Kim Murphy | Mortgage Loans in DuPage, Kane, Cook, Lake, Will Counties Illinois

The real estate market is a tougher place today. Underwriting guidelines are changing almost daily, rates are a roller coaster at times, and some buyers have listened to the doom and gloom of the media afraid to do anything in the real estate market. When I received a call from what seemed to be a very well qualified buyer interested in purchasing a couple of homes to rent out and to rehab, I was more than happy to help.

The referral came from a Realtor partner. I spoke to Mr. Smith (name changed to protect the guilty) about the first property, he wanted to make an offer. I gathered all of the information, which turned out to be his wifes information. According to Mr. Smith, his wife is a doctor for a well established clinic in an upscale area and just did not have the time to provide me with a phone call. I explained to Mr. Smith that I would prefer to speak with Mrs. Smith and in order to provide a "pre-approval" I would need supporting documentation. I do understand that at times one spouse may have more time than the other, but when speaking with one and the loan will be only under the other spouse I am uncomfortable with that.

I was referred to Mr. and Mrs. Smith's on staff full time accountant for all documentation necessary to provide a pre approval. I found this to be awkward and as difficult as getting a 2 year old to understand why they cant eat candy all day. It took almost 2 weeks to get just about everything I needed (2006/ 2007 W2's, 2 months bank statements, and other asset documentation) except the pay stubs. I spoke with the accountant on several occasions, but the last conversation with him concerned me. I asked about the copies of recent pay stubs and was asked if a copy of the check she received would be sufficient. I explained that I would need the stub as this would provide me with all the detailed information as well as year to date income, which would be necessary for underwriting at a later date anyway. Mr. Accountant informed me that Mrs. Smith is no longer a W2 employee, she is 1099. Now as a 1099 employee, she is self employed. Underwriting guidelines require 2 years self employment. Unless automated approval only requires a YTD profit and loss or 1 year current 1040's, which she would not have. After explaining this to Mr. Accountant within a day I received a call from the very busy Mrs. Smith.

Mrs. Smith wanted to check status on her pre-approval as well as tell me that they had put in an offer on another property and needed to close next week. I explained the issues with needing her pay stubs and that as her accountant told me she is now self employed. She was shocked, she does not know why her account said that, she was very sure she is still a W2 employee. I accepted that and asked that she provide me with her current pay stubs so that I could move forward with her pre approval process.

A couple of days later I received fax with 2 most recent pay stubs for Mrs. Smith. The pay stubs were created from quick books. One had a pay period date of 10/1/08 - 10/15/08, the other had a pay date of 10/16/08 - 10/18/08. The check stub was very vague, not your usual looking pay stub. Missing was some of the usual suspects, Medicare Tax and State Tax. I explained to Mrs. Smith that it looked like some of the deductions were missing from the pay stub. She was unsure why it was showing up this way, but she would see what she could do to correct this.

At this point the red flags were getting bigger and bigger. I did receive new pay stubs, with all the deductions now on the pay stubs but the dates were still unusual. I received several calls from Mr. Smith wanting to move forward. I informed my Realtor partner that I did not feel comfortable providing this information to my underwriter or providing a pre-approval for this borrower. My lively hood is and has been for almost 12 years now working with people to purchase and refinance homes. I love my work and can not and will not risk my license for something that just doesn't smell right.

Maybe I am being silly, maybe over reacting? My woman's intuition is telling me different. I have not knowingly been a part of mortgage fraud and even though as a loan officer my name is mud because of the others that have, I will continue to do what is right for me. So with all those red flags, I turned away a client.

Kim Murphy

1st Advantage Mortgage a Draper and Kramer Company

Providing Loans in Illinois for DuPage, Kane, Lake, Will and Cook Counties

Despite what the media is saying mortgage lending has NOT come to a complete hault. There are still great loan programs available, some of which do not require a 20% down payment or equity position, and some which still allow credit scores well under 720.

-FHA Cash out refinance to 95%. Equity line closed or frozen, still need cash for home improvements or college tuition. Want to consolidate high interest car loans and credit cards, and take advantage of tax deductible interest? As long as you have owned your home for at least 12 months you may be able to do an FHA cash out refinance up to 95% of your homes current value. Credit scores accepted as low as 580.

-FHA purchase loans to 97% FHA purchase mortgages still only require a 3.5% down payment! And, the down payment $$$ can come as a gift to the borrower from a family member or can be borrowed from most approved retirement accounts. Again, credit scores as low as 580 generally get approved, but the last 12 months must be clean. Sellers can pay up to 3% for closing costs, so today's homebuyer can take advantage of the great opportunities in the marketplace for as little as 3.0% out of pocket. With FHA rates still low, it's an outstanding time to buy!

VA loans with no money down. In the industry, we have talked a lot lately about things "going back to the way they used to be" Most qualified military veterans can still get a loan up to $417,000 with no money needed for a down payment. This is an outstanding benefit for the thousands of military heroes in the country today. In fact, this is one of the very few $0 money down loan still available in today's marketplace, as it should be; a special benefit to Veteran's of military service.

-Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) to 95%. We do still have a HELOC program that will allow you to borrow up to 95% of the current value of your home, less the outstanding 1^stmortgage balance. HELOC's are generally tied to the Prime lending rate which is very low today at 5%!

