Karen Villa Schweinfurth, ABR, CRS, SRES, CyberStar

Too many consumers still don't get it when it comes to credit scores. And what you don't know about credit scores can hurt you when it's time to buy a home -- especially in a tight credit market. Only 28% of consumers are aware they need at least a 700 credit score to qualify for a low-rate mortgage. Three of every four consumers incorrectly believe that credit scores are influenced by income. And even more, 79% erroneously believe that credit scores can be obtained for free once a year. (They are probably thinking about their credit report, instead). Those are amonth the findings of a new report, "Consumer Understanding of Credit Scores Inproves but Remains Poor" commissioned by the Consumer Federation of America.

First your credit socre is a number assigned to your creditworthiness. Your credit score indicates how well or how poorly you'll repay a debt. The higher the number, the more likely you'll repay on time. Your bill paying information on credit reports provides the basis for your credit score. Consumers who take the time to obtain their credit score, for only about $15 under most crcumstances, are more likely to have a better understanding of the scores. That includes knowledge that mortgage lenders rely heavily upon credit scores to approve or reject home loan applications.

Informed consumers also know they can generally raise their credit score by consistently paying bills on time every time; by paying off debt and closing those paid off accounts; by not coming close to maxing out credit cards and by regularly checking their credit reports to make sure they are accurate. Your credit report is free from AnnualCreditReport.com. For more information about your credit score to to MyFICO.com. The study also found that consumers could save $28 billion a year in lower finance charges if they improved their credit scores by 30 points.

For all your real estate needs, visit my web site.

FALL MAINTENANCE TASKS

Outside

* Replace weather striping and caulking around doors and windows

* Clean and remove screens

* Drain outside faucets

* Remove leaves from gutters

Inside

* Test your smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector

*Change batteries in both (twice a year)

*Service heating system and change filters

*Clean refrigerator coils

*Check fire extinguishers

OCTOBER HOME DECORATING TIPS

*Hollow out apples or mini pumpkins and us as votive candle holders

* Create centerpieces by filling vases with dried flowers, leaves and empty branches

* Serve fresh veggies using a hollowed out pumpkin as a bowl

OCTOBER RECIPE

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

To roast pumpkin seeds, do not wash them first - it removes all the natural favors. Remove the seeds from the strings and place a single layer on a cookie sheet. Add salt to taste and bake at 250 degrees about 15-30 minutes.

For sweet and spicy seeds - mix 5T sugar; 1/4 t. corse sale, 1/4 t. ground cumin, 1/4 t. ground cinnamon, 1/4 t. ground ginger and a pinch of cayenne pepper.

For your real estate needs contact Karen Schweinfurth, 425-308-3669 or visit my web site.

This information comes as a courtesy from my lender, Ken Allen, Branch Manager with MetLife Home Loans. You can reach him at 425-6702418 or ken@kenallen.com.

With Wall Street engulfed in the biggest financial crisis in a generation, there are a few things that consumers can do to protect themselves from this perilous storm," said Gibran Nicholas, Chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that certifies mortgage bankers and brokers.

#1 - Make Sure Your Investments Are Protected Through the SIPC

The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) was created in 1970 as a non-profit, non-government organization funded by its members: broker-dealers that trade in stocks, bonds, mutual funds and other investments in the financial markets. The primary role of the SIPC is to return funds and investments to investors if the broker-dealer holding these assets becomes insolvent. "The SIPC does not cover you if the value of your investments goes down," said Nicholas. "The SIPC makes sure that you recover the assets in your investment accounts if your stock brokerage firm or the financial institution where you hold your investment account goes bankrupt. For example, if you have an account at Lehman Brothers or any other financial institution that goes bankrupt, the SIPC will make sure that you recover the assets you hold in the investment account. However, if the stocks or other investments that you hold in your investment accounts have lost value due to a decline in stock prices or market conditions, the SIPC will not reimburse you for the lost value of your investments."

