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Texas Lending (TexasLending.com) Discusses Reverse Mortgages

July 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Texas LendingTexas Lending (TexasLending.com) handles more than 3,000 loans each year, and these include a wide variety of mortgage loan issues. Working directly with clients to explain all of their options is important to Texas Lending CEO Kevin Miller. He founded TexasLending.com with the vision of providing personalized service to each customer. Today, Texas Lending speaks to A Gathering of Experts about a topic that is drawing quite a few questions from today’s baby boomer generation–reverse mortgages.

A Gathering of Experts: We hear quite a bit about reverse mortgages. What does Texas Lending tell its customers about this type of loan?

Texas Lending: As baby boomers consider their options, reverse mortgages are a great tool for many. Texas Lending helps counsel all of our clients toward the best option for their own personal needs.  For some clients, that best option is a reverse mortgage.

A Gathering of Experts: Explain the basics of a reverse mortgage.

Texas Lending: A reverse mortgage allows homeowners over the age of sixty-two to receive their equity, either in lump sum form or as a monthly payment, or a line of credit, or a combination of all these options. Texas Lending often recommends reverse mortgages as an option for older homeowners who are having trouble making their monthly payment and cannot refinance using traditional means.

A Gathering of Experts: When someone contacts Texas Lending about reverse mortgages, will they be connected with a government-approved counselor?

Texas Lending: Yes. Texas Lending provides our clients with an expansive list of HUD approved counselors and the client chooses the one best suited for their location, timing and budget.

A Gathering of Experts: Could this be an option for seniors who are in danger of foreclosure?

Texas Lending: Yes! Because of the current state of the real estate market, many seniors can no longer afford their house payment. The Reverse allows the senior to payoff the loan with which they are struggling.

It is important to note,  some struggling seniors don’t have the option of selling their home and moving somewhere cheaper because they are underwater on their mortgages—meaning they owe more than the appraised value of their home. Texas Lending has been able to help some clients payoff these underwater mortgages using the Reverse as the tool to do it.

A Gathering of Experts: So when someone is approved for a reverse mortgage with Texas Lending, they might end up with no house payment.

Texas Lending: Absolutely! They definitely end up with no requirement to make a house payment. They do, however, have to continue to pay their property taxes and homeowners insurance.

If a client wants to make payments on the Reverse, they certainly can. Some seniors want a traditional refinance and cannot qualify due to today’s more stringent credit standards. The Reverse credit criteria are simpler. The senior may find this loan suits their needs and they can choose to repay the loan just like a traditional loan. It is their decision entirely!

A Gathering of Experts: We’ve heard there are some drawbacks to the reverse mortgage.

Texas Lending: Drawbacks? No. However, a reverse mortgage may not be for  everyone. We will make certain that applicants understand all of the terms before they enter into this type of mortgage. After working with a Texas Lending Consultant, an applicant will have all of the information they need about their available options in order to make an informed decision.

For more information, visit Texas Lending online at www.texaslending.com

TexasLending.com
4100 Alpha Rd. Suite 400
Dallas, TX 75244
NMLS# 137773

 

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Pierre Bennett Global Vacations Suggests the Trip of a Lifetime to Australia

May 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Pierre Bennett Global Vacations

Pierre Bennett Global Vacations

According to Pierre Bennett Global Vacations, Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is a treasure. The team at Pierre Bennett Global Vacations recommends that visitors discover the Technicolor coral and marine life through a glass-bottomed boat  for a stunning trip. Travelers can also enjoy the magnificent deep drop offs, underwater tunnels and caves with a dive school. And because Pierre Bennett Global Vacations finds members the lowest available airfares, your entire family can discover the reef together.

Pierre Bennett Global Vacations also notes that many vacationers enjoy visiting Port Douglas for Low Isles, a secluded island gem. You can anchor overnight at stunning moorings on the Great Barrier Reef as well. Pierre Bennett Global Vacations reports that boats can be chartered, complete with a trained crew, if you want to fully relax. Or, if you prefer solid ground, you can afford places to pamper you, because Pierre Bennett Global Vacations offers resort discounts where you can relax for less.

Now that you’ve explored the Great Barrier Reef, why not indulge in amazing local produce and award-winning wines in Western Australia’s oldest wine producing region? Pierre Bennett Global Vacations proposes that you visit the Swan Valley, to tour the vines, waterfalls and lush bush land of the area. There are wine tastings; microbreweries or you can visit a vineyard for a picnic lunch. Pierre Bennett Global Vacations also suggests that the Swan Valley is also a beautiful area for other outdoor activities like horseback riding, cycling and golf.

