to protect and cover the hand. You see, without the hand, the glove has no function, no objective. In other words, what is on the inside is really the part that matters, not at all what covers it on the outside. So no matter what the glove looked like, how pretty, how utile, or how many bells and whistles it had, without the hand underneath, the glove was without usefulness. I guess what they say about "be careful what you wish for" is an understatement because I very much wanted my daughter to understand this concept

It has been a particularly tough few weeks at my house. As chemo ended, one would think the effects would end as well. So just tuck this little nugget of knowledge away for future reference...it's not the case. The neuropathy is still hanging in there and in a cruel joke, there are areas of my hands and feet that actually look and feel as if I have burned myself from the inside out, complete with the dryness, the darkening spots and let's not forget the peeling of the dead skin. If that weren't enough, as an added bonus, my eyebrows and eyelashes waited until AFTER I finished chemo to fall out. So with my fuzzy head and my hairless face and if I walk with a slight limp, I could easily pass for Marty Feldman in his role as Igor in Mel Brooks, "Young Frankenstein."

In addition to these lovely treats, I am home from a bi-lateral mastectomy, with its accompanying wounds and scarring, so I have to say I have been a tad self-conscious. It seems every day as I get up and look in the mirror and my smile starts to fade as the reality of my current juncture of life looks back at me, without fail, there stands my 11 year old reminding me..."It's not about the glove, Mom, it's about the hand."

What can I say, my preference would obviously be an exquisite pair of cashmere lined Italian leather gloves at this point in my life, but as my articulate and intelligent daughter points out, the worn out, weathered ill-fitting work gloves that I have been given have done its job because these gloves made sure they fulfilled their purpose...to protect what is on the inside. In fact these gloves worked overtime to make sure I was reminded about the real importance of the "hand."

What a lesson I have learned about the importance of what's on the inside. The graciousness of those who hardly knew me and some that didn't know me at all, took the time to go out of their way to make me feel special. The customers and clients who knew of my struggles continued to support me even with the knowledge that there might be small trials along the way. Business professionals who knew that a phone call and a desire to do what was right meant more than the easy way out...no matter how hard that phone call was to make. Those who just took the time to say hello and that they have been thinking of me. Those who went the extra mile to help someone in need even when it meant some sacrifice on their part.

A mink fur, hot pink imported designer glove would be great, but without the correct hand underneath, it will not do any of these things that really are important. They don't go out of their way to try to make your life better without regard to how it benefits theirs. I hope I have learned to make sure I put my best "hand" forward, in all I do. Wayne Dyer reminds us, "I cannot always control what goes on outside. But I can always control what goes on inside."

Professionally I think am faced with this concept all the time. Where do I want to refer my business? Who do I want to do business with? Does the flash matter? Is it the latest and greatest trend that I want to chase after or is it the one who through all the easy and tough times works to make sure the job gets done? Do I give my best and do what is right through the good and the bad times?

Although the glove I wear right now might not be my first choice, it is worn and it is tattered yet I feel so lucky. I am alive and on the mend. My pathology reports from surgery have confirmed very excellent results. The invasive cancer was minimal, only one of my lymph nodes of the 11 taken was positive for cancer, which was successfully killed by the chemo and finally the large mass of DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ) was removed. Although the pain of surgery still remains and will continue for a while, I have been given good drugs...ha ha... and there will only be a very small area where radiation will be required. I guess these old work gloves are the ones I needed and I will hold thems close tomy heart.

Thank you again for your continued inspiration and especially your support and business and I hope you have a GREAT week.

Amy


The VA Changes it's Funding Fee, then changes it again and then again...


Loan Fee Structure for VA-Guaranteed Loans


The President signed HR 2646, Veterans Health Facilities Act Capital Improvement Act of 2011 on October 5, 2011.


The bill included a provision resulting in the VA Funding Fees reverting to the same rates that existed prior to the announcement October 1, 2011 for loans closed October 6, 2011 through and including November 17, 2011.

For simplification of what the funding fee is based upon closing dates I have incuded a VA FUNDING FEE CHART here.

Possibility of Future Funding Fee Changes. VA believes it likely that Congress will pass other legislation in the coming weeks that will make additional changes to the funding fee structure. Should this occur, VA will immediately publish a notice on www.benefits.va.gov/homeloans


Ha Ha

If you want to know more about paranoids, follow them around.

The Devil You Know...

I love idioms…not idiots, idioms. Heaven knows I don’t love idiots! Idioms, however, are fascinating. They are described as an expression of two or more words that mean something other than the literal meaning of its individual words. An example of this would be, “the devil you know versus the devil you don’t know.” If I were to use that expression to a group of people, few if any, would actually believe that I had made the acquaintance of Lucifer. They would understand that this statement meant that I may have chosen to remain in dysfunctional “comfort” rather than make a different choice for fear of the unknown.

That idiom has taken up permanent residence in my mind this past week as I hit a couple milestones in my life. I addition to my membership in the coveted 40 and over club, I endured my final treatment of chemotherapy as well. After 18 weeks of “hell”, you would think that I would be doing backflips knowing that this terrible phase of my life was over. Maybe it is the fact that my body feels like it is 80, or maybe it is just that I am so exhausted all the time that the backflips just didn’t happen. Don’t get me wrong, I am glad it is finished, but for some reason I don’t feel the elation I thought I would now that it is over. In fact, it is a little frightening to leave the miserable comfort that had become my life, because now I now have to face what comes next.

Change no matter the benefit is often a scary thing. American author Marilyn Ferguson wrote, “It's not so much that we're afraid of change or so in love with the old ways, but it's that place in between that we fear . . . . It's like being between trapezes. It's Linus when his blanket is in the dryer. There's nothing to hold on to.”

