Even though November saw a dip in sales contracts, January’s activity is good - buyers are out and closings are happening regularly.   Mortgage payments are being lowered through refinances. Businesses are using the new year as a fresh start - gearing up for a successful year chock full of ambitious goals and positioning themselves for growth.  How are you starting the year off right?  I’d love to hear.

In mortgage news, the new GFE and HUD disclosures are in full effect.   The industry and borrowers are becoming familiar with the changes and seeking understanding of the GFE.  The new GFE has its good points and bad points.

The good news: gone are the days of home buyers getting to the closing table only to discover hundreds if not thousands more in closing costs. The new GFE now holds individual loan officers financially responsible for changes in costs.

The drawback of the new GFE is it doesn’t tell home buyers how much the home will cost every month and their total due at closing. Unbelievable but true. To make up for this obvious blunder, we’ve developed a simple mortgage worksheet. It’s much easier to understand than the new GFE and clearly spells out closing costs, escrows and even shows the monthly payment. Now that’s what I call serving the client in ‘good faith.’