H.A.R.P. - Don't Miss Out!!

Really, there is no better time to refinance. Please give me a call about this awesome program TODAY!

The Kwest Advantage!

Mortgage Market Direction - Act now before rates go up!!

Last week Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist at Freddie Mac was quoted with "Mortgage rates fell further this week following a lackluster employment report for March. The economy added just 88,000 net new jobs last month, about one-third as many as February and the fewest since June 2012. In addition, approximately 496,000 people left the workforce causing the unemployment rate to fall to 7.6 percent. Further, average hourly earnings were unchanged in March, indicating income growth remains tepid."

Tuesday is the big day this week with CPI, Housing Starts, and Industrial Production reports all being released. The Fed's Beige Book will come out on Wednesday. Philly Fed will come out on Thursday. Empire State and Leading Indicators will round out the schedule on Friday.

With rates still at very low levels, the housing market is beginning to heat up. Now is the best time to meet with your mortgage professional to discuss a mortgage solution to meet your financial goals.

Why you should buy a home in South Carolina!!

Why should you buy a home in South Carolina? Because it is the only state that I am licensed to originate your home loan.....just kidding (sort of).

One of my blogtastic (I just made that word up) friends recently told me that I needed to post more "fun" posts on my blog. Gasp, stunned look, you mean, everyone doesn't care about what goes into a mortgage payment and that I can offer you a loan program with up to 97% LTV with no MI? Well dern, those things seem pretty important. That's disappointing that no one likes to read about the stuff that can save you money and time. On that note, I am going to post something completely non-mortgage related (although it does encourage you to build your life and buy your home in SC).

Really, why should you buy a home in South Carolina? Well, because it is an awesome state to raise your family and we have a ton of cool stuff going on around the state all the time! Just in a month's time, check out all of the awesome activities that you and your family can enjoy:

April 18 - 21 Clemson Blues Festival

ClemsonBluesFest.com

The "Year of the Harp" celebrates the beloved Southern blues instrument, the harmonica. The talent line-up for this second annual festival features Jimi Lee, Mac Arnold, and Plate Full O'Blues, and the Blues Doctors with Adam Gussow, just for starters. Gospel Sunday is an afternoon of "old-time religion" tunes to benefit the Clemson Area African American Museum. Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative is a sponsor. And really, who wouldn't want to take a trip to Clemson?

 

 

May 2-4 South Carolina Strawberry Festival (TOP PICK FOR KIDS)

 

scstrawberryfestival.com

 

Come berry hungry to this Fort Mill festival that ushers in strawberry season. Saturday starts with an all-you-can-eat strawberry pancake breakfast, then come strawberry shortcake and ice cream eating contests. Thursday night's Pick-n-Flick lets families gather their own berries, then relax with live music and an outdoor screening of the animated film "Surf's Up" at Springs Farm. Don't miss the action-packed Kid's Zone and the popular piglet races. York Electric Cooperative is a sponsor.

 

May 2 - 5 Heart of the Carolina's

 

so8ths.com

 



Southern 8ths horse park in Chesterfield welcomes beginner novice, novice and training level riders to hone their long-format skills at its third annual So8ths/Nikon Three-Day Event - an equestrian triathlon (dressage, cross-country and show jumping). The park features regulation-size arenas, a steeplechase track, manicured roads and tracks, dressing rings, cross-country courses, a derby field and more for training young riders. Volunteers and spectators are invited to watch, help, and learn - no horse experience necessary!

 

Orangeburg Festival of Roses (PERSONAL FAVORITE)

 

festivalofroses.com

 

Right in my hometown, coinciding with the blooming of thousands of roses at Edisto Memorial Gardens, this fragrant festival offers fun from land, river, and air. Gardens feature more than 100 varieties of roses, plus azaleas and other blooming plants, and visitors can stroll the boardwalk along the Edisto River. A Friday night street dance, canoe and kayak races on the water and airplane rides over Orangeburg are among the festival events. You can't miss it!!

 

May 10 - Blue Ridge Rest

blueridgefest.com

 

From the hometown of my wonderful husband, it's party by the numbers at Blue Ridge Fest: one night, four legendary bands, 600 classic cards and thousands of dollars raised for 13 charities. The "Largest Cruise-in in the Upstate" will showcase the Drifters, with Charlie Thomas. The Clovers ("Love Potion Number 9"), Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs ("Stay") and the Party Prophets, who will pay tribute to the late Billy Scott. Cars are on display starting at 2 p.m., and music and food are on tap from 6 to 10:30 p.m. at 734 West Main St. in downtown Pickens. The 16th annual event is hosted by employees of Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative and Blue Ridge Security.

 

I can't begin to elaborate on all the spring activities going on, here are a few more in May:

 

Abbeville's Spring Festival

Aiken Bluegrass Festival

Newberry's Pork in the Park

Myrtle Beach's Cinco de Mayo Festival

Riverbank's Rhythm and Blooms

 

and so many more.....

 

 

What family wouldn't enjoy all of these wonderful South Carolina activities???

 

Source of information: South Carolina Living Tri-County Electric Cooperative



Weekly Market Review

A wide range of economic news was favorable for mortgage rates this past week. The Employment data was weaker than expected, Japan expanded its bond-buying program, and tensions with North Korea increased. As a result, mortgage rates ended the week significantly lower.

