IT’S A BRAVE NEW WORLD!

MORTGAGE NEWS

The fall election brought about many changes, not the least of which was an immediate increase in interest rates, resulting in a .5% to 1% bump in mortgage rates across the board. So far, we haven’t seen much effect on home prices, which seem to be holding at a steady increase, albeit at a slower pace than the last few years.

The attention to Reverse Mortgage financing is building as more and more aging baby boomers reach the age of 62. There are many uses for reverse loans, not the least of which is to access untapped equity in your home, or to purchase a new home. They are gaining in acceptance as consumers realize they do still own the home, and may will it to their heirs, but can live without making a payment against the mortgage. Oftentimes I set these up as a line of credit to be used in the future for emergencies, or basic living expenses. More financial advisers are encouraging clients to take out a reverse loan soon after turning 62, as a way to boost their next egg. The credit line available to them (and unused) grows over time and can provide substantial monthly income in later years.

NOW FOR THE FUN: TRAVEL AND FAMILY NEWS

Last June saw me in Dallas for some fun in the Arts District. Always great restaurants!

July 4th Steve and I ventured back to King’s Beach in North Lake Tahoe, where we were married the year before. We stayed in the same home on the waterfront, and had a wonderful visit with dear friends, each of us taking turns cooking dinner. We kayaked, swam, read listened to music and drank a lot of Rombauer Chardonnay.

And, we were treated to two nights of fireworks on the Lake, both Sunday and Monday. The level of the lake was really low, so I’m so glad to hear the level is back to pre-drought levels after all our rain this year.



Near the end of July my daughter Katie flew out from Michigan to visit for a baby shower—for her---with friends. Then we took all the family to Catalina for the day and rented two cabanas at Descanso Beach club. What a blast! All 14 of us!

August saw us attending the Pirate and Wench party at the Yacht club. They love dress-up parties.

Then at the end of the month we went camping to our favorite place, El Capitan State Beach north of Santa Barbara. Steve loves to paint while we are there…and I just relax.

There have been lots of weddings and Birthday celebrations in between and around.

The BIG news…I flew to Ann Arbor for the birth of my granddaughter in September. It was very exciting!

I stayed for two weeks to act as maid, cook and general bottle washer (for real) and was so sad to leave. The kids have been out to visit a couple of times, including an extended stay over the holidays.

We rang in the New Year at the Yacht club, and by early January were on our way to Florida to watch my one and only SISTER Katie tie the knot with her beloved Luke.

They are living between their homes in Florida and northern Michigan, and loving retired life. Their new home in Florida is gorgeous!


Here we are on the Coast at Sunset after the ceremony. We had a lovely dinner at Roy's to celebrate.

We spent the weekend in Dallas before heading to Florida and did all the “right” cultural things…a visit to the Fort Worth Kimball museum for the Monet exhibit; then to the Stock Exchange to watch them bringing the cows home, and a visit to the Perot Science museum in Dallas. That is a MUST SEE! Very impressive! All in all, we were very smart afterwards!

That’s all for now. We’ve lost more friends the past year, it just gets harder. I guess that is part of growing older. You take the bad with the good.

Fall Mortgage News

Fall has finally arrived…after a long,hot summer which I thoroughly enjoyed!

MARKET UPDATE

We watched rates continue to drop throughout the year, and they hit bottom right around October 1st. Currently rates have moved just off their lows, but realistically are still extremely attractive whether you are buying or refinancing. As I write this the election is tomorrow, so we are unsure what effect the result may have on rates… only time will tell. They have to start marching up at some point though.

Loan approval is certainly attainable for most borrowers, as long as your credit is relatively good (no FICO scores in the 500’s please and over 680 is better, 740 is considered perfect) AND if you can document adequate income to qualify for a loan within standard debt-to-income ratios which are still running around 45%. There are some exceptions to this figure (HARP loans, or FHA loans will both go higher in the debt ratios) You just need to have the constitution to survive the process of handing over lots more paperwork than in the past, including divorce documents, trust documents, explanations for deposits to your accounts, etc….

I have handled more than a few transactions recently for clients who started out working with their bank or current lender, only to find out more than 60 days into the process that it was going to take another 30 to 60 days. I closed a purchase for a client who was told by the BofA that they could not close in less than 45 days. I had the loan approved in 14 days from the date of application. Whatever you do, don’t work with a big bank, use a mortgage banker or broker. The banks are too big to be efficient and are overwhelmed. My average refinance closes in 30 days depending on how responsive the client is to requests for documentation.

Boys & Girls Club of Tustin

As some of you may know, I was a member of the Board for the B&G Club in Tustin, and had the privilege of serving as President. I am deeply committed to these clubs that provide such a valuable service to children all over the US. I have heard more than one alum state that the club “saved my life.” Here in Tustin, our club provide free transportation to schools for homeless children among many other programs. Yes, they pick up children from shelters and hotels, and taxi them to school programs. I have made a commitment to donate $100 for every loan I close in the community served by our Tustin club and invite any refinance or purchase loans to that end. Plus, Catalyst is underwriting their newsletters!

NOW, FOR THE FUN STUFF and BABIES

MEXICO

In September I visited San Jose del Cabo for a quick trip with two girlfriends, for R&R. We stayed at the Hilton in a timeshare (2 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms) which was a lovely top-notch property with fabulous service.

Highlights were:

A visit to Mango Deck on El Medano, buying “stuff” from the beach vendors;

Dinner at Agua, the fine dining restaurant at the One and Only Palmilla… I hadn’t been there since 1978! Service and food were both outrageously good;

Dinner at my new favorite farm-to-table restaurant in San Jose, Flora Farms. Check out their website www.flora-farms.com/ or you can find them on Facebook.