I can honestly say I don’t have much fear about the surgery, I’m not the first to go through it and unfortunately I won’t be the last and radiation appears to be a nuisance more than anything. It is the “unknown” that gets to me; all the devils that I don’t know that make finishing chemo a bittersweet experience.

As awful as chemo was, it is what I knew. I knew the schedule. I knew that other than a slight prick when they stuck the needle in my port that it really wouldn’t hurt. I knew that after about an hour I would get a headache from the steroids which would last for about 30 minutes and soon after that I would get impossibly sleepy from the Benadryl they gave me to thwart off any allergic reactions I could have to the chemicals. I knew that I would be starving when chemo ended and PJ and I would go grab lunch because by the time we finished eating, my body would be drained and ready to rest for the evening. I also knew that I would go back to the oncologist the following day for the shot that would boost my white blood cells. The same shot that would make every inch of my body hurt so much that even a hug from my 10 year old daughter could bring me to painful tears. The bright side was that I knew that pain would subside a little each day until finally the only reminders I had left of the cancer was the chemo port under my skin, the severe tingling in my hands and feet and the reflection I saw of my bald head in the mirror. Although it was the devil, it was the devil that I knew.

It is frightening not to know how you will feel. Scary to wonder how you will handle the upcoming challenges you face. In my case, my thoughts focused on what if something goes wrong? How will my children handle the physical changes of my body after surgery? What will my husband think of me? How will I feel about myself? Surgery is permanent. Even though it means that all the cancer will be gone and I will have survived. There are no “do-overs” if I don’t like this devil that is unknown to me...and that is scary.

Yet in my rational brain, I remind myself that I survived chemotherapy. As miserable as the worst days had been, with a tremendous amount of support, I survived it and it is over. I should be...doing backflips.

So why is it that we embrace the comfort of what we know, even if what we know is miserable? Do we sabotage our successes everyday by hiding in our comfort zone? Does our fear of the unknown paralyze us from moving forward, obtaining our goals or achieving things we did not think possible?

Change, in any form, does not occur without a little discomfort. It might be relocation, a change in jobs, and the birth of a child…or even the end of chemotherapy. I hope that I won’t continue to let the comfort of the “devil I know” keep me from the possible paradise that may be waiting for me with the “devil I don’t know”…well at least not yet.


Have a great week.

Blessings in Disguise, How Low Can They Go and Beware of What You Say

What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise. - Oscar Wilde

As I sat in my living room with my husband, my mom and my doctor, hearing for certainty that I in fact did have breast cancer and I would be facing a long uphill battle, I distinctly remember my husband saying, "Boy there better be some BIG blessings that come from this one!" Although I don't think at that point I was prepared to see the silver lining yet, I did concede that I would welcome the rainbow and pot of gold at the end of this storm.

I only have just one more chemo treatment left before I move on to Phase 2 of my fight with breast cancer...surgery. Part of this prepartion requires that I determine whether or not radiation will be necessary. Radiation kills any remaining cancer cells in a localized area, but for me, it will also determine whether I can start the reconstruction surgery at the time of the mastectomy or if I will have to wait up to a year to begin.

As I have discussed, patience is not really a character trait of mine, so obviously no radiation would be considered awesome! Radiation immediately after the initial surgery also means that my reconstruction becomes more complicated with additional scarring as they would take skin and muscle from either my back or tummy to replace the radiated skin which does not stretch well. (Although the tummy option really did sound enticing, because who wouldn't want a little rejuvenation after having kids! Unfortunately, it adds significant risk without the promise of excellent results...bummer.)

Therefore the preparation for Phase 2 means that I met with a radiation oncologist this past week who, to my chagrin, indicated radiation would be highly recommended in my case to avoid possible reoccurrence. So it looks like six weeks of daily radiation treatments are in store for me after surgery. The great news, however, is that the doctor stated he felt comfortable enough to delay treatments for 2-3 months in order to avoid the more complicated reconstruction surgeries! Even though radiation will be a hindrance, the fact that I can avoid riskier surgeries was a huge blessing to me and my family.

Not having had enough fun with cancer that day, I next met with my oncologist. In the lobby, there was an older woman who had recently lost her hair with her head down, a brace on her leg, and a walker close by. As I checked in, I was chatting with the receptionist about her week, when this woman looked at me and said, "I want to look like you...how come you feel so great. I feel horrible." Now it's obvious that we all know that I AM NOT going to be winning any beauty pageants here in the future, with my bald head, my chemo water weight gain and my slight "roid rage" that my husband says I have from all the steroids in the treatments. But I still thanked her and found out she was on the same treatment protocol as me.

After my appointment, I went over to her to say good-bye and good luck and we started talking. She was having a really tough time and several times struggled to hold back her emotion. She told me how she and her husband had just sold their home to start traveling and that both just landed great jobs which would allow them the flexibility and income to do just that, when she had a mammogram and was told she had breast cancer. They were technically "homeless" so they moved to Phoenix to stay with her daughter's family which included 5 young children. She contracted gout in her leg while seeing a different doctor and was receiving her third "red devil" treatment. As I listened to her story and her pain and her heartache of this cancer diagnosis, I had so much empathy for her as I knew exactly how she felt.

I would not be able to count how many days have I had to drag myself out of bed to not only be faced with stress and concern over my family and my customers, the economic morass of our country but also as the logistical cluster of appointments, treatments and insurance coverages. Every day, I also knew that my body would be making its own decisions as to the degree of cooperation that it would give me. But, as I looked back over the past 17 weeks, even with such sore hands and feet from neuropathy, the muscle and joint pain that makes me feel as if I am 9 months pregnant and the constant feeling of exhaustion...I still feel so lucky.