In Cairns, the professionals at Pierre Bennett Global Vacations recommend that visitors indulge in locally grown bananas, mangos, and pineapples in this dream agricultural area. Pierre Bennett Global Vacations notes the excellent seafood, game and organic bush food. There are also rainforest orchards and you can visit coffee plantations in the tablelands.

The Daintree Cape Tribulation Rainforest is a tremendously diverse and gorgeous example of nature at its finest. And the ecologically unique area is home to an extensive range of animals and flora. The rainforest is home to the largest amount of plants and animals that are threatened with near extinction on earth, says Pierre Bennett Global Vacations.

The team at Pierre Bennett Global Vacations says that for many visitors to Australia, a visit to the Aboriginal areas is often a highlight of the trip. The Aboriginal people of Australia have a rich and amazing culture that stretches back at least 50,000 years. Pierre Bennett Global Vacations suggests that you let Aboriginal Australians teach your family about art, dance, myths, music and the land itself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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James Stuckey Explains Different Players in Real Estate Development

May 11, 2012 By 8 Comments
James Stuckey

James Stuckey

Recently, A Gathering of Experts spoke with James Stuckey to find out more about the real estate  development process and how there are many different types of developers. James Stuckey says that each has their own reasons for entering the field.

A Gathering of Experts: Good evening and thank you for joining us today.

James Stuckey: Thank you for having me.

A Gathering of Experts: So does real estate development involve more than just a builder and financier?

James Stuckey: Yes, there are many different players involved although the builder may be the only one visible to the public at times.

A Gathering of Experts: We understand there are also many different developers with different motives.

James Stuckey: That’s very true. I can think of probably half a dozen different types of development firms.

A Gathering of Experts: Can you tell us about them?

James Stuckey: First there are groups called Equity Developers. Silverstein Properties is a good example. These are both private and publicly traded companies that place their own equity or money at risk.

A Gathering of Experts: Do these groups always contribute the same percentage to a project?

James Stuckey: No, the amount of money and the type of equity as well as the guarantees that are given vary dramatically.

A Gathering of Experts: What about Real Estate Investment Trusts?

James Stuckey: These are often simply called REITS and they are companies that sell shares of stock to raise capital and must distribute 90% of their pretax profits to shareholders.

A Gathering of Experts: Are there any guidelines on how much of their total assets they must invest in real estate?

James Stuckey: Yes. Seventy-five percent.

A Gathering of Experts: Are there any developers that don’t offer up their assets as collateral?

James Stuckey: Fee Developers; frequently, developers or development organizations complete projects for a fee.

A Gathering of Experts: And they don’t invest their own equity or give financial guarantees?

James Stuckey: No, they also do not participate in the profits and losses or tax benefits enjoyed by Equity and REIT Developers.

A Gathering of Experts: What about government agencies? Do they fund their own development?

James Stuckey: Well, there are differences between government agencies and institutional developers.. A government agency might build a school or industrial park, and an institutional developer a retail project.

A Gathering of Experts: And they are all nonprofit?

James Stuckey: No, there are some for-profit companies, like Home Depot, that are considered Institutional Developers because they build for themselves.

A Gathering of Experts: What about small builders?

James Stuckey: There are some smaller builders and speculators who typically build one and two family homes and low-density office and retail buildings.

A Gathering of Experts: Aren’t landowners considered developers?

James Stuckey: No, not all land owners want their property improved. But often, landowners will contribute their land as equity to developers for a partnership interest.  Some just hold property for the investment value.

A Gathering of Experts: Is everyone involved in the development process usually an expert in real estate trends?

James Stuckey: Equity players are those who may or may not have development experience, but supply equity to others as an investment for projected return.

A Gathering of Experts: It sounds like that at any given time there can be many people involved in a single development contract.

James Stuckey: That’s true… In addition to the people who plan what should be built, there are also architects, structural engineers, and dozens of other people with specific areas of expertise involved.

A Gathering of Experts: Well, we appreciate your time with us this evening. We look forward to speaking with you again.

James Stuckey: Certainly and thank you for having me.

A Gathering of Experts: Before we go, can you tell our readers a bit about your own property development firm?

James Stuckey: I am the President and CEO of Verdant Properties, LLC®. We are a development firm focusing on in environmentally responsible building and development.

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CWD Construction Founders Discuss the Joy of Helping Others

April 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment
CWD Construction

CWD Construction

CWD Construction is known as a premier homebuilder and remodeler in North and South Carolina. But each year, CWD Construction’s co-founder, Chuck Dohm, tries to journey to the troubled country of Haiti to help provide food and basic supplies. Co-founder and spouse, Sonia Dohm, gathers basic supplies along with many other supporters to be transported by ship in advance of the trip.