SIPC coverage is limited to $500,000 per customer, including up to $100,000 for cash. "This does not mean that you will only recover $500,000 worth of your account," said Nicholas. "Under virtually all circumstances, you will recover the full amount as part of the unwinding and liquidation of the brokerage firm." If sufficient funds are not available in the firm's customer accounts to satisfy all the claims, the reserve funds of the SIPC are used to supplement the distribution, up to a ceiling of $500,000 per customer, including a maximum of $100,000 for cash claims. Additional funds may be available to satisfy the remainder of customer claims after the cost of liquidating the brokerage firm is taken into account. According to the SIPC web site, it typically takes one to three months for investors to recover their property from an account at a failed brokerage firm.

SIPC covers stocks, bonds, mutual funds and other securities registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is the government agency that oversees the SIPC. The SIPC does not cover unregistered investments such as commodity futures contracts or commodity options. In response to the impending collapse of Lehman Brothers yesterday, the SEC issued a press release specifically indicating that it is taking actions to ensure that those who

have accounts at Lehman Brothers will recover the assets in their accounts in the event that Lehman becomes insolvent.

#2 - Make Sure All Your Bank Accounts Are Covered with FDIC Insurance

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is an independent federal agency that was created in 1933 to insure bank depositors and protect them against the failure of their bank. The current limit on FDIC insurance is $100,000 for bank accounts and $250,000 for retirement accounts. "You should make sure that all deposits over the limit are held in separate accounts owned by different individuals or entities," said Nicholas. "This means that if you are married with two children, you can have one account in your name, one account in the name of your spouse and one account each in the names of your two children, all with the maximum of $100,000 in deposits, and you would still be fully insured for the full $400,000."

Additionally, if you have a corporation or limited liability company (LLC), your business can also have an account at that same bank and it will also be insured up to the $100,000 limit. The only caveat is that the company must be engaged in an "independent activity," meaning that the entity is operated primarily for some purpose other than to simply increase your insurance coverage. When two or more insured banks merge, the deposits from the assumed bank continue to be insured separately for at least six months after the merger. This grace period gives you the opportunity to restructure your accounts, if necessary.

If your deposits at one bank exceed the FDIC limits, it's advisable to move the money and open up some new accounts at other banks that are not affiliated with one another and that are not owned by the same parent company. Additionally, you may consider asking your bank if they participate in the CDARS® network. CDARS® stands for Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Service®, and it is offered by nearly 2,500 financial institutions across the country. When you place a large deposit with a financial institution that is part of the CDARS network, the financial institution uses CDARS to place your funds into certificates of deposit issued by other banks in the network. This occurs in increments of less than $100,000 to ensure that both principal and interest are eligible for full FDIC insurance.

#3 - Max Out Your Home Equity Line of Credit Before Your Lender Cuts Off the Limit

"Lenders have been arbitrarily reducing credit limits on home equity lines of credit," said Nicholas. "If you still have credit available on your home equity line, it could be very beneficial for you to draw out the money now before the lender reduces your limit. In this environment, it's probably a safer bet to have the cash sitting in your FDIC-insured bank account in case you lose your job or in case you need the funds for any other reason."

#4 - Stop Making Extra Mortgage Payments and Take Out a Mortgage Even If You Don't Need One

"Cash is king in a liquidity crunch," said Nicholas. "The worst thing you can do in this environment is dump more of your cash into your home equity because you may not be able to get access to it if you run into financial difficulties, if the housing market continues to decline, or if the credit crunch gets worse. Although it sounds counter-intuitive, you should have as big a mortgage as possible - even if you don't need it - and leave as much cash as possible in a safe, liquid place that is readily available to you. This empowers you to weather the storm and also have your funds available to take advantage of bargain opportunities that are becoming available because others have not followed this advice. In this environment, the one with the most cash wins."

Ken is a CMP, Certified Mortgage Professional.

About CMPS Institute: CMPS is a training, examination, certification and ongoing membership program for financial professionals who provide mortgage and real estate equity advice. Recognized for its preeminence within the industry, the CMPS curriculum represents the core knowledge expected of residential mortgage advisors regardless of the diversity of specializations within the industry. Over 5,500 financial professionals have gone through the program since its launch in 2005.

For all your real estate needs, call Karen Villa Schweinfurth, ABR, CRS, SRES, e-PRO Internet Certified - 425-308-3669.