The blessings are so much easier to see when you look for them.This week I was able to take my 10 year old to her first day of 5th grade. I get to see my two year old run across the room to me with her cheesy grin to hug me and I spent a great weekend with PJ's kids preparing them for school. Everyday I get to wake up next to my best friend who loves and cares for me so much...and yes I am talking about PJ...haha. Both of our families have been so supportive of us. I can't imagine how I got so lucky to be born into an incredible family and then how I doubled my luck when I married into PJ's. I had the opportunity to team up with a great business partner who has jumped in with both feet to make sure our clients are well taken care of. I am blessed to be surrounded by incredible professionals in real estate who are inspirational with their continued success in one of the hardest hit and most difficult markets in the country. And I have these friends...some in the mortgage banking industry, some from church and some who I have known my whole life, who make me feel so loved. Oh how abundant my blessings have been.

Yet, as I looked into the eyes of this woman, I knew how hard it was going to be for her to get through this, but I wanted her to know that it would get better. I wanted her to know that this was just a bump in the road and even though it was hard, she didn't have to let it take over. She was so thankful to be able to talk to someone who had been through it and I was so grateful to give a little happiness back, because so much had been given to me.

I would venture to say that there is no one among us who hasn't faced some serious difficulties in the past few years. Many have suffered severe economic stresses including job or income losses, some may have lost the roof over their head. Others have had illness or death come into their homes. As difficult as all of these things may have been or may continue to be, you have two choices. You either let the difficulties become your roadblock, your reason to give up and be miserable or you start figuring out how you are going to make it over this hurdle and along the way open your eyes to the many blessings that you will receive from it. Believe me there will be days that you just want to sit down and stare at this mountain in front of you and wonder...why me? But remember this mountain will look a whole lot smaller from the other side, and getting to the other side takes effort, sometimes hard work, probably a little pain and sweat, but inevitably it will have been worth it.

I want to thank you for your continued support, your faith in entrusting your clients to me and your friendship. I hope you have a great week and are able to take the time to recognize the many blessings that you have been given.

Amy


Thank you again for your continued support and referrals!


How Low Can It Go? How Low Can It Go?
How funky is your monkey? How loose is your caboose?
How low is your interest rate...Refi now before it's too late!


By now you have heard that rates are ridiculously low. If you haven't...rates are ridiculously low. "Lows" like this WILL NOT be able to sustain themselves forever. You should consider the following when reviewing whether refinancing might be right for you OR your clients...

• Even if you don't have equity, there are some qualified programs that do not require an appraisal.

• It may be time to consider a 20 or even 15 year loan that may save you thousands in interest.

• You may want to review a "cash-in" refinance. By applying additional principal to your current "jumbo" loan to obtain a lower "conforming" loan interest rate.

• Mortgage insurance costs have dropped so even if you might not have the required equity to avoid mortgage insurance, refinancing still may make financial sense.

• The "Making Home Affordable" refinance program allows qualified loans up to 105% LTV on primary, secondary AND investment properties WITHOUT mortgage insurance IF the current loan does not have mortgage insurance.

A lower payment is not the only reason to consider a refinance with the low rates available today. Please contact us SOON if you are interested in finding out your options.

The Mortgage Act & Practices Rule - Advertising Final Rule, Applies to ALL
The ban of deceptive claims and practices that may occur with regard to mortgage advertising will apply to YOU!

On August 19, 2011, the FTC's Mortgage Acts and Practices ("MAP") - Advertising Final Rule, which bans deceptive claims and practices in mortgage advertising or other types of commercial communications, will go into effect. Without exception, anyone "covered" under the FTC's jurisdiction that advertise mortgages, will be liable under the Rule, including mortgage lenders, brokers, and servicers; real estate agents and brokers; advertising agencies; home builders; lead generators and title companies.

The Rule defines a "commercial communication" as:
"any written or oral statement, illustration, or depiction, whether in English or any other language, that is designed to effect or create interest in purchasing goods or services, whether it appears on or in a label, package, package insert, radio, television, cable television, brochure, newspaper, magazine, pamphlet, leaflet, circular, mailer, book insert, free standing insert, letter, catalogue, poster, chart, billboard, public transit card, point of purchase display, film, slide, audio program transmitted over a telephone system, telemarketing script, onhold script, upsell script, training materials provided to telemarketing firms, program-length commercial (''infomercial''), the Internet, cellular network, or any other medium. Promotional materials and items and Web pages are included in the term ''commercial communication''

The FTC also declined to exempt advertising agencies or real estate professionals from the Final Rule, stating: "These types of individuals and entities,...can make direct or indirect misrepresentations to consumers about mortgage credit products, causing consumers harm."

To provide clarity as to what constitutes "deceptive practices" the Rule gave a nonexclusive list of misrepresentations that would be violations. I have included some of the examples...

1) Any misrepresentations about the existence, nature, or amount of fees or costs associated with any mortgage credit product. This includes false or misleading claims that no fees are charged, for example, if the fees and costs in fact are incorporated in the loan amount or total amount due.

2) Any misrepresentations about the APR, simple annual rate, periodic rate, or any other rate, including, but not limited to, a payment rate.

3) Any misrepresentations about interest charged for the product, including, the amount of interest owed each month that is included in the consumer's payments, or loan amount.

4) Any misrepresentations pertaining to the variability of interest, payments, or other terms of mortgage credit products, including, using the term ''fixed'' when terms are, in fact, variable, total amount due; or the interest owed each month that is not included in the payments but is instead added to the total amount due.