Friday's Employment report was disappointing in nearly every area. Against a consensus forecast of 190K, the economy added just 88K jobs in March. Average Hourly Earnings, a proxy for wage growth, was flat from last month. Digging deeper, the small bit of good news was that the data from the prior two months was revised higher by 61K jobs. This was far outweighed, however, by the bad news in the details of the Unemployment Rate. The Unemployment Rate unexpectedly dropped from 7.7% to 7.6%, but the decline was entirely due to people exiting the labor force. It is good for the economy if the Unemployment Rate declines because more people get jobs, but not if the cause is a shrinking labor force. Weak labor market data reduces future inflation expectations, which is good for mortgage rates. In addition, it likely extends the duration of the Fed's bond-buying program, which is also good for mortgage rates.

Thursday, the Bank of Japan announced that it will sharply ramp up its bond purchases to levels which will add $1.4 trillion to its balance sheet over the next two years. Like the Fed, the BOJ is buying bonds to help boost the economy. This added demand for Japanese bonds caused their yields to decline, making US bonds relatively more attractive to global investors. This benefited US mortgage-backed securities (MBS), which helped push mortgage rates lower.

This week, the detailed Minutes from the March 20 Fed meeting will be released on Wednesday. Import Prices will come out on Thursday. Friday will be the big day with PPI, Retail Sales, and Consumer Sentiment. The Producer Price Index (PPI) focuses on the increase in prices of "intermediate" goods used by companies to produce finished products. Retail Sales account for about 70% of economic activity. In addition, there will be Treasury auctions on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. 

 
Copyright @ 2013 MBSQuoteline

Today's Job Report is great news for Mortgage Rates!

Mortgage Bonds are sharply higher, while stocks plunge this morning in reaction to the much weaker than expected jobs report.

Before the employment report was released, Stock markets were nervous in reaction to the escalating rhetoric coming out of North Korea.

I am recommending taking advantage of the sharp rise in Bond prices and lock for the short term, while floating in the longer term seems prudent.

 

 

Have a great weekend!!

Do you know someone who could take advantage of a VA loan?

100% Financing Available For Veterans!

For eligible veterans and active duty military personnel a VA mortgage loan can be one of the most important benefits to take advantage of.

The Department of Veterans Affairs guarantees these loans, which can finance as much as 100% of the value of the

property, ensuring low rates and easier qualification guidelines than with conventional loans.

 

 

Avaliable For: Purchase, Cash out Refinance, Streamlined VA Interest Rate Reduction REfinance (IRRRL)*

 

Terms: 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 year fixed

 

Eligible Borrowers: Veterans, Reservists, National Guard and surviving spouses who have not remarried

 

Residence Types: Primary Residence Only, 1 unit single family, VA approved condos and PUDs, Manufactured housing

 

LTV: 100% for Purchase, 100% for Rate/Term refinance, 90% for Cash Out refinance, 85% for Identity of Interest

 

 

 

 

Manage Expectations and Over Deliver

Under Promise and Over Deliver is really hitting home to me right now. Rodney told me these exact words when I was hours into my career and I ended up learning the same thing during my 500+ hours of Xinnix training. I take this into consideration in all facets of my life, not just in my business.

Nothing irritates me more than someone not doing what they said that they would do. On many occasions, I have interacted with people that wanted to make me happy during our conversation so they promise me all of this stuff that would be impossible to deliver. Sure, it gets my inital attention and sometimes I even let myself get excited. I am usually infuriated by the end because they didn't live up to what they promised. You know you have been in this situation too. They make these ridiculous promises to get you in the door. Sadly, it works.

I don't like the phrase "Under Promise and Over Deliver." Over Delivering and WOW-ing your customers is good business. The under promise piece is what I don't like. I don't want to offer my clients the bare minimum, but it is important to me to manage my client's expectations. I realize that no one gets excited and comes through the door if your initial offer isn't strong. With that being said, I want to be honest and realistic with the people that I work with. Honestly, I can promise that I will work my tail off to make my clients happy and do everything in my power to ensure they have the a painless mortgage experience. Securing a home mortgage takes work and I want my clients to see that I am willing to put in whatever it takes to make things work for them. After a hectic few days, I had one of my borrowers write a nice sentence in an email today:

I'm sure you work hard and diligently on all your files, but I really appreciate everything you are doing for me. - BORROWER

That is exactly what I needed this afternoon. This borrower and I have worked hard to get everything cleared through Underwriting. We aren't at the finish line yet - but we will get there and then we will celebrate!!

After much coaching and reading, I have come up with my own phrase: Manage Expectations and Over Deliver. This is how I will operate my business and I hope people will see the value in that.

I can't promise you that I will close your loan in a matter of days with absolutely no fees. That isn't realistic. In fact, that is crazy (but there are groups that will hook people with promises just like that). Dave Ramsey just posted on his facebook fanpage: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. He was talking about making financial moves - youre typical "get rich quick" schemes are usually a bust but we can take it and use it in the mortgage industry. What I can promise you is that I will work my hardest and stick by you no matter what we face during your loan process. I will do everything in my power to place you the right mortgage program for you and your family and once you are there, I will work with you every step of the way. There won't be a day that goes by that you feel like you don't know what is going on.

Please feel free to leave comments on how you feel about this business strategy. I would love to hear everyone's opinion!

Caroline