DALLAS

I’ve had a couple of quick weekend trips to Dallas with Steve. I was luckily able to locate a Trojan Club there for game watching on Saturdays.

The new NYLO Dallas South Side hotel www.facebook.com/NYLODallasSouthSide?fref=ts just opened less than a block from Steve’s loft. It offers a fun bar and dining scene on the building roof- top complete with swimming pool , great views of downtown (the same as from Steve’s balcony) and great music. My last visit they had a fabulous jazz trio playing in the lobby bar and we danced.

Favorite eats this trip: Trulucks http://trulucks.com/pages/dallas-texas for seafood, and The Cedars Social, for down home eclectic cooking and marvelous cocktails. www.thecedarssocial.com/index.php

We attended opening events at the new Klyde Warren Park, which is built over a freeway, and bridges the Dallas Arts District to Uptown. The park is a true community gathering place offering a playground for children, a dog park, a reading area complete with periodicals and books, a game area, and a stage for productions and events. They have yoga classes, Zumba and more. Opening night had a free concert with great music including Trombone Shorty from New Orleans.

The weather was pretty strange, it went from 85 high to a 35 low over my four day visit. That’s Dallas!

THE BIG HOUSE

Steve and I visited my daughter Katie in Ann Arbor in October. We were able to watch a football game – for Homecoming-- in The Big House. The weather was a bit on the cold side and it rained most of the day! We were pretty bundled up, so we kept warm but maybe a little wet.

Best eats: Vinology on Main Street, with great wine selections www.vinowinebars.net/vinology/index.html and Pacific Rim for the Asian influence. http://pacificrimbykana.com/

Katie introduced me to her newest exercise class: Pure Barre, which was extremely difficult and left me hobbling around for a week or so afterwards. Yikes!

She is coaching water polo at a local high school and planning to begin a Master’s in Education program in the spring.

We also visited new friends we met in the Cayman Islands at their lovely home on a lake in West Bloomfield, and enjoyed a sunset cocktail cruise on their pontoon boat. It was a blast!

BABIES!

My grand niece Kentyn was born a few weeks ago in Fresno to my nephew John and his wife Paige. I can’t wait to see her at Thanksgiving. My son Drew and his wife MaryGrace are expecting to welcome baby Theodore, my very own grandson, on or about December 4th, and she is looking Very Ready! Finally, I got to hold my new 2nd cousin Benjamin at the shower for MaryGrace. He is beautiful, and it provided me a little early practice.

GREENHOUSE

Kenny's greenhouse has been completed, which he'd begun building at Marlboro College before he left for Germany. He spent many months and a lot of hard work to obtain permits, funding, donations, pouring the foundation etc. before he left for Germany. The building is beautiful and the College held a grand opening ceremony in October. He was present from Berlin via Skype. Here is a photo of the completed Greenhouse. Beautiful!

The holidays are quickly going to be upon us. Early Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Mortgage Update...and GO BLUE News

Home loan rates have been fairly stable the last few weeks, ranging from the mid-4’s to low 5’s depending on a number of specific loan factors. Rates are definitely expected to rise by the end of this month due to the termination of the government’s buying program of mortgage-backed securities. This program basically generates demand for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pooled mortgage securities, which in turn, maintains rates at a lower level. Once the buying stops, most experts expect demand to wane, and prices to drop, thereby causing a rise in interest rates for home loans.

Also be aware that the deadline for the Tax Credit for homebuyers is rapidly approaching – to qualify you must be under contract by April 30th and close by June 30th. This program is widely credited for the current housing demand.

The University of Michigan Women’s Water Polo Team was here in Orange County last weekend for the annual UCI Invitational Water Polo Tournament. The event is one of the premier tournaments of the women’s collegiate polo season. This year, the Michigan Wolverines, currently ranked 8th in the nation, finished the tournament in 8th place. After a strong start, they lost their leading scorer to an injury and struggled in their remaining games. Michigan has completed the season in the top ten the last two years; and participated in the NCAA championships four of the last eight years.

Oh, did I forget to mention my daughter Katie is the Assistant Coach? Katie, who captained the Cal Bears her junior and senior years at Berkeley, is in her third season coaching at Michigan…and bought a condo in Ann Arbor last year. Yes, she earned the first-time homebuyer tax credit. She’s adjusted to the cold and snow nicely. But I remember the first time she called me and said, “Mom, it is snowing, and I fishtailed twice in the parking lot when I left to go out tonight…so I decided to stay home.” Good call.

Summers are especially nice in Ann Arbor, which has a thriving downtown filled with the typical college town restaurants, galleries, bars and boutiques! Every spring they host a parade of outrageous giant-size papier-mâché puppet creations called the FestiFools parade. I attended last year with Katie. What a blast! This year it is April 11th.


The puppets are created by students and community members who perform on downtown’s State Street, to the back beat of GROOVE, a percussion ensemble from the University. These huge handmade puppets represent everything from crazy dancing eggplants to dinosaurs and famous people. FestiFools is all about the three F’s: Fun, Free and Foolish! www.festifools.org

Ann Arbor is also home to the annual Top of the Park Music Festival, which runs for three weeks at the end of June, and an Art Fair in mid-July. The Art Fair attracts over 500,000 visitors annually, and was founded in 1960. It has been recognized as a top art fair in the nation many times…I hope to get back to visit one of their fun events this year.