5) Any misrepresentations relating to the taxes or insurance associated with a mortgage credit product, for example, claims about whether tax or insurance charges are included in the overall monthly payment or must be paid separately.

6) Any misleading comparisons between rates or payments. This provision also bars false or misleading comparisons between rates or payments available for different parts of the loan term, including, comparisons involving savings. It also is intended to cover false or misleading savings rate claims in financing promotions. For example, deceptive claims that consumers will save money (such as at a particular rate of savings) by accepting a credit offer.

The final Rule also requires any covered person or entity to keep copies of ANY mortgage related advertising for a period of 24 months.

Be aware...be honest...and...retain copies of your honesty. To review the final rule, CLICK HERE.

If you would like to learn more about regulatory changes that will impact our market become a fan at my facebook page Amy Swaney, CMB.

Ha Ha - In preparation of my 40th!
You know you are getting older when...
An all-nighter means not getting up to pee.
Conversations with people your own age often turn into dueling ailments.
Getting lucky means you find your car in the parking lot.
Happy hour is a nap.
Its tougher to lose weight because your body and your fat are really good friends now.
Older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you.
Sleeping on the couch makes your back hurt.
You actually eat breakfast food at breakfast time.
You answer a questions with "Because I said so!"
You go from hoping for a BMW to hoping for BM.
You have more patience...but actually it is just because you don't care anymore.

Overcoming Obstacles One Centimeter at a Time

When I was younger, I could not wait for Christmas. In fact, it was that way for any holiday, special event or trip. I would count down the days, focusing solely for the event to arrive. The anticipation would almost get the best of me. In fact, I have often said that when God was passing out patience, I was double fisting it in the sarcasm line! Patience most definitely has not been my best virtue.

I have often thought that my desire to have things now, may be closely tied to my drive and determination in my professional career. Sometimes I feel that I work as hard as I do because I don't want to have to wait for the results that I desire. I want things the way that I want them...and I want them NOW. The down side of this is that I am my own worst critic. I often condemn myself for not accomplishing enough, fast enough, or good enough.

I say this because this past week officially marked my "hump day" of chemotherapy. I am at the halfway point of the 16 week treatment protocol. I have to admit it has been difficult sometimes to view this halfway point as the "glass half full" and not the "glass half empty."

I have been anxiously awaiting this week as I was able to get an MRI to check the size and status of the tumor. As much as I tried to not let my impatience get the best of me, there was in the back of my mind, a slight hope that miraculously the tumor would be gone and I would be able to finish chemo early and quickly get back to my former life.

I got the call Friday afternoon from my doctor with the great news was that the tumor had responded to chemo and had shrunk in size. In fact, it had shrunk a full...centimeter.

As elated as I should have been, my annoyance was palpable. This tumor is over 5 1/2 INCHES in size and after 8 weeks of misery it only shrunk 1 centimeter! Really?!? Come on…couldn't you have given me at least an INCH? I have been through 8 weeks of chemo; I took all the medicines, endured all the side effects, and worked hard to get through this...for a centimeter. I have spent hours thinking about that centimeter this weekend. How could a centimeter be worth all of the struggles that I have withstood so far? Once again, my lack of patience has emerged and with it came the unconstructive attitude about my current circumstances.

On Saturday morning my mom called to find out if I had heard anything from the doctors. I had been so disappointed with what I had heard that I had not let anyone know. When I told her the results, I was taken aback by her substantial relief she felt to know it was “good” news. Her daughter’s cancer had in fact stopped growing.

In my haste to think it was not “good enough” news, I had missed that fact that it still was good news. This centimeter that initially seemed so insignificant to me really was substantial. The centimeter will give my surgeon enough margins not to have to cut into my chest wall to eradicate the tumor during the mastectomy. The centimeter indicates the cancer responded to the chemotherapy enough to eliminate the concerns the doctor had of the further spread of the cells. One small centimeter meant the tumor was not increasing...and my chance of seeing my children grow up was. How could I have missed the substantial impact of that centimeter?

My impatience for challenges often blocks my vision of how it takes the small things to overcome the overwhelming obstacles we may face. How many times have I overlooked these small victories that would keep me motivated to accomplish the much bigger goals I have in mind? How many times did I not do those small seemingly insignificant things that would have led me to the greater reward?

We all face challenges in our lives. They come in many shapes and sizes. They may be personal or they may be professional. I hope this week you have the opportunity to recognize your own “centimeter” and can realize the significance of whatever small triumph you may have as a step toward your greater success. Remember as Vincent Van Gogh once quipped, “Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.”

Have a great week!

Getting Through It Versus Getting Over It

What a challenging market! It is TOUGH! Each day that I start to think things are going my way, it feels as though I turn a corner and BAM!! I run smack into the next challenge that I didn't see coming. If it is not an underwriting issue, it is a property issue. If it is not a property issue it is a disclosure issue, but worse than that, when I lift my head up, I see the avalanche of issues just prepped to fall. I am sure that my thoughts are just as everyone else, "I really wish we would get OVER this crap and get back to normal!"

But as I sit here preparing to leave Lake Tahoe after an amazing weekend supporting my husband, PJ, in his 100-mile bike ride around Lake Tahoe as part of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training Program, I have been thinking about the day's events for the 2400 participants and the thousands more there to lend support.

I have had a lot on my mind this past week and today is no different. The week has taken a significant toll on my physical health, but an even bigger impact on the emotional side. My morning began at 6:20 am as I pinned the race number, #3, on the back of PJ's bike jersey that had already been emblazoned with puffy paint to say "FOR AMY." The fact that he was #3 was significant, because that meant that he was the #3 fundraiser nationwide for this ride. This man along with many others on his team had spent months preparing for, training and fundraising for this event that was to raise money and support cancer awareness. This was his day and I was so incredibly proud of him.

