Smart Borrower Blog

Archive for October, 2007

Lenders Struggling to Stay in the Game

Bear Stearns. Morgan Stanley. Lehman Brothers. Over 1/3 of the September job cuts are part of the slumping housing industry. Layoffs in the housing business totaled over 26,465 last month. In the mortgage industry, over 70,000 jobs were cut during the first 3/4 of this year. The layoffs are actually less than last September, though. Most of them are directly related to the housing market slowdown: home prices are dropping, delinquency and default are increasing. Morgan Stanley’s plan is to restructure by combining three residential mortgage branches. They’re also reportedly moving their headquarters, although the new location is largely being... more »

Shop the Loan Officer, Not the Mortgage

One of the biggest mistakes consumers make when seeking home financing is focusing on the loan product and not the loan officer or mortgage broker. I have always said that consumers would be better off shopping for the best mortgage broker they can find rather than the mortgage itself. Go ahead, let this concept marinate for a minute. What most consumers do not understand is that while mortgages are a commodity, the mortgage broker providing the financing is not. At the end of the day, the consumer’s experience will be determined by the expertise and ability of the mortgage broker.... more »

Repairing Credit Scores

Is it really as easy as “they” say to fix your credit score? Supposedly, if you have a mistake on your credit report, the Big Three credit agencies–Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion–are required to correct the errors. After all, such an error can cause you to be hounded by collection agencies, even if you are not responsible for the so-called overdue payment. And you can even be denied credit because of errors on your report. In 2003, a law was passed that gave consumers access to a free copy of their own credit report. But the Federal Trade Commission has received... more »