Guidelines have certainly changed a lot in the mortgage industry the last 1-2years and are still changing by the day. Many programs are gone or down payments and credit requirements have gotten much more restrictive. But, there are still great loans available to help in reaching your financial goals and objectives.

Kim Murphy, 1st Advantage Mortgage, A Draper and Kramer Company

Loans for DuPage, Kane, Cook, Will and Lake Counties

Today is a sad day for Carol Stream residents and students and staff of Bartlett High School.

An announcement was made at school today that Lenny (Leonard) Gulczynski was killed in the line of duty in Iraq. Lenny is a 2007 Graduate of Bartlett High School and joined the Army at 17. He followed in the footsteps of his father and others in his family fighting for our Country.

Bartlett High School will have their flag at half-mast in honor of this fallen soldier Friday September 19, 2007. They will also have a photo and wreath at the flagpole for any community members who would like to pay their respects, or leave memorials in honor of Lenny and his bravery.

I did not know Lenny well however, I remember when he played football with my son. Thank you Lenny for your service and fighting for our Country and our Freedom!

Added 9/19/09

Thank you to everyone who has read this post and offered their condolences and prayers for Lenny and his family. I have not heard any details of a service yet. I will post when I learn more. I am looking for anyone from the Patriot Guards and will also recruit Rescue Riders to ride with Lenny in honor of his service. Please contact me to arrange the details.

Dean Akey of Akey Financial Services is an Insurance Agent in St. Charles Illinois. He provides insurance for Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa and Missouri. I met Dean through my husband when he joined Dean in his quest to help other bikers with Rescue Riders. We did a ride for a charity a month or so ago and I finally had the pleasure to meet Dean. As you can tell by his picture, he is not your typical looking Insurance Agent. But then again, Don't judge a book by its cover, as I explained last year.

I was first impressed by Deans size. He's a very tall man, my guess about 6 foot 6', bald and tattooed. I also discovered his passion for Rescue Riders a non for profit group he started. Dean has also raised 1,000's of dollars to help many charities. In 2008 Dean won a prestigious Award. He was awarded the Ray Lynch Award for exceptional customer service.

Dean has hit the ground running on AR with 2 blogs. His first gives you an in site on insurance, with a informative and sensible approach in You are doing it all wrong. Then he topped it with One of these things is not like the other, providing information on how to lower your current tax bill.

Please take a look at Dean's first 2 blogs and welcome him as I believe he will be a great asset to the Rain.

In June last year I posted about protecting your credit. In light of my recent issue where an Employee at Countrywide sold my informationI will be taking my own advice. When your information has been compromised it is important to be pro active. During times when people become more desperate they stoop to desperate measures. Unfortunately fraud and identity theft is a major problem and continues to grow.

I felt it important to repost this information!

Illinois Mortgage Lender warns Protect your credit ~Part 2

Protecting yourself when falling victim to identity theft

Place a freeze on your credit with all 3 credit bureaus. To place a freeze on your credit the credit bureaus will ask for a copy of your police report must be provided to show that you are a victim of identity theft. When a freeze is placed on your credit, none of your credit information can be shared with potential creditors. You can place a freeze on your credit to also avoid identity theft, however you will have to remove the freeze to apply for credit. Placing a freeze on your credit will cost $10.00 with each credit bureau, unless you have been a victim of identity theft or over the age of 65.

The 3 major credit bureaus are:

Trans Union

To order your report call 800-916-8800 or go to the website

To report fraud call 800-680-7289

To request a security freeze:

Trans Union Security Freeze

PO Box 6790

Fullerton CA 92834

Experian

To order your report call 888-397-3742 or go to the website

To report fraud call 888-397-3742

To request a security freeze:

Experian Security Freeze

PO Box 9554

Allen TX 75013

Equifax

To order your credit report call 800-685-1111 or go to the website

To report fraud call 800-525-6285

To request a security freeze:

Equifax Security Freeze

PO Box 105788

Atlanta GA 30348

To place a security freeze each credit bureau will require a letter sent by certified mail. If you are a victim of identity theft you will have to include a copy of the police report, your full name, (including middle initial as well as Jr., Sr., II, III etc.) address, Social Security number and date of birth. You should also include information stating your addresses for the past 5 years, proof of current address, such as utility bill or phone bill, and a photocopy of a government issued identification card. (Drivers license, State ID card, or Military ID, etc.) If you are not a victim of identity theft and under the age of 65, you will also need to include a check or money order payable to the credit bureau for $10.00.

After 5 business days from receiving your letter, the credit reporting agencies will place a freeze on your credit. Ten business days from receiving your letter to place a freeze on your credit, the credit agency will send you a confirmation letter containing a PIN or password.

You can open new credit accounts if you temporarily lift the freeze on your credit. To do this you will have to contact the credit agencies, provide proper identification, your PIN or password provided by them and inform the credit agency of the period of time your credit report will be accessible. Or you may give the credit reporting agency the name of the company you want the freeze lifted for. If you are not a victim of identity theft or are under the age of 65 each time you temporarily lift the freeze the cost for each bureau is $10.00. The credit bureaus must lift the freeze no later than 3 business days from receiving your request. You can order your own credit report through each bureau while your credit report is frozen, but anyone else will receive a message or code stating that the file is frozen.

Who is using your credit?~Part 1

Kim Murphy

Providing home loans for Illinois including DuPage, Kane, Cook, Lane and Will counties for over 11 years!