But his day was just beginning. He had not yet embarked on the 8 1/2 hour ride that would take him up mountains and rough terrain, down valleys and through long stretches of highway and all of this in pouring rain. He was nervous, but excited and ready to get this journey rolling. He told me, "I look forward to seeing you at the next stops, and make sure to really cheer for people up "Spooner Pass" because that is really tough then I can't wait to see you at the finish line." And off he went.

So I spent the day with my girls and my nanny in the car driving around the lake watching all of these riders struggle from one degree to another to accomplish a very difficult goal they had set for themselves...to get over this challenge and cross the finish line with bragging rights to say they have done a "Century" ride.

But for me it was so much more than that, it was watching my girls stand by the side of the road yelling "Go Team!!" "We Love You." "Keep Going!" "We Are So Proud of You" as these riders whom they did not know looked over with huge smiles and waved and although dead tired and physically exhausted they continued on over the next pass.

It really hit me how committed these riders were to the journey. Some had pictures attached to their handle bars of a loved one who suffers or has succumbed to cancer to remind them why are putting themselves through this struggle. One guy had a sign attached to his bike that said "I Survived Because of YOU!" referencing the efforts of all of these riders and fundraisers. Then there was "LUCY FOR LEUKEMIA." A 76 year old breast cancer survivor, widow, who was not just completing this ride, but would earn her "triple crown," for completing a triathlon, a marathon and finally a century bike ride. Did I also mention that she wore the #7 race jersey? What a committment to a tough journey!

The most amazing fact for me was watching my husband ride across the finish line, not drained and wiped out from the exhaustion, but sitting straight up arms in the air holding a picture of me and a list of many names of others that were being honored by his ride. I was shocked not to find bugs in his teeth for the size smile he was sporting. When I got to him and asked how he felt, he told me of the different challenges he faced throughout the day, the cold, the elements but then he looked at me and said, "But man it was a GREAT RIDE!"

It brought me back to my very difficult week. A week that began with the horrible effects of chemotherapy, constant nausea, incredible body pain and yes, what I had been dreading...the hair loss. Throw on top of that the end of another month with it's share of difficult loans, constant pressure of often unreasonable deadlines and rules and regulations that never seem to stay the same. I won't lie, there were several moments where I told PJ I didn't want this journey...it was too hard. I JUST WANTED IT TO BE OVER!

But then I turned the corner and I heard my own cheerleaders shouting out, "Go Team! Come on Mom you can do it! You are almost there Amy. We love you!" These weren't shouts on the street, but they were in every email, every phone call, every hug from my kids, every facebook message, every referral and every dollar donated to PJ's fundraising. Please know that although I have not been able to personally respond to every one, they are what gets me through it. On my mountain climbs...when I get the comments, when I get your referrals, when I hear that I am in your prayers...that is what makes the journey for me. I CAN GET THROUGH IT.

One particularly tough day, I remember holding an ice mask over my eyes to control the headache and thinking, the only way to get over this is to just get through it. I have to learn to recognize the journey.

But so can you. This business is tough and it is going to get tougher. There are so many roadblocks that are going to get in your way, but that is just your journey. Each day the challenges that you face in our business may seem like it is going to knock you over, but that is when you make sure you are prepared...do you work with a team that supports you? Is your time spent educating yourself so you can educate your customers to navigate through this insanity? Do you remind yourself daily why you got in this business in the first place, and if so are you doing those things that you love about our industry? I want to be your cheerleader to get you through those tough stretches along the ride! So "GO TEAM!" You CAN DO IT!

Let's get through this journey together. Greg and I look forward to working with you! And fortunately we will never go back to normal, because normal has changed and we want to help you help your business adjust. In fact CLICK HERE for a DON'T MISS event that every industry professional should attend.

I also have a selfish reason for inviting you to this event as well...I need all the support I can get to show the world that I can ROCK BALD! Ha Ha!

Thank you again for your continued support and referrals!

The "C" Word and Plans for the Future

I have a fascination with the English language. I love the power of words, in fact in my next life I want to be a writer. Words have the ability to make a good story, great. Some words define lives and some words change lives.
When I woke up on April 15th, my day began similarly to most. My two year old woke up and wanted to watch "Doggies" (101 Dalmatians) my husband got up and went for a bike ride and my 10 year old slept in. I had made plans to stop in to see my doctor that morning then was excited to record "Real Estate From A-Z" with Bill Ashker and Roger Nelson. Contrary to any plan on my part, that morning I was told I needed to start considering a word that I had never imagined would be in my life's story. A very nice Radiologist introduced me to the word, "Carcinoma."

Five days, six procedures, five doctors and an innumerable amount of prayers later, my vocabulary included an unlimited amount of unfamiliar words like Invasive Ductal Carcinoma, calcifications and chemotherapy. In other words, I had cancer.

I have spent the last couple of weeks trying to let that word sink in, although I really don't think you can ever be prepared for or ready to take on that word. Surprised doesn't describe it, shocked doesn't do it justice...numb is only thing I felt.

I kept expecting someone to say it was all a mistake. I am 39, have no familial history of breast cancer or of any cancer, and I have young kids that rely on their mother. This had to be a mistake. Unfortunately as test result upon test result came back, a new word emerged, one that I have worked hard to avoid, and that word is fear.

After some family and a few close friends knew what was happening, I was overwhelmed with the tokens of compassion and love. The commonality of the messages was how strong everyone knew I was and that I would win this battle. I was used to being strong, a fighter...but this was a new arena, new players and new rules. How could I put my kids through this, how will my husband handle it and how would this impact my business and the goals for which I had worked so hard. The fear would not subside.

