ELECTION MANIA, BREXIT AND TRAVEL UPDATES!

The upcoming election is certainly overwhelming our media! But recently Brexit has taken front stage. Currently interest rates are trending down, following the Fed decision to hold on any further rate increases for now, slowing employment and economic indicators, and the flight to security of US bonds, with Britain’s vote to exit the EU.

Home prices are reaching and in some cases exceeding the levels of the last decade, so this makes for a great time to refinance, especially for many who were unable to do so a few years ago. I’m seeing lots of debt consolidation refinances as well as refinances to drop rates. Yes, there are still plenty of people out there with rates in the 5’s and higher, who could benefit from a refinance. Anyone with a rate over 4.5% can likely benefit from current rates.

TRAVELS

Steve and I returned to Cocoview for the fourth time in February. We don’t like it there much! This is a dive resort on the island of Roatan in Honduras, in the western Caribbean. www.cocoviewresort.com. We stay in a private home down the beach from the main buildings for more privacy and quiet. Here is sunset from our home.

As usual the diving was great, and the sand fleas were biting (Steve). We met some fun, interesting people including a family of four from Houston, and a couple from Seattle. Dive boats leave the dock twice a day for four boat dives daily, and shore diving is unlimited. We were disappointed my daughter and her husband were unable to join us due to the Zika threat. For good reason, she is expecting in September! Yahoo, exciting!

MUSEUM TOWER

We flew in and out of Dallas, with a few days spent in Dallas each way, making the travel to Roatan much easier. The Tower continues to perform very well with the building over 60% sold. Dallas is always fun! And, the Tower has a great pool!

We stayed another weekend in Dallas in April for a wedding, and rented bikes one day for a ride around White Rock Lake, home to the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Gardens. The lake is filled with sailboats and surrounded by beautiful homes. There are hiking and biking trails all the way around it, and some leading away and into other park areas. You could literally ride for hours.
We usually try to fit in a walk on the Katy Trail when we are in town, including a stop at the Ice House, a lively open air bar/restaurant. www.katyicehouse.com Great beer and burgers!

GRADUATION AND MORE WEDDINGS

May brought the graduation of David, Steve’s youngest son, from San Jose State with a B.S. in International Business.

WOW! We stayed in an Airbnb in Sunnyvale in a very cool new downtown environment in the Heritage District just off Murphy Avenue. We dined our first evening at the Steakhouse in the Fairmont, which was a real treat with grandparents, parents and kids in attendance. Friday evening we had a quiet dinner at Roberto’s Cantina on Murphy. Highly recommended! www.robertoscantina.net

After the grad festivities we flew to LA for a wedding at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills. Quite an event from beginning to end! Champagne upon arrival, fabulous food, dancing and fun. And, brunch the next morning. We were completely spoiled.

IN MEMORIAL

We celebrated Susan Green in mid-March for her birthday, and watched her ashes spread over the mountains above Palm Springs. It was a lovely, moving event. Then, last week we celebrated the life of Christy Christian Motter, the daughter of very dear friends and lost to us far too early.

Steve and I continue to enjoy Dana Point and all it has to offer: beaches, the harbor, our Yacht Club, hiking and biking paths nearby, wine tasting events, etc. Next we are off to Lake Tahoe for the 4th!

Hoping you are all happy, healthy and have a safe 4th of July!

Home is Where the Wealth Is!

Today home equity is where the vast majority of working and near-retirement Americans have the bulk of their net worth. And, for those who were already retired or nearly there, the economic meltdown was a disaster for their portfolios. In many cases they lost half or more of their assets.

Most of them, including many of my friends, placed remaining assets in cash, and therefore missed the market recovery. This means the biggest and best pool of money available to most Americans during their retirement years is their home equity. And, how do you access that without increasing your monthly debt load, and reducing cash flow? A Reverse loan.

Reverse loans can be used to provide monthly income while you stay in your home until you die. Hence the “Aging in Place” motto for reverse lenders. No payments are necessary. Does a reverse loan erode your equity? Sure, but it beats making a monthly payment when you are on a fixed income in your later years. Or, asking your children to help you make ends meet. It pays to check if you are a good candidate for a Reverse Loan. In fact, you'll find that more and more financial planners are embracing Reverse loans as a part of a diversified approach to wealth preservation for their clients.

Reverse Mortgage for a Home Purchase

Yes, you can use a reverse mortgage to buy a home. You are going to put down closer to 50%, but you’ll never have to make another mortgage payment. Not a bad idea, especially if you are selling a home with substantial equity. Why buy all-cash, when you can invest elsewhere to augment income?

Scott Burns with AssetBuilder Inc. has written some very interesting articles about this very topic. You can check out him and his column at www.dallasnews.com or www.assetbuilder.com

Please contact me if I can answer questions or assist you with a reverse loan.