This is a great list to start with when you move with children. You have to really see it through their eyes and work to understand their concerns. Many times, it is just about asking them questions and soliciting their feelings to help them through the process. This is a good list of checkpoints.

Moving with children can be a stressful and traumatic experience, especially for younger children. However, it doesn’t have to be. Read through these simple tips on making relocating with children easy and exciting for them, and less stressful for you!

Be Positive! It is not uncommon for kids to echo their parent’s emotions. It is important to be upbeat and encouraging toward your children about the move. Even if you are stressed. Trust me, if you alleviate the stress on your children, you’ll alleviate some of your own stress. Be sure to keep your family’s schedule on track as much as possible, so the kids don’t feel overlooked.

Communication goes a long way. Be sure to involve your children with the moving plans. Explaining the move with your kids will not only make them feel better about the situation, but also make them feel involved with the process. You will also want to make sure they understand why. Sometimes kids don’t understand the reasons for the move. All they see is the friends and school they are leaving, their home and neighborhood. Explaining the why is not going to make this better for them, but it may make it easier.

Involvement. If your children are old enough to understand what is going on, you should get them involved in the moving process. As I mentioned above, they are leaving their friends, neighborhood, and school. Getting them involved in the move will make it a more positive experience for them rather than a negative one. If you know specific information about things such as possible schools, recreational areas, clubs, etc, share it with them. Involve them with choosing your future home, and if possible take them on the house hunt. Ultimately, involving your children in any way will give them a sense of control in a situation where they may otherwise feel helpless.

Packing. Even you having a moving company coming to pack your things, it is a good idea to let your children pack up a few things that belong to them. Maybe help them to choose items that are important to them or have some sort of sentimental value. Pack them up in a box and put their name on it (i.e. “Molly’s Stuff). Then take this box with you instead of the moving company. That way the things that mean the most to your child will be right there with them.

Say Goodbye. Sounds simple, but for your children this may be the most traumatic part of their experience. People grieve over people they leave behind, even if a death is not involved. If you are moving across the country and your child is leaving behind a very good friend. Let them say goodbye. Perhaps throw a going away party for your child and let them invite those who mean a lot. It may be a good idea to make some sort of scrapbook about the things your child is going to miss. This way they can look back and experience these things even after they move. You could get them an autograph book to have their friends and teachers sign. All these ideas will help your child with the moving process and possibly the grieving process that may follow.

Kids first. Once you make the move be sure to meet your kids’ needs first, if possible. Set up their rooms first; this will help them to feel secure and at home with their new surroundings. Get them on their schedule as soon as possible and stick with it. If there are community events or recreational programs that interest your children, get them involved! This would be a great way for them to not only move on with their new life, but maybe even find new friends!

All in all, relocating is not a fun experience for anyone. You will be surprised how these few tips will relieve the pressures on your own life as well as your children’s. Be sure to take care of yourself and your spouse in the process as well. Remember no one is doing this alone and you all are in it together.

If you are one of the 2 billion tech savvy people on earth, you will somehow notice the sudden rise of individuals and businesses who are taking to the internet in order to promote and boost their businesses, especially among real estate and mortgage professionals.

In Google, in Facebook, twitter and other social networking media, you see countless mortgage brokers real estate agents and their companies advertising their businesses, yet business is not necessarily looking so rosy and many marketing professionals do admit that marketing in the most popular media may not be enough to get you higher sales.

I recently met up with a group of network marketers who are doing a study on the impact of networking on business related to the mortgage and real estate industries, and they found out that although the high tech way is the wave in advertisement, it is still the low tech solutions that will eventually get results.

Here are a list of things that they found to be a bit of a hindrance when it comes to getting results from internet advertisement

1. Despite of the fact that it is a necessity, not everyone owns a computer or knows how to operate one.
2. Some mortgage brokers and real estate agents advertising on the internet do not post any contact number that the potential client may call.
3. Even if there is a contact number, no one is picking up the phone when it rings, as demonstrated recently on TBWS Daily.

The problem is that people have gotten so used to the technology that they are somehow expecting the customers to reply the same way. This might not be so wise, since most customers, as it turned out, still preferred the common human touch because customers can gauge honesty and sincerity this way.

If going low tech is no longer an option for you, the marketing professionals i met did recommend a few simple steps you can do:

1. Choose a time in the day in which you can recieve calls and post it on your website.
2. No one is expecting you give out your personal phone number, instead get a seperate phone number that is exclusively for customers.
3. If talking on the phone is not your thing, schedule a face to face meeting with the client and then discuss the services you can offer them.
4. Do not give up on the personal way of reaching out to customers, this is the best way to get your customers undivided attention

Even though we are still reeling from the effects of the real estate meltdown, the one bit of positive news that is somehow keeping us hoping for the good times is the news that foriegn buyers have been coming back to the U.S and buying properties again. This is the news coming from the National Association of Realtors who are accounting for 15% of their sales that are from foriegn buyers who are either looking for vacation homes or who have moved into the United States to start a new life. There is one place in the United States, however, who will not necessarily enjoy this upsurgence. This is the Desert state of Arizona.