After I got the ok from the doctors, my husband and I decided to continue as planned and go to New York where I had been asked to present at the Mortgage Bankers Association Loan Production Conference. It would be a chance for me to stop thinking about cancer and focus my efforts on work. It was there that I first got a glimpse of who I knew I was going to have to become. The fear didn't go away, but it was diminished by the thrill of teaching and learning, the compassion of my friends and the love of my husband.

I could not let this get the best of me. I will not be defined by that "C" word. My life is NOT going to be centered around fighting breast cancer. Fighting breast cancer is just going to be another facet of my life.

I have since read that courage is not the absence of fear, but moving forward in spite of fear. I can tell you that in the past, there have been a few "C" words used to describe me...ha ha ha...but if I have my druthers and I am going to be defined by a "C" word, courageous is the word I want used.

So where do I go from here? Johann Wolfgang van Geothe quipped, "He who moves not forward, goes backward." I will move forward.

The best medicine for me is work. I will continue to work for you and your customers. I love what I do and Greg and I have been able to put together a team that works well and we will continue to what we do best...close home loans.

I will also continue to work for our industry and be an advocate for the noble professionals that I have had the privilege to work alongside. I will continue to push for the bar to be raised through the increased education of our colleagues.

Along the way I will continue to fight breast cancer.

I truly hope you will want to move forward with me. I appreciate and look forward to the continued support of your business. I hope you will actively be aware of the issues affecting our industry and continue to fight with me to keep our futures intact.

Finally, I hope you will continue to offer me your prayers of support through my fight with the bad "c" word.

Thank you for your continued support and referrals!
Amy


How Will the Government Financial Overhaul Affect the Phoenix Real Estate Market?


Lenders, Real Estate Agents and Anyone Impacted by the Phoenix Real Estate Market...You Need to Know It's Impact on Your Business!


Monday, May 16th 2011


9:00 am - 11:00 am
Scottsdale Civic Center Library
3839 N. Drinkwater Blvd.
Scottsdale, AZ 85251

RSVP: katie@homeownersfg.com (480) 305-8500
$5.00 to attend
For more information CLICK HERE

Very Proud!
If you are interested in showing your support for cancer research, please read this email from my husband, PJ Harrigan and support his fundraising efforts.

"Over the years that I have been funding raising for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society I have been asked many times what is my connection to blood born cancers. Why did I pick this charity to devote my time. I have always been about to say that I am blessed in that cancer has not touched my immediate family.

Well that has changed...


A few weeks ago my wife Amy was complaining of her breast hurting. After hearing this a few times and telling her to make a doctors appointment and her not doing it, I made a doctor's appointment for her. So the next day she had an appointment with our Friend, Dr. Ellsworth, who said there was something there....and that is when it started. It is hard to describe what it felt like when my best friend handed me her phone at the radiologist office and I see she had "Googled" Ductal Carcinoma.....Yes, Amy has breast cancer and as a result, my bike ride around Lake Tahoe and my fund raising has become personal. I now will carry the name of Amy Firth Swaney Harrigan with me as I ride. Not something I ever expected to do.

On on hand it is good that been exposed to all the things I have being part of the Team in Training program. When the doctors say things I can somewhat understand the terms they use and the things they tell us. On the other hand I wish I knew less. In the past two weeks Amy has had two biopsies, a CT Scan, three MRI's, a PET Scan and X-Rays. Up next is a bone scan and surgery to put a port in for Chemo.

However, we are blessed. We are blessed with a strong faith that gives us courage to endure. We are blessed with wonderful family and friends who give us constant encouragement and love. Unfortunately we are blessed with having friends who have also been through this terrible experience themselves and are able to give us sound advice on what to do and how to plan. The out pouring of love we have received is humbling. We are so thankful for our friends and family.

And we are blessed to have friends who supported my fund raising over the years to help find a cure for all cancers. Many of you will remember that I started my fund raising for my friend Allison Bishop, who also had breast cancer. Because of the money you have donated, the knowledge and technology available to treat Amy is so much more advanced today then it was when Allison was diagnosed. The tests and the treatments are all better today because of the advance made possible as a result of the donations you make. My family thanks you for this.


So let me ask one more time, please give to help find a cure for cancer. My ride is June 5th. Our plan is for Amy to attend the event. We will see. She starts Chemo on May 12th. She will have eight cycles of chemo, one every two weeks. Then, after the chemo treatments are done, she will have surgery. I told her there were easier ways to get a her breast redone.....(we have decided that laughter makes this tough task a bit easier). To donate go to:

FIGHT CANCER

Many drugs developed by LLS funded researchers are used to treat breast cancer. So your donations definitely help Amy and all others fighting breast cancer.

To all of you have given, thank you. You generosity is incredible. My family cannot thank you enough.
PJ


PS - Those of you who know Amy know she has beautiful long naturally curly hair. She will be cutting her hair this weekend and will be donating it to Locks of Love. Locks of Love makes wigs for people (mainly children) who are fighting cancer or have Alopecia Areata. Our Nephew, Jackson Odle has Alopecia.


PPS -


To show his support for Amy, our sixteen year old son, Patrick, dyed his hair Pink last week. "


Ha Ha


As seen on a t-shirt:
"Of course they are not real! My real ones tried to kill me!"

What is QRM and Why Does the Industry Want You to Know More About It?

What is QRM and Why Does the Industry Want You to Know More About It?