As the CWD Construction founders explain, Haiti has long dealt with political turmoil. When it was formed in 1697, Haiti was at first a successful nation, but as the country’s resources began to deplete, the nation fell into economic woes. In 1804 a slave revolt continued its long struggle, CWD Construction’s founders relate.

According to the CWD Construction co-founders, while Haiti became the first black republic to gain independence, it has continued to endure violence. In 2004, Haiti president Jean-Berstrand Aristide resigned as a result of an armed rebellion, CWD Construction’s Chuck Dohm explains. An interim government was put in place and the U.N. supervised Haiti’s first democratic elections.

Although the country has struggled with a reluctance to accept new technology and continuing violence in recent years, a governing body was put in place to get things under control, according to CWD Construction. Just as it seemed as though Haitians were on their way to a fresh start, however, the 2010 earthquake shook the country.

More than 300,000 Haitian citizens lost their lives in the earthquake, which shook Port-au-Prince, the country’s backbone, Chuck Dohm relates. As CWD Construction’s co-founders tell us, the earthquake was 7.0 in magnitude. In addition to the tragic loss of life, more than two million people were directly affected by the destruction the earthquake caused to building structures. What Chuck finds especially difficult to accept is that much of the progress Haiti had made has been undone. Seeing this motivates the CWD Construction founders to work hard to help.

The damage was so widespread, CWD Construction’s Chuck Dohm says, because many of the structures were poorly built. This is why Chuck is more dedicated than ever to his annual trip to Haiti, where he can serve by providing basic food and necessities.

The CWD Construction founders have found that giving to Haitians is actually a bigger blessing for them. Seeing the devastating poverty the residents are forced to endure makes the CWD Construction co-founders realize just how truly blessed they are.

“We don’t realize how many blessings we have until we experience first-hand the poverty of a third-world country like Haiti,” Chuck Dohm says.

For more information about CWD Construction, visit them online at www.cwdconstruction.com

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Personal Finance Expert Joe Aldeguer Says Foreclosure and Bankruptcy Not a Lifelong Situation

February 15, 2012 By 10 Comments
Joe Aldeguer

Joe Aldeguer

According to Joe Aldeguer, it’s no secret that the housing market collapse in 2008 has affected hundreds of thousands of homeowners across the United States. Many homeowners are facing foreclosure and feel as though their lives are in a perpetual state of limbo. It can be very intimidating to face foreclosure, as homeowners know that their credit scores are negatively affected and credit availability may become a thing of the past, reports Joe Aldeguer.

While many homeowners will have limited housing options after foreclosure, Joe Aldeguer notes that there is hope for all, if you have a plan. He maintains that it is possible to reestablish credit to the point of being able to buy a new house, save money, and pay off other debt–all while living in the current home. According to Joe Aldeguer, he has seen many homeowners in the foreclosure process take up to four years or longer – roughly the same amount of time it takes to begin the credit rebuilding process under certain circumstances. You should call an attorney for advice. Joe Aldeguer notes that each case is different.

According to Joe Aldeguer, a chapter 7 bankruptcy filing is a viable option for some homeowners facing foreclosure. By ensuring a formal change of title, many homeowners can simply walk away knowing that they may qualify for an FHA loan in as little as three years. To qualify for an FHA loan, an individual has to meet the financial requirements of job history and reestablished credit requirements, says Aldeguer. During this time, adds Joe Aldeguer, the homeowner can choose to stop paying the monthly mortgage, as well as the property tax bill. Joe Aldeguer says that this is the perfect time to open up a savings account, pay down other debt, or get into a financial position to put a down payment on a new home. Often, the bank will press the homeowner to vacate the home immediately. At this point, Joe Aldeguer recommends consulting with an experienced bankruptcy and foreclosure attorney for advice as they can possibly prolong your stay and length of time in the home.

By having a plan in place, and strategically allowing the property to go into foreclosure while filing bankruptcy proceedings, a family can take the time to wipe their financial slate clean and actually start saving money, points out Joe Aldeguer. There is a huge relief for families and home-owners that there are options that they never would have thought of. There is no shame in admitting that once a home has been devalued to a certain point, it becomes an absolute financial liability and not the asset it once was, notes Joe Aldeguer. Unfortunately, many people fear a marred credit report so much they would let their families suffer. It doesn’t have to be that way. Joe Aldeguer insists that weathering a personal financial storm over the course of a few years is far more sensible than fighting for a home that may have lost as much as half its original value.

Between Joe Aldeguer’s strong financial background and his ownership of one of the largest lending mortgage companies, Aldeguer and the attorneys he works with have developed a practical strategy that makes financial sense in making the transition of making lemonade out of lemons.

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