In the past three months, Realtors, mortgage firms and even events coordinators has seen a dramatic decrease in their business and profits in the area. Arizona, which is already suffering from the effects of the real estate bubble, is also seeing an increase in foreclosures and abandoned houses as a huge number of immigrants and other people have begun fleeing the state.

SB 1070 or the Arizona Immigration Law was designed with the aim of protecting Arizona and hopefully, the whole country from crimes that are steming from the influx of illegal immigrants from the border to Mexico, in particular from the city of Juarez which is considered to be the hub of narcotic activity in Mexico. The idea is to give the police the power to question people who may be considered as an illegal immigrant, particularly in the streets.

The plan alarmed many who compared the policy to that of Apartheid Africa. And a lot of people are leaving and avoiding Arizona to avoid the treatment. A group of Hotels and events coordinators in Arizona had already reported that out of the 100 events that were scheduled in the various areas of Arizona, 85 had already cancelled in light of the enforcement of the law this July. Condominium units have also been vacanted at a really fast rate and owners are now having a difficult time looking for tenants to fill up the vacant units. Before the law came about, a huge number of dwellers in apartments and condominium units in Arizona were actually undocumented workers and their families and the owners of the units did not actually require any identification from the tenants before they were allowed to move in.

The possible enforcement of the law also exposed that lending companies and mortgage firms do entertain undocumented individuals and are providing them with loans. An unnamed senior loan officer from one of Arizona's largest mortgage firms actually admitted that before SB 1070 a lot of their potential clients are people of questionable citizenship, Most don't even know how to speak English, but the firms did provide them with loans and did not even require that the individuals have work permits. " The law is opening a lot of cans of worms" an unnamed realtor commented " Before, no one really cared if their clients are here legally, as long as they have the money to pay, companies readily accepted them"

But SB 1070 is causing another problem for realtors who are trying to market homes in Arizona. The murder of rancher Robert Krentz in March had actually painted Arizona as a seemingly dangerous place, with news of the drug cartel crossing the border to deliver narcotics to the United States and desperate migrants who will kill if they are not allowed thru is keeping people from Arizona and the image of the legal residents themselves who are now taking up arms to protect their properties are frightening legal citizens from moving into the state, especially those of Hispanic origins who feared that they might be targeted because of their ethnicity.

But as unsavory as the potential effect of this law might bring, other states like Nevada and Texas are actually considering adopting the same law with regards to the control of illegal immigrants, both of whom have issues with the Narcotic trade with Mexico and both have actually been badly affected by the Real Estate crisis

For the past 80 years, the Federal Housing Administration(FHA) loans has been the prime choice of lower and middle-income families to help them get mortgages for their homes. This government sponsored mortgage scheme has insured more than 33 million homes across the United States since 1934 and after the real estate bust of 2007, has found a new popularity among people who want to get houses but do not want to go through the crush of the traditional lending institutions.

But before you can say GOD-SEND, the FHA does have rules that may not be for everyone. Here are things you need to know before getting an FHA home loan.

1. It has relatively low loan limits. Unlike other mortgage companies, FHA has limits in the amount that you can borrow, which oftentimes mean that the amount might not be enough for your desired home.

2. You need to establish credit. Although you do not need to have a perfect credit history, you do need a credit history that the FHA can look into.

3. It has a rigid mortgage insurance structure. In the 1990's, the FHA began to lose its favor with homebuyers and real estate companies because of its rigid insurance and appraisal structure. A homebuyer must pay a fee up front and another fee monthly. This rule still applies even to those who have sufficient equity in their houses or a 20% loan to value ratio.

4. FHA loans are designed to serve only long-term home ownership. They are the most conservative of loan schemes and have limited loan options.

More q & a from my mortgage office, hope this helps you!

Lindsey M. in Smyrna, GA writes:

Stephen, I am hoping to buy a house next year and want to be in a position to get the best deal. I read an article recently that people with credit scores over 700 may still have to pay extra, is that true?

Lindsey, unfortunately this is correct. The entire mortgage industry has changed to a system of “Risk-based Pricing”. Quite simply it means that the lower your credit score, the more you are going to pay.

To get into the top bracket, you need to have a whopping 740 credit score (less than 3% of the population). The penalties can be very significant. For example: a borrower with a 718 score, seeking 80% financing on a $300,000 house, would get stuck with a $1,200 penalty!

My advice is to go to www.annualcreditreport.com and review a free copy of your credit report to make sure that there are no errors. You may also consider a legitimate credit repair service. For more information, please take a look at the credit repair section of my website. Stephen