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Powerful Education for Real Estate Agents In a move to strengthen its long running and successful real estate education initiative, Prospect Mortgage is seeking detailed feedback on educational content and delivery methods through an online survey distributed to 150,000 Real Estate Agents across the nation. "In 2011, we put more resources than ever before into education for our Agent partners," said Todd Duncan, Prospect's Chief Performance Officer. "We had a terrific response, because the very challenging market has many real estate professionals looking for answers and guidance." Excited by the 2011 success, key Prospect executives from Sales, Training and Marketing resolved to make the company's 2012 Real Estate Education Seminar Series even stronger and more focused. "Prospect strives to execute at an outstanding level in all things and that includes creating value for our Agent partners," said Prospect EVP and training leader Kevin Tackaberry. To ensure that the 2012 curriculum is sharply focused on meeting the right business learning needs of Agents, Prospect created an online survey that allows Agents to rank a selection of business development topics, mortgage loan information and delivery methods in order of importance. Prospect distributed the survey to Agents on January 5 and received 200 replies within the first hour. "The feedback has been excellent so far, and responses keep coming," said Matt Tully, Prospect's Chief Marketing Officer. If you missed the survey that went out January 5, please click here to take it now! We are eager to get your feedback, and all respondents receive free access to an exclusive Prospect conference call in early Q1 featuring Michael J. Maher, real estate superstar and author of the book, "(7L) The Seven Levels of Communication: Go from Relationships to Referrals." |

LAST WEEK IN THE NEWS
Factory orders rose 1.8% in November to a seasonally adjusted $459.2 billion, following a revised 0.2% decrease in October. Excluding the volatile transportation sector, orders rose 0.3% in November.
Retail sales rose 1.2% for the week ending December 31, according to the ICSC-Goldman Sachs index. On a year-over-year basis, retailers saw sales increase 5.3%.
The Institute for Supply Management reported that the monthly composite index of manufacturing activity rose to 53.9 in December after a reading of 52.7 in November. A reading above 50 signals expansion. It was the 29th straight month of expansion.
Total construction spending rose 1.2% to $807.1 billion in November, following a 0.2% decrease in October. Economists had anticipated an increase of 0.5% in November. Compared to a year ago, construction spending rose 0.5%.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted composite index of mortgage applications for the week ending December 30 fell 3.7%. Refinancing applications decreased 1.9%. Purchase volume fell 9.7%.
The Institute for Supply Management reported that the monthly composite index of non-manufacturing activity rose to 52.6 in December from 52 in November. A reading above 50 signals expansion. It was the 25th straight month of expansion in the services sector.
Initial claims for unemployment benefits fell by 15,000 to 372,000 for the week ending December 31. Continuing claims for the week ending December 24 fell by 22,000 to 3.595 million. The monthly unemployment rate fell to 8.5% in December from a revised 8.7% in November and 9% in October.
Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on wholesale trade on January 10, retail sales on January 12 and consumer sentiment on January 13.
Written by Prospect Mortgage

As the Nation's Second Largest 203K Lender, Prospect Sees Demand Growing for Renovation Loans
Currently, foreclosures account for about 30% of all home sales in the U.S. Many of these homes have been neglected and are in need of repair. These market conditions have made renovation loans a hot item.
Renovation loans are very attractive for a number of reasons. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) 203K renovation loan provides the money to both purchase the home and finance the home's renovation. The down payment required on a renovation loan can be as low as 3.5%. Renovation loans are also very convenient. With one loan, there's only one application, one set of fees, one closing and one monthly payment. At closing, the repair money is put into a special account for disbursement as repairs are completed.
Prospect has seen a sharp rise in the demand for renovation loans. To better service these increasingly popular loans, Prospect has put an experienced Renovation Management Team in place; implemented training and certification programs for Loan Officers originating renovation loans; and developed a Fast Track Team to expedite the renovation loan process.
Consequently, Prospect has increased its renovation loan market share in the past couple of years by more than 80%. In fact, today Prospect is the second largest FHA 203K renovation lender in the nation.
Only a limited number of lenders offer 203K financing. With foreclosure sales running six times higher than normal — and many of these homes in need of repair — just knowing about renovation loans may make the vital difference to motivate your buyers to purchase.
If you would like more information about our renovation loans or have any questions about how such a loan may benefit your clients, please call me today.
Written By Prospect Mortgage
Mixed Use Properties financed using FHA's 203(k) Loans
What is Mixed Use? Simply put, a mixed use property is any real estate that has a combination of both residential and commercial units.
Many people don’t realize that they can purchase a mixed use property using FHA's 203(k) Rehab Loan. Many buyers think they will need a commercial loan with a large down payment to buy a mixed use property even if the majority of the income produced is from the residential section of the property.
OK.....Here is the MOST exciting Part:

The commercial space is not counted as a unit in determining if the property is to be treated as a single family, duplex, triplex, etc. Therefore, a property with four residential units above a commercial space is considered a four unit and can be financed using FHA's 203(k) rehab loan with only 3.5% down payment.
One thing to remember, the buyer will need to occupy one of the residential units as their primary residence. They may not already have an FHA loan on a property already owned by the buyer.
This is an amazing opportunity for buyers to buy their primary residence while at the same time investing in commercial property using a residential loan.
If you were to compare general commercial loan terms to an FHA 203(k) loan, you'd realize that the FHA 203(k) loan is much for favorable in most cases:
| Commercial Mixed Use Loans | FHA 203(k) Rehab Loan Mixed Use |
| Term - fixed rate: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8 Yrs | Term- 30 Year Fixed or 5/1 ARM |
| Adjustable rate available | Adjustable rate available |
| Amortization: 20, 25, and 30 years | Amoritization: 30 years |
| Prepayment: Multiple options | No Pre-Payment Penalty |
| Loan to Value Ratios: 75% for most loans | Loan to Value Ratios: 96.5% |
Eligibility Crtiteria:
· Property must be marketed and currently used as residential. (conversion from commercial to mixed use not eligible)
· The floor space used for commercial purposes cannot exceed:
· 25% for a 1-story building
· 49% for a 2-story building
· 33% for a 3-story building
· Zoning must be mixed use as determined by the appraisal
· Commercial space cannot affect the health and safety of residential occupants.
· Rehab funds can only be used for residential functions of the dwelling and areas used to access the residential part of the property.
· Commercial rent may be used as income IF space is currently being used as commercial enterprise and has a valid lease that will continue.
· Appraisal Requirements
· Appraisal must be completed on FHA Appraisal Form 1025
· Like comparable sales in the area must be available and used on the appraisal
· Appraised value assigned must be completed as if the total property is for residential use
Below is a chart for the "High Cost" counties in California which specifies the MAX loan limit depending on the number of "Residential" units for the Mixed Use Property:
| FHA LOAN LIMITS BY COUNTY | One-Family | Two-Family | Three-Family | Four-Family |
| Alameda | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Contra Costa | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Los Angeles | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Marin | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Monterey | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Napa | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Orange | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| San Benito | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| San Francisco | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| San Mateo | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Santa Barbara | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Santa Clara | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
| Santa Cruz | $ 729,750.00 | $ 934,200.00 | $ 1,129,250.00 | $ 1,403,400.00 |
For additional information about loan limits in other counties please visit: https://entp.hud.gov/idapp/html/hicost1.cfm
Please contact me with questions.... I love to discuss different sceanrios and see how I may make them work for you. I am 203(k) certified.... My motto: you won't know unless you ask.
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Make Your Advertising Click with AdWords
In 2010, Google generated a whopping $28 billion in advertising revenues, with the lion's share coming from AdWords — those brief ads or "sponsored links" appearing above or beside Google search results.
As a sales professional, you'll like AdWords for two main reasons: You're advertising to an audience already interested in some aspect of your business, and you pay only when someone clicks on your ad.
When pay-per-click (PPC) advertising began, ad rankings were based on how much you were willing to pay or "bid" for certain keywords. While Google maintained this auction-type system, it added a second "ranking" component — the Quality Score — which weighs factors like the historical click-through rate (the percentage of visitors who click your ad), the quality of your website, and the relevance of your keywords. Like the recipe for Coca-Cola, Google's ad placement formula is closely guarded.
Because Google partners with millions of websites, your ad can reach users all over the web or you can customize the placement of your ad for a local market only.
To analyze the effectiveness of your ads and justify your advertising expense, Google provides Placement Performance Reports. These detail the domain, click-through rate, conversion rate (the percentage of visitors who take a desired action once visiting your website) and cost data for each site an ad appears on.
If you don't want the hassle of constantly testing, tweaking and optimizing your ad campaign, AdWords Express will manage it for you. In minutes, you can create an ad and set a budget, and Google will handle everything else automatically as your ad starts reaching people looking for what you offer.
For more information, visit Google AdWords.
Written by Prospect Mortgage
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