Friday’s Closings

Friday was a very good day!

WSJ article – Foreclosed Property Investors

Article published in Wall Street Journal on May 20 “Investors Pounce on Distressed Homes.” Link to it at http://is.gd/Csat.

“McKinley plans to resell the houses in about five years for double what it paid and is targeting 20% annualized returns for its investors, which include wealthy individuals.
HudsonCross Financial is buying pools of 10 to 200 homes. “It only makes sense if we buy in bulk,” says Mr. Cooleen, who worked in the structured credit trading group at Deutsche Bank that dealt in credit derivatives and mortgage-backed securities.”

Mortgage Interest Rates – Week of May 18 – May 22, 2009

Above rates are provided to give you an idea of what rate activity has been in the last week. This will be a regular feature on Fridays. The following assumptions and fine print are included for protection:

1. Rates pulled daily around 10:00 a.m. from Bank of America’s website at http://www.bankofamerica.com/loansandhomes/index.cfm?template=findrate.Sales
2. Price = $100,000
3. Loan to Value = $80,000 (80%)
4. State of Michigan
5. Single family detached home
6. Owner-occupied primary residence
7. 30-year fixed-rate mortgage
8. Rates above exclude points and mortgage insurance. Consult your mortgage representative for more information.
9. These rates are not guaranteed until lock-in.
10. Rates and terms are subject to change without notice. Interest rates assume credit history in good standing.
11. All loan applications subject to credit and property approval. Flood and/or property hazard insurance may be required. Additional fees and closing costs may apply.
12. Maximum loan limits and minimum equity/down payment requirements apply.
13. Other restrictions may apply.
14. Additional rates and programs are available.
15. Assumes no other loans or liens.
16. Assumes lock period based on current market conditions.
17. Assumes taxes and insurance will be escrowed.
18. Assumes applicant is a United States citizen.
19. Fees are based on default county for each state. Fees are subject to change based on property county.

Thursday’s Closings

No confirmed closings on Thursday – but watch out – at least 9 scheduled for Friday!

Quote for the weekend

“If you think it’s expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur.”-Red Adair

I will stay if…

Great Lakes Urban Exchange (GLUE) has a cool web page showing people, of all demographics, from around the Detroit area holding up signs that express what would make them stay in Detroit. Click on the individual photos and they will enlarge enough for you to read them.

Some of the signs say:

I will stay if they fix up abandoned homes.
I will stay if I could get a job here.
I am staying because I care.
I will stay if we can learn from the past without living in it.
I’m staying because you can’t take my city away from me.
I will stay if better transportation (several others similar to this).
I will stay if Detroit straightens out its government.
I will stay if I can find assistance for my small business idea.
I will stay if Detroit preserves its historic buildings.
We’ll stay in Detroit if income taxes go down (or preferably, were eliminated).

http://gluespace.org/iwillstayif/index.php?/project/detroit/

Caption This

You know how the Detroit Free Press runs the “Caption This” photo? For an example go to http://is.gd/BMxr. Here’s Preview Properties.com’s version. Enter your suggestion in the message area of this post.

Wednesday’s Closings

Have you noticed how few closings we have had in Livingston County lately? 11% of our closings since last Friday.

Tuesday’s Closings

Grill time at Preview Properties.com

We raised $122 (updated for Wednesday leftovers) for the Family Impact Center on Tuesday – and had a great lunch at the same time.