"NAR supports a reasonable and affordable cash investment requirement coupled with quality credit standards, strong documentation and sound underwriting." - NAR President Ron Phipps

Last year Congress passed the most comprehensive regulatory reform that the financial services industry has ever seen. This reform bill was called the Wall Street Reform Act, but more commonly known as Dodd-Frank. The law set implementation of different portions at different times over the next 2.5 years. Much of the criticism of Dodd-Frank is centered around the fact that the law did not set forth the rules or requirements, but required the "regulators" to determine the rules that the industry must obey. Therefore, no one knows yet just what rules we have to follow.

The determination of these "rules" will not be made through votes in Congress, it will be the responsibility of the new regulator, the Consumer Finance Protection Board (CFPB), to determine exactly what those rules will require. Since the role of the CFPB has not yet been fully implemented, the current regulators (OCC, The Fed, FDIC, SEC, FHFA and HUD) weighed in on what their suggestions for these rules are. On March 29, 2011, the financial news relayed the announcement of one of the most important rule-making components of Dodd-Frank, the proposed rule for Risk-Retention and QRM.

Risk Retention
Dodd-Frank required securitizers and or originators of mortgage loans retain 5% of any loan/security they originate. This 5% must be held in a capital reserve account free from any other obligation. That means that ANY securitizer (and in certain circumstances originator), such as a small independent mortgage banker, large bank or wall street investor would have to set aside $5000 for every $100,000 loan closed. That does not seem like a big issue until you consider the volume and amount we are talking about. Let's say a company securitizes a group of 100 loans (pool of loans). If you assume a $200,000 average loan amount, that is $1,000,000 for each pool that the company would have to fund in a reserve account and stay in that account until the loan pays off. (There are several ways a securitizer can choose to hold the reserve, but this is the simple version.) If a $200,000 loan generates approximately $5000-10,000 in gross revenue, less expenses such as staff, commissions, servicing overhead, and loss mitigation etc, you have to ask yourself, "how do you generate the revenue shortage between the $10,000 retention requirement and what is left of the revenue generated on that loan?" That would shut down every small independent mortgage company within the first 30-60 days. Who does that leave to continue to offer options for mortgage loans? For those who remained, even the large banks would struggle to retain that capital reserve. As in any business equation, in order to cover that additional "cost" you must increase the profitability...read that to say, you increase costs to the consumer.

When Dodd-Frank was written, Congress was put under much pressure by the real estate finance industry to grant some protections or "safe harbors" to avoid this 5% requirement. The argument was made that certain loans DO NOT have the same risk to the market as others, thus do not need that additional "skin in the game" from the originator/securitizer. The Safe Harbor language was added as an amendment to Dodd-Frank, however, the exemption criteria was not determined in the law. It stated that any loan that meets the "Qualified Residential Mortgage" (QRM) requirements would be exempt from the risk-retention provision provided therein. This means that as long as the loan that is originated would be considered a "QRM" the lender does NOT need to hold 5% of the loan in reserve. The assumption was that regular loans like FHA, VA and FNMA/FHLMC loans (all the loans we now do in 2011) do not pose the risk that the stated income, negative amortization, balloons or interest only loans have posed in the past, therefore these loans would most likely be considered exempt.

The Devil is in the Details - QRM
We all know the saying about what happens when you ASSUME...and once again the point has been proven. As discussed, the law did not set up these parameters for what made the loan a QRM, the regulators have made their proposal and as an industry we have found out that our assumption of those exemptions was incorrect.

Proposed QRM Eligibility Requirements...
1. Purchase or Refinance of a Primary Residence, First Mortgage with a term no longer than 30 years - Not to include "bridge loans" "time shares" or "Reverse Mortgages"

2. A Borrower must not currently be delinquent on any debt and not been more than 60 days past due on any debt in the prior 24 months.

3. A Borrower may not have had within the preceding 36 months, a bankruptcy proceeding, had a property repossessed or foreclosed upon, or engaged in a short-sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure or been subject to a Federal or State judgment for the collection of any debt.

4. The loan must be fully-amortizing and not allow for payment terms that allow for interest-only payments or negative amortization.

5. The payment terms may allow for a fixed or adjustable interest rate, but would not allow for "teaser rates" and would not allow for pre-payment penalties.

6. Purchase loans would require a 20% downpayment and borrower payment of closing costs from acceptable sources.

7. Rate and Term Refinance loans would require a 75% loan-to-value ratio.

8. Cash-Out Refinance loans would require a 70% loan-to-value ratio.

9. A borrower's income must be fully documented and the proposed housing payment cannot exceed 28% of this income and all other debt including the proposed housing payment cannot exceed 36%.

10. The total points and fees charged on the loan cannot exceed 3 points.

11. A loan could not be assumable.

12. If a loan is originated and guaranteed by the United States government, ie-FHA, VA, USDA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (only while they are held in conservatorship of the federal government)

Overview of Proposed QRM by the MBA


Real World Consequences on Our Market
No one should fault the idealism to which the regulators have used to create these proposed requirements, the intentions are well grounded. The problem lies in the fragile nature of the housing market today. Investors do not have the confidence yet in the private label security market and although these rules try to off-set some of the risk, the near term results in this economy is disastrous.

In today's market, what happens if a customer wants a "jumbo" loan, we are bound by the individual requirements of each individual investor that offers the program. The down payment requirements are more restrictive, the credit score requirements are higher and the interest rates can be upwards of .5 - 1.0% higher than that of a comparable "conforming" loan. If you look at the dramatic drop in sales in the price range from $600,000 and up and the stagnation in that market, at least some of that stems from the stringent and costly lending environment for Jumbo loans.

You can also look at the underserved markets and see the complete shutdown of lending in the under $100,000 price point. Based upon the definition of points and fees in the proposal, the costs involved with closing a loan would automatically exceed the 3 point fee limit thus pushing it outside the QRM requirement. These loans would typically be forced into the realm of FHA, but the Administration has indicated their expectation of more stringent guidelines for FHA to limit the volume of business that FHA will accept including increasing the down payment requirements.

What about the second home and investment market? If the QRM exemption only supports primary residences, would there be a market for these other types of properties? Will it become cost prohibitive enough for the would be real estate investor to consider another type of investment?

What Can Be Done
As I described, this is a "Proposal" that is out for "Public Comment." This process allows you to be heard. This is the only opportunity to voice the grave concern to its impact on our market. I would strongly encourage you to make your comments to the regulators. How many times have you asked, "Who do they get their information from?" Or have you thought, "what were they thinking?" Don't rely on someone else to take a stand. NAR can't do it alone, mortgage lenders can't do it alone. I can't do it for you. The only way for us to make an impact is for the regulators to hear from all of us in volumes. Each comment represents a segment of the market. Pass this around, get your colleagues involved tell your friends. The more they hear, the more they pay attention. As it stands, QRM is not a what if...it is a "how bad is it going to be."

Your opportunity to comment is available until June 10, 2011.

How to Comment
http://www.regulations.gov/
Under the "More Search Options" tab click next to the "Advanced Docket Search" option where indicated, select "Comptroller of the Currency" from the agency drop-down menu, then click "Submit." In the "Docket ID" column, select "OCC-2010-0002" to submit or view public comments and to view supporting and related materials for this proposed rule.

Report From Washington, DC

Once again, it was a very successful trip to educate our Congressional delegates to the concerns of the housing market in Arizona. As the topics get tougher and the stakes get higher, it was great to see the increased support from more of the professional leaders in our local market.

We were able to meet with Rep. Jeff Flake, Rep. Trent Franks, Rep. Ben Quayle, and Rep. David Schweikert as well as representatives from Rep. Gosar, Rep. Grijvala, Rep. Pastor and Sen. Kyl and Sen. McCain. We were also pleased to be able to stop in to Representative Gabrielle Giffords office to offer our honest and most sincere hope for her speedy and full recovery.

I wanted to thank those below who made the commitment to our industry of their time and money who made the trip. from left standing - Ted Theiste - Wallick and Volk, Rod Hill - AmeriHome Mortgage, (Rep. Schweikert) Amy Swaney, CMB - Citywide Home Loans, Kelly Powers - CNN Mortgage, Bob Kennedy - Homeowners Financial Group, Bill Rogers - Homeowners Financial Group
from left kneeling - PJ Harrigan, CMB - Franklin American Mortgage, Kelly Mueller - Alliance Financial Resources, Jamie Korus - Alliance Financial Resources, Cody Pearce, CMB - Cascade Financial Services, George Dover, CMB - Cascade Financial Services

Washington is a city of Southern efficiency and Northern charm - John F Kennedy

Do You Know What the Administration's Plan for Housing is this Year?



"In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way." - Franklin D. Roosevelt

You may not have had the opportunity to read the Obama Administration's Report to Congress, "Reforming America's Housing Finance Market" to prompt you I have included the link HERE

It is no secret that all of us in the real estate industries are in for some challenging times. It is also no secret it is going to continue to challenge even the best of the best. In the Report's 32 pages the agenda for our future is revealed. It's position for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were not a shock, however the other items discussed were certainly eye-opening.

The highlights are...
1. Plans to decrease the conforming loan limits
2. Need to Increase "Guarantee Fees" (the fee paid to any loan sold to FNMA/FHLMC)
3. Larger down payment requirements for FNMA/FHLMC loans (10% down)
4. A decrease in the FHA loan limits back to the HERA requirements (115% of current median home value) which are set to expire on October 1, 2011
5. Consolidate FHA, VA and Rural Housing into one housing unit
6. Full implementation of Dodd-Frank's consumer protection provisions (including LO comp, risk retention and underwriting standardization)
7. Requirement of originators and securitizers to retain risk (5%)
8. Shift from homeownership to affordable rental housing
9. Coordinated moves to restrict FHA's loan to value ratios and increased customer cost in preparation to shrink FHA's presence in the market
10. 3 options to wind down FNMA/FHLMC


If one or more of these proposals are to take root, how will your business be impacted? How will your customers be impacted? Will our fragile economic market be able to weather the storm of increased down payment requirements for ALL loans, maximum government loan amounts rolled back or the continued increase in costs to credit?

I hope you wil become educated and aware of the changes being made, adjust your planning and by all means, let your informed voice be heard, not through empty complaints but through targeted advocacy, grassroots movements and old fashioned tenacity.

Report From the Front Line

My husband and I were honored to host Arizona's own real estate advocate, Congressman David Schweikert at a private reception at the home of Bill Rogers in Scottsdale on Friday. Representative Schweikert has been named to the powerful House Financial Services Committee, and the Vice Chair of the Capital Markets Sub-Committee, an unheard of feat by a freshman delegate.

He once again wowed some of Arizona's toughest industry critics through his knowledge, passion and experience as a real estate agent and investor. His frank and open discussion about what he would like to see happen in the committee was impressive, especially when coupled with his desire for input from those in attendance for solutions and options.

Many in attendance were pleased to hear of the Representative's support of the March 11, 2011 Letter to the Federal Reserve requesting the delay of the April 1st deadline for Loan Officer Compensation. We were also interest to hear his impression of how the next few weeks would play out with the Fed.

Overall it was a tremendous evening for those who committed the time and money to attend.

Ha Ha

Its a fine line between numerator and denominator.