RE/MAX Northwest Realtors - Everett, WA

Looking for some fresh produce, great lunches, fun music, arts and crafts, well go no further. Every Sunday at the Everett Marina from 11 am to four pm.

There are rows of booths of local farmers promoting their local products from Walla Walla sweet onions, beet, lettuce, garlic, corn, tomatoes, fresh apples, peaches, cherries and apricots.

Not to mention the local bakeries that bring fresh baked bread and cookies.

The local plant farms bring their beauties to share with your garden too.

Oh and the crafts from doggie gourmet biscuits, to jewelry to hand painted kitchen ware there are so many things you must see.

So grab your sun glasses, visor and shopping bag and spend a lovely Sunday at our marine and farmers market. You'll be glad you came. I can smell the fresh produce as I write.

I've tried the green tomatoes for "fried green tomatoes", the fava beans for beans and red rice, the fresh Walla Walla onions and tomatoes and lettuce for a fresh salad, oh, and don't forget the basil to make homemade pesto sauce!

The market will be open thru the end of September. For other great Northwest finds visit my website.

Many of you think that when we find your dream property, write an offer and get it accepted, our job is done. Far from that point.....our job is just beginning.

In addition to helping you find your dream home through the listings we have sent you, making appointments to show you these listings, we are always working FOR you.

When we first met we gave you a copy of the "Laws of Real Estate Agency" that describes your legal rights in dealing with a real estate broker or salesperson in Washington State. It describes the duties of a licensee, a seller's agent, a buyer's agent, a dual agent, compensation, vicarious liability, imputed knowledge and notice and interpretation. You also received my buyer book that contains information on your purchase process and an introduction to my team of professionals; my transaction coordinator, my lender, my title company representative, my escrow officer, and my inspectors.

As a buyer's agent we are to: Be loyal to the buyer by taking no action that is adverse or detrimental or the buyer's interest in a transaction; to timely disclose to the buyer any conflicts of interest, to advise you to seek expert advice on matters relating to the transaction that are beyond our expertise, not to disclose confidential information from or about the buyer, except under subpoena or court order, even after termination of the agency relationship and make a good faith and continuous effort to find a property for you, the buyer, except that a buyer's agent is not obligated to: seek additional properties to purchase while the buyer is a party to an existing contract to purchase, or show properties as to which there is no written agreement to pay compensation to the buyer's agent.

We then begin the process of negotiating the contract in your best interest. Once we reach mutual acceptance, we send the contract to our assistant who will set you up on an internet web-based program so that we can communicate through emails what is happening on your transaction. You have 24/7 access to this file. We contact the selling agent, lender, title company, escrow company and they all become a party to this transaction.

We set up your inspection by coordinating that with your inspector and the seller. We negotiate after the inspection is completed and make sure all parties are aware of what's happening.

We follow up regularly with the lender to make sure they are on track with ordering the appraisal, getting paperwork to the underwriter and getting final loan approval.

We provide you with utility information and advise you when to contact the companies to get local utilities in your name.

We then make sure that the lender gets their paperwork to the escrow officer in a timely manner so that they can schedule your signing appointment. Remember, we talked about this, this is where you sign closing papers, deposit your funds to close. The paperwork is then sent back to the lender for a 24 hour review. Once the lender releases the package for recording, we follow up with the escrow office to make sure they are going to the court house to record your documents. Once that happens and we receive recording numbers, the escrow officer releases the fund and you CLOSE. You then are awarded keys according to the terms of the purchase and sale agreement.

We meet with you and hand over keys. You have your beautiful home, finally. We then follow up with post closing instructions to make sure there are no details left to discuss.

Phew, you say, you didn't realize we did all that. Yes, we do, and with zest, as you see provide you with the American Dream - home ownership and if we can do that successfully, our job is well done.

Congratulations, on your purchase. You'll be receiving a welcome home gift from my team. We wish you many years of happiness. "Oh, by the way, if you know of a friend or family member that could use our services, we'd be happy to speak to them and offer them the same level of service we gave you." Good Luck in your new home!

For Buyer Agency in Washington State contact: Karen Villa Schweinfurth, ABR, CRS, SRES, ePRO, ACRE

Your Snohomish County Expert

http://www.karensvillas.com

karen@karensvillas.com